The survey will close by the  middle of August.
We continue to hear from many of you that the labor market remains tight. While it is clear that worker shortages are, in some cases, a significant problem for many contractors, we feel it is important to continue our efforts to better quantify where these shortages are taking place, how severe they are, and what steps firms are taking to both cope with tight labor markets and improve the supply of new, qualified workers. That is why we will be asking members to take a few minutes to complete the following workforce survey that we have prepared. The more people understand the scope, and consequences, of a tight construction labor market, the more likely they are to act on the measures we identify in our Workforce Development Plan that are designed to make it easier for school systems, local associations and private firms to establish career and technical education and training programs. We invite you to share this survey with your members so that we can hear from as many voices as possible. Thank you for your help in getting the word out. Take the survey here. 

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced the pre-publication version of a proposed rule to rescind the Obama-era 2015 "Waters of the United States" (WOTUS) rule that defines what streams, wetlands and other wet areas are controlled by the federal government and subject to the permitting requirements of the Clean Water Act. This action is the first step in a comprehensive, two-step process intended to review and revise the definition of WOTUS consistent with President Trump's Executive Order on "Restoring the Rule of Law, Federalism, and Economic Growth by Reviewing the 'Waters of the United States' Rule."

This first step (when finalized) would re-codify the regulatory text that existed prior to 2015 WOTUS rule. That is currently the controlling law, as a result of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit's stay of the 2015 rule. Therefore, this proposed rule does not change current practice with respect to what WOTUS definition applies: The agencies will continue to use the 1986 regulations and applicable jurisdictional guidance (status quo as it existed before the 2015 rule) in making jurisdictional determinations or taking other actions based on the definition of WOTUS.