With less than two weeks before delegate groups from the Nation Roofing Contractors Association make their annual pilgrimage to Capitol Hill for meetings with lawmakers and policy stakeholders, the trade group is putting the finishing touches on this year’s agenda ahead of Roofing Day 2024.

Scheduled for April 16-17, roofing professionals representing contractors, suppliers and related fields have some specific agenda items they hope to address with their congressional representatives, including:

Workforce and Labor Shortages

The roofing industry encourages Congress to support solutions to workforce shortages by: 

• Providing a robust increase in funding for Perkins Career and Technical Education State Grants to help close the skills gap in the workforce. 
• Supporting the Stronger Workforce for America Act (H.R. 6655), bipartisan legislation to reform training programs under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to ensure more job creators and workers can benefit. 
• Co-sponsorship of the Essential Workers for Economic Advancement Act (H.R. 3734) to establish a visa system that meets the demands of a 21st-century economy. 
• Supporting the allowance of qualified individuals currently working under Temporary Protected Status or the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program to adjust to lawful permanent status so they can continue contributing to our communities.    

Taxes

• The roofing industry encourages members of Congress to co-sponsor the Main Street Tax Certainty Act (H.R. 4721/S. 1706)
• The Main Street Tax Certainty Act makes the Section 199A deduction permanent, an essential part of the tax code. Without it, individually- and family-owned businesses organized as pass-through entities would pay significantly higher taxes, putting them at a competitive disadvantage and accelerating economic consolidation taking place in our economy. 
• The roofing industry requests co-sponsorship of the American Innovation and R&D Competitiveness Act (H.R. 2673/S.866), which would permanently restore the ability for businesses to immediately deduct their research and development expenses in the year incurred rather than amortized over five years for domestic companies.

The NRCA, which sponsors and coordinates the annual Roofing Day pilgrimage, says its primary goal is to establish long-term relationships with lawmakers in Congress that will help achieve important policy goals for the roofing industry's future.

The event is the trade group’s principal opportunity to raise awareness of the aforementioned issues and advocate for policies that can help alleviate those challenges and support the roofing industry's future growth and sustainability.

While registration is now closed, the NRCA says those still interested in attending should email Deborah Mazol, director of Federal Affairs, at dmazol@nrca.net.