Annual Convention and Capitol Hill Visits

As part of the Annual ACEC Convention, myself and attending members headed to Capitol Hill to meet with members of our Congressional Delegation and their staff to discuss the federal issues impacting the business of engineering. This year we brought familiar issues back to Congress which included the following:

Research & Development (R&D) Tax Credit Amortization 

Amortization has led to significantly higher tax bills, requiring firms in many cases to use loans to pay the tax, put off needed investments in their workforce, delay equipment purchases and set aside plans to grow. We thanked our House members for their support of the H.R. 7024 which restore the deductibility of R&D expenses and asked Senator Cassidy and Kennedy to push for the hearing of the Tax Relief for American Families Act. Though our Senators both expressed their support for the R&D fix they did not seem optimistic that the deductibility would be restored in this Congress. 

Workforce Development and Talent Pipeline

It is no secret that firms around the country are in a workforce pinch especially when it comes to finding engineers. Here in Louisiana it seems like the challenges are amplified as we continue to compete with our neighboring states for a limited number of engineers. ACEC supports a comprehensive approach to this challenge, including long-term strategies to promote STEM education investments at the local, state, and federal levels, and other programs that inspire young people to pursue engineering careers. In the near term, ACEC advocates for better alignment of the nation’s immigration policies with a pro-growth economic policy and expansion of tax provisions that allow employers to provide educational assistance to their employees. For Louisiana specifically, we focused on investments in STEM education and increasing the $5,250 cap that is on the Section 127 for student loan repayments. 

IIJA and the Next Infrastructure Funding Bill

Conversations with members concerning IIJA were mixed to say the least. As you can imagine, some praised it for its unprecedented investment in infrastructure while others cautioned against its effectiveness especially related to the total amount of funding Louisiana has received to date. Two things we focused on in our meetings was: 1) remove red tape by directly funding local governments who can fund and manage their own projects and 2) improve and accelerate the permitting process so that it can keep up with funding allocations and timelines. 

Another benefit from these meetings is developing a working relationship with our delegation and their staff. Each meeting presented an opportunity for us to share life experiences outside the above listed topics and for them to do the same. We left each meeting with delegation members and/or their staff offering their support on any issues that our member firms may face collectively or as individuals. To that point, do not hesitate to let me know if I can assist on a fed issue you or your firm may be facing.

I would like to extend a special thank you to Senator Cassidy, Congresswoman Letlow, Congressman Higgins and Congressman Graves who all took the time out of their busy schedules to meet with us in person. Also, big shout out to Speaker Johnson for getting us on the Speaker's Balcony and to Congressman Graves for an incredible night tour of the Capitol.