Legislature’s Budget would Help Fund Infrastructure Projects & Create Jobs
(TRENTON) – Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin on Wednesday thanked the Mercer and Burlington building trades for their support of the Legislature’ budget, which will help make necessary infrastructure improvements, create jobs and better enforce the state’s prevailing wage laws.
Speaker Coughlin (D-Middlesex) met today with leaders from Mercer County Building Trades, Insulators Local 89 and IBEW Local 269 in Lawrence to discuss the Legislature’s budget and the investment it makes to infrastructure repairs, fair wages and job growth.
“I want to thank the Mercer and Burlington trade unions for recognizing the contribution that the Legislature’s budget makes towards our transportation infrastructure, which will help make our roadways safer and create jobs. Our budget also provides additional funds to better enforce our prevailing wage laws so the workers doing these jobs are paid fairly and adequately,” said Coughlin.
The Legislature’s budget provides an additional $100 million to the governor’s proposed $2 billion allocation to the state Transportation Capital Program for infrastructure repairs and improvements throughout the state.
“We promised residents that the purpose of raising the gas tax was to rebuild the state’s infrastructure. In keeping with that promise, we took one step further than the governor and added another $100 million for local transportation projects,” said Coughlin.
The Legislature’s budget also provides an additional $500,000 to the Department of Labor and Workforce Development to hire more staff to enforce the New Jersey Prevailing Wage Act.
The act covers all workers employed on a public works project valued at a certain threshold. A “public works” project is one contracted for and paid for by a public body, such as a school district. The New Jersey Prevailing Wage Act sets minimum rates of pay for the workers on covered projects.
“Our budget gives the Department of Labor additional funds so they can employ more people to enforce the state’s prevailing wage laws, which ensure our workers are paid fairly,” said Coughlin.
Coughlin met with Wayne DeAngelo, President, Mercer County Building Trades, Sam Rubino
Vice President, Mercer County Building Trades, Charles Whalen, Treasurer, Mercer County Building Trades, Fred DuMont, Business Manager, Insulators Local 89 and Steve Aldrich, Business Manager, IBEW Local 269.