Federal Regulations

摘要

President Obama on Nov. 21 signed into law legislation repealing the requirement that federal, state and local agencies withhold 3% of payments to contractors, beginning in 2013. The repeal is a victory for construction industry groups, who lobbied heavily for its passage. Officials say that if the requirement-initially signed into law in 2006-had taken effect in 2013, businesses from virtually all aspects of the economy would suffer. Construction sources say that with so few private funds available for projects, many firms rely on public work. The Associated General Contractors says that, in a recent survey, 55% of construction-firm respondents noted that public projects accounted for more than half of their 2010 revenue. About 63% said that profit margin on public projects averaged less than 3%.