Month: May 2021

The New York State Environmental Facilities Corp. board of directors has approved more than $48 million in grants, interest-free loans, and low-cost loans to support vital drinking water and wastewater infrastructure projects across New York state, including two local projects.

The 2022 Enacted Budget adds a $500 million appropriation to support clean water, raising the state’s total investment to $4 billion and continuing to fulfill the state’s $5 billion clean water commitment, officials said.

“Clean water and functioning water infrastructure are essential parts of the standard of living and qualify-of-life for all New Yorkers, and towns and villages across the state have an ongoing need for wastewater treatment plants and water tanks that needs to be filled,” Gov. Andrew Cuomo said. “The newly enacted budget dedicates $500 million to support clean water initiatives which increases our investment and brings the state closer to fulfilling its commitment to New Yorkers. These projects will underscore our pledge to help protect the environment and the health of New York’s residents and families.”

Environmental Facilities Corporation President and CEO Joseph Rabito said, “By approving these grants and low-cost financing for critical water infrastructure work, the EFC board of directors has ensured that communities statewide can cost-effectively undertake important projects that help protect our precious water resources.”

Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker said, “These significant state investments help municipalities prioritize programs to upgrade outdated drinking water infrastructure and implement treatment necessary to improve water quality in communities statewide.”

Construction employment was unchanged from March to April as nonresidential contractors and homebuilders alike struggled to obtain materials and find enough workers, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of government data released May 7.

Association officials said the industry’s recovery was being hampered by problems getting stable prices and reliable deliveries of key materials, while the pandemic and federal policies were making it harder for firms to find workers to hire.

“Contractors are experiencing unprecedented intensity and range of cost increases, supply-chain disruptions, and worker shortages that have kept firms from increasing their workforces,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “These challenges will make it difficult for contractors to rebound as the pandemic appears to wane.”

Construction employment in April totaled 7,452,000, matching the March total but amounting to 196,000 employees or 2.6 percent below the most recent peak in February 2020. The number of former construction workers who were unemployed in April, 768,000, dropped by half from a year ago and the sector’s unemployment rate fell from 16.6 percent in April 2020 to 7.7 percent last month.

“The fact that employment has stalled—despite strong demand for new homes, remodeling of all types, and selected categories of nonresidential projects—suggests that contractors can’t get either the materials or the workers they need,” Simonson said.

The economist noted that many firms report key materials are backlogged or rationed, while others report they are having a hard time getting former workers to return to work. He added these factors are contributing to rising costs for many contractors, which are details in the association’s updated Construction Inflation Alert.