Federal construction bill strips union protections, favors non-union contractors
S. 1064 — FOCA Act · Filed by Todd Young (R-IN) · 23 cosponsors · Introduced Mar 13, 2025 · Referred to committee
Your members of Congress
Enter a ZIP to see where your representative and both senators stood on this bill.
Looked up on this device — your ZIP is never stored on our servers.
What it does
This bill prohibits federal agencies and contractors receiving federal funds from requiring or prohibiting workers to join unions on federal construction projects. It bars agencies from favoring or penalizing bidders based on union status, and requires the Federal Acquisition Regulation to be updated within 60 days to enforce this neutrality. The bill aims to reduce construction costs, expand competition, and prevent discrimination based on labor affiliation.
Why we flagged it
The bill's operative mechanism is a prohibition on union-preference or union-requirement clauses in federal construction contracts. While framed as 'neutrality,' it functionally restricts the ability of federal agencies and contractors to negotiate union agreements on federally funded projects.
What the text implies
- Removes prevailing-wage and union-security provisions that have historically protected construction worker compensation on federal projects, potentially lowering wages across the sector.
- May shift bargaining power away from workers toward contractors, especially on large federal projects where union density has been highest.
The full analysis lists 4 implications of this text.
Who stands to gain
Non-union construction contractors; General contractors seeking to reduce labor costs; Construction companies with lower union density