[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 127 (Tuesday, October 4, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10975-S10976]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. DeMINT:
  S. 1817. A bill to suspend the Davis-Bacon Wage rate requirements for 
Federal contracts in areas declared national disasters; to the 
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
  Mr. DeMINT. Mr. President, today I introduce the Cleanup and 
Reconstruction Enhancement Act, CARE Act, legislation that would free 
those trying to

[[Page S10976]]

rebuild after emergencies from burdensome regulations imposed by the 
Davis-Bacon Act.
  As Chairman of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Disaster 
Prevention and Prediction, I traveled to the gulf coast to see the 
destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina. My heart went out to the 
victims and their families, and my hope was to see the infrastructure 
there restored as quickly as possible to avoid further destruction and 
loss of life. Unfortunately, Federal law places barriers on our efforts 
to respond to Hurricane Katrina quickly and efficiently.
  The Inspector General at the U.S. Department of Labor concluded in a 
May 2004 report that 84 percent of Davis-Bacon wage determination 
surveys take more than a year and a half to complete, forcing emergency 
projects to use outdated wage determinations and to suffer needless 
delays. The Davis-Bacon Act also prohibits the use of entry-level 
workers classified as ``helpers'' on federally funded projects, and 
artificially raises construction costs by up to 33 percent. 
Furthermore, the Davis-Bacon Act discourages many small businesses from 
bidding on public projects, because contractors who are unfamiliar with 
the complex set of laws and regulations often choose not to participate 
in reconstruction efforts or end up being cited or sued for naively 
violating laws.
  For these reasons, Davis-Bacon regulations were suspended by 
Executive Order 11 days after Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast. 
Knowing what we know now, it is unconscionable for us to force victims 
of future disasters to suffer through any waiting period before we 
remove barriers to reconstruction. The CARE Act would automatically 
trigger a year-long suspension of Davis-Bacon Act rules in all future 
disaster sites that receive an emergency declaration from the 
President.
  I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 1817

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Cleanup and Reconstruction 
     Enhancement Act'' or ``CARE Act''.

     SEC. 2. SUSPENSION OF DAVIS-BACON WAGE REQUIREMENTS IN 
                   NATIONAL DISASTER AREAS.

       Section 3147 of title 40, United States Code, is amended by 
     adding at the end the following: ``In any area that the 
     President determines to be a major disaster under section 
     102(2) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and 
     Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5122(2)), the provisions 
     of this subchapter shall not apply for a period of 1 year 
     from the date on which the President makes such 
     determination.''.

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