As Congress returns from its July 4 break, construction groups' priorities include the unfinished set of fiscal 2008 appropriations bills, a long-delayed Water Resources Development Act and a multiyear aviation measure. Final action on most of those items probably won't come until after lawmakers' August recess.
By early July, the House had passed six of the eleven 2008 appropriations bills, including those funding Interior Dept. and Environmental Protection Agency programs. The Senate approved none of the spending measures.