Supply chain problems and materials shortages are turning into headaches for contractors bidding or working on government infrastructure projects. Now, some construction associations say they’ve found a source of funds to help cope with pandemic-induced delays and higher costs, if the U.S. Treasury Dept. will agree.
In a Nov. 29 letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, the Associated General Contractors of America, American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, American Road & Transportation Builders Association, American Traffic Safety Services Association and 15 other groups ask the department to clarify that state and local government recipients of $350 billion in American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act funds can use the money to “mitigate the effects of supply chain shortages, such as for material price increases and the effects they are having on project costs.”