NY Governor Signs Prevailing Wage Expansion; MBI Continues To Fight For Carve-Out In Next Session 

On December 20, New York Gov. Kathy Hocul signed S.2536.  In its current form, this bill will expand prevailing wage to offsite “custom fabrication,” and directly implicates our industry by specifically covering “portions or modules of” a project.  

While we are disappointed Gov. Hochul chose to sign this misguided legislation into law, we are thankful for the open communication and collaboration from the Governor’s office as well as the bill’s original sponsor, Assemblymember Harry Bronson (D-Rochester).  

MBI worked tirelessly with Gov. Hochul’s office and Asm. Bronson to explain how the modular industry in New York will be impacted by this bill. As a result of this outreach and education, we are hopeful that in the next legislative session, the state legislature will quickly take up and adopt a chapter amendment to exclude a significant portion of modular work from prevailing wage coverage. Doing so will help secure the industry’s future in New York as the state begins to address several crises in its built environment: mainly in its dire shortage of affordable housing.  

We look forward to continuing our dialogue with the Governor, Assemblymember Bronson, and all other stakeholders through the chapter amendment process to ensure that New York can be a leader in innovative construction technology, worker protection, and housing production.