Roofing industry calls for increased funding for Perkins CTE State Grants
NRCA and roofing industry allies sent a letter to Congress requesting a robust increase over the fiscal year 2026 enacted level of $1.4 billion for Perkins Career and Technical Education State Grants. This funding is critical to providing students with the resources and opportunities they need to excel in their studies and help ensure our nation has the skilled workforce necessary for the future.
Chronic workforce shortages are the top challenge facing roofing industry employers across the U.S. as demographic trends make it increasingly difficult to find qualified candidates for well-paying, family-sustaining jobs. Increased funding for Perkins CTE State Grants is essential to providing strategies and tools to help employers address future workforce development needs.
In addition, on April 3, the Trump administration released its fiscal year 2027 budget request for federal agencies such as the Department of Education and Department of Labor. This proposal requests level funding for Perkins State Grants at $1.4 billion, and the funding would be transferred from DOE to DOL to match the Inter-agency Agreement signed in spring 2025. The president’s annual budget request is used to outline the administration’s priorities for federal investments, and Congress will establish its own budget parameters via the annual appropriations process.
NRCA and coalition partners will be advocating for increased funding for Perkins CTE State Grants during Roofing Day in D.C. April 14-15 and throughout the year to help build the necessary pipeline of skilled workers needed for roofing and other trades.
Trump modifies tariffs on steel, aluminum and copper
President Trump issued a proclamation to modify tariffs on imported steel, aluminum and copper and place new tariffs on patented pharmaceutical products, with both actions coming under the authority of Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. Regarding the tariffs on imported metals, the proclamation indicates the following changes in how the tariffs are assessed:
- Articles made entirely or almost entirely of steel, aluminum and copper will pay a flat 50% on their full value.
- Derivative articles substantially made of steel, aluminum and copper will pay a flat 25% on their full value.
- Certain metal-intensive industrial equipment will pay a 15% tariff through 2027.
- Products made abroad but entirely with American steel, aluminum and copper will be subject to a 10% tariff.
- Products made of 15% or less steel, aluminum or copper will no longer be subject to Sec. 232 tariffs; however, such products will be subject to the 10% global minimum tariff issued in February under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974.
These changes took effect April 6. Administration officials indicate the purpose of the modifications is to simplify compliance issues experienced under the previous tariff regime. Some observers have noted the effects of the changes will vary widely on various products, including affected products used within the roofing industry. View a White House fact sheet for more information.
Discharge Petition on legislation to reinstate TPS for Haiti
Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) has announced a Discharge Petition on H.R. 1689, legislation to direct the Trump administration to extend Temporary Protected Status for Haiti, has obtained the required 218 signatures of House lawmakers and will likely force a House floor vote on the bill. A Discharge Petition is a procedural rule that allows House members to force a floor vote on legislation that is bottled up in committee if they can obtain majority support from their colleagues to support such action.
TPS was enacted by Congress in 1990 to allow qualifying individuals to live and work in the U.S. legally because of wars, natural disasters and other humanitarian conditions in their home country. In 2025, the Department of Homeland Security terminated TPS for about 350,000 individuals from Haiti—many of whom have been working legally in the roofing industry for many years—ruling that conditions in Haiti have sufficiently improved to end the TPS designation. In February, a U.S. district court ruled DHS’s termination was unlawful and postponed the termination, and in March, the Supreme Court agreed to review the decision upon the Trump administration’s appeal.
Pressley’s Discharge Petition 15 was signed by all House Democrats and four Republicans—Reps. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) and Maria Salazar (R-Fla.). The underlying legislation that would reinstate TPS for Haiti through January 2029 could be voted on in the House soon under rules for bills considered under a Discharge Petition. If approved, the bill will go to the Senate, where it likely faces an uphill battle to obtain the 60 votes needed to overcome a potential filibuster.
OSHA issues proposed regulation
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued a proposed rule to remove a deadline in the agency’s walking-working surfaces standard for installing fall-arrest or ladder safety systems on all fixed ladders that extend more than 24 feet above a lower level.
A provision in the November 2016 final standard mandated these fixed ladders must include a fall-arrest or ladder safety system by Nov. 18, 2036. The removal of this deadline will allow employers to upgrade their ladders at the end of their service lives, recognizing the durability of fixed ladders. This change will significantly lower costs and enhance flexibility for employers.
The existing requirement that any new fixed ladders must be equipped with a personal fall-arrest system or ladder safety system remains unchanged.
OSHA will accept public comment on the proposal through June 5, and more information is available in the Federal Register notice published April 6. NRCA will review the proposed rule and submit comments based on member feedback.
