Hubacz-Kiley: Industry’s ‘essential’ status providing some reassurance

From the beginning of the COVID-19 shutdown, the aggregate industry was very fortunate to be classified as an “essential” service. There was no lag in production, and this will continue to assist us as the year progresses.

As the nation moves through different phases of reopening, we see some positive legislative movement in government. We look forward to the next relief package. Hopefully, it will create jobs and advance our economy by supporting infrastructure investments – particularly those that address budget shortfalls in state Departments of Transportation and local agencies.

I am very optimistic that the House and Senate will be able to eventually compromise and put forth a bipartisan infrastructure bill. A largely partisan bill left the House of Representatives. It was a $1.5 trillion infrastructure bill that includes a $319 billion highways reauthorization title that moved through the Transportation & Infrastructure Committee. Hopefully, this is the start we need to move forward.

Karen Hubacz-Kiley is COO at Bond Construction Corp., which is based in Spencer, Massachusetts.

Editor’s note: As part of our Road to Recovery coverage, P&Q is turning to some of the industry’s leaders for their takes on the road ahead. Leaders such as Hubacz-Kiley were posed with the following question: As you look to the remainder of 2020, what factors give you reason for optimism about the aggregate industry?