This report from Jobs to Move America demonstrates that the lifting of a Reagan-era regulation prohibiting cities and states from using local hire policies in federally-funded construction projects would create stronger local economies, advance racial equity, and increase the ways that cities and states can create good jobs while building and repairing infrastructure.

A decades-old ban on local hire forbids cities and states from using local hire policies to specify a geographic preference for job creation in any public procurement funded with federal dollars.

The first stride toward eliminating this prohibition came under the Obama administration through the Local Labor Hiring Pilot project. “JMA is the first organization to analyze data from the Obama-era pilot project and found that using local hire does not adversely impact the number of bidders or bid price, contrary to the original justification for prohibiting local hire,” said Madeline Janis, JMA’s executive director.

The report also found that the pilot revealed extensive societal and economic benefits of local hire in creating jobs for local residents, especially for marginalized workers.

A national coalition of over 160 elected officials, community groups, and academics have joined Jobs to Move America in signing a letter calling on the Biden administration to swiftly remove the prohibition on local hire.

View the report here:
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