Emma Hardy: “Before I had the privilege of being elected to the 114th Congress, I spent more than four decades in the construction…”

“Before I had the privilege of being elected to the 114th Congress, I spent more than four decades in the construction industry. After growing up as a fifth-generation son of a farmer and rancher, I set out to learn the trades and acquire the skills that would one day allow me to support myself and my family. Over the course of those four decades in construction, I learned what it takes to start and run a successful business and how to create quality, good-paying jobs. I also learned the satisfaction of seeing the fruits of our labor in the roads, bridges, and dams we built and how they define the communities we serve. Mr. Chairman, small construction businesses like the one I used to own are struggling all across America from Federal bureaucracy that is rife with delays, duplication, and uncertainty. I can speak from firsthand experience about construction projects that have ground to a halt as resources are redirected to navigate the onerous NEPA process. On projects like the ones I used to manage, NEPA delays meant idled equipment, mass layoffs, and millions of dollars going towards compliance. These are sunk costs on the macro level and will continue to hold our economy back. We need to get smart about environment protection and to ensure that we do it in ways that allow businesses to thrive. H.R. 348, the RAPID Act, will go a long way toward achieving that goal. Mr.…”