ABC’s Empire State chapter March 31 joined with business and political leaders to file a lawsuit asking that amendments made in 2008 to New York State’s Wicks Law be declared unconstitutional.
The Wicks Law has been in existence since 1912 and, as amended in 2008, now requires all contractors bidding on projects over a threshold amount have an apprenticeship program in place for at least three years. In addition, the 2008 changes alter the dollar amount that triggers the law so that it applies to projects worth more than $500,000 in upstate New York, but only applies to projects worth more than $3 million in New York City.
The lawsuit points out that these different requirements for eligibility violate the state constitution and that the amendments made in 2008 effectively exclude out-of-state contractors, violating the U.S. Constitution.
In addition, ABC Empire State chapter President Rebecca Meinking noted that a study conducted by the state of New York shows that provisions in Wicks Law requiring the use of multiple prime contractors on local government contracts raise construction costs by $300 million each year.
“This law has forced almost $9 billion in additional costs on New York taxpayers over just the past 30 years and increases the possibility of corruption and racketeering in the construction industry,” said Meinking. “Now, as amended, it excludes virtually all minority and women owned businesses from all significant public works projects.”
To read an article about Wicks Law, click
here.