Washington, D.C. – Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) today presented U.S. Congressman John Kline (R- Minn.) with the Free Enterprise Legislator of the Year award. Each year, during its Legislative Conference, ABC honors a member of Congress whose public service parallels the ideals upon which ABC was founded: the principles of full and open competition and the advancement of the free-market system.
“Congressman Kline is a great friend of the merit shop construction industry and a strong ally in Congress,” said Bill Fairchild, 2008 ABC national chairman and president of R.W. Murray Co., Manassas, Va. “We are grateful for his efforts on Capitol Hill and look forward to working with him on issues that help to advance free enterprise.”
A 25-year veteran of the Marine Corps, Kline was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2002, and currently serves on the House Armed Services Committee and the House Education and Labor Committee, where he is Ranking member of the Health, Labor, Employment and Pensions subcommittee. In the 110th Congress, Kline has led the fight against the “Employee Free Choice Act” (H.R. 800), legislation that would rob workers of their right to a private ballot election when deciding if they want union representation. More recently, he introduced the “Green Jobs Improvement Act of 2008” (H.R. 6220), a bill that will allow merit shop training programs access to federal funding to train workers in the areas of energy efficiency and renewable energy practices.
Nearly 600 ABC members from across the nation were in Washington, D.C., June 17-19, to attend ABC’s 2008 Legislative Conference, which featured remarks by Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) and Karl Rove, former deputy chief of staff to President Bush.
About Associated Builders and Contractors
Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) is a national association representing nearly 25,000 merit shop construction and construction-related firms in 78 chapters across the United States. Visit us at www.abc.org