With Albany failing to take action to reform New York's costly liability law, the Scaffold Law, Congressman Nick Langworthy is taking on the issue in Washington with the "2025 Infrastructure Expansion Act" (H.R. 3548). 

The 2025 Infrastructure Expansion Act would override New York's antiquated Scaffold Law on any federally funded project. This override, or preemption, would require that the standard of liability for any actions brought in court be comparable negligence and not absolute liability. This is the standard used in every other state in the nation. It would assess fault for an accident between the parties and compare their negligence in determining any damages.

Under this legislation, taxpayers and construction firms would be safeguarded against wasteful spending and out-of-control liability costs.

New York taxpayers are currently wasting hundreds of millions of dollars each year because of the Scaffold Law's expensive liability rules. This not only diminishes the ability to build much-needed housing and public infrastructure, but it also drains resources to maintain schools, bridges, parks, and roads.  Projects that are federally funded, such as the $7.5 billion Gateway rail tunnel project, or the $6 billion Penn Station project, for example, are unnecessarily more expensive due to New York's Scaffold Law. 

The Scaffold Law also increases the occurrence of staged construction accident fraud in New York. New York State is grappling with a growing number of fraudulent insurance claims arising from staged construction accidents, leading to greatly inflated construction costs across the state. Contractors and developers have become encumbered with increasing insurance premiums, which are ultimately passed down to consumers and result in higher housing expenses for New Yorkers.

It is estimated that this law increases the total cost of construction by between 5-10%. That equates to hundreds of millions of dollars wasted each year.

Congressman Langworthy's bill would put an end to that waste by applying the federal liability standard for construction projects that receive any funding from the federal government. This legislation is an important first step in promoting safer worksites, reducing the liability burden on independent contractors, and making sure already scarce infrastructure dollars go further.

Please take a moment to tell your local Member of Congress to co-sponsor and support H.R. 3548 today.