Remembering Congresswoman Jackie Walorski
The Indiana utility construction industry suffered a great loss after the news of the tragic accident and death of Indiana’s U.S. Representative Jackie Walorski on Aug. 3. Her personal grace and kindness to her constituents and our industry members across Indiana was clearly the foundation she built upon for her invaluable Congressional support to those who build Indiana’s heavy civil engineering projects.
Here, NUCA of Indiana members share their thoughts about Rep. Walorski and the considerate and honorable impressions she made on those she met with her over the years.
“I’ve worked with Rep. Walorski for over a decade, and she exemplified all that I could wish for from my congressional representative. Jackie always made time for constituents, cared about our industry’s issues, and would do her best to resolve any problems we encountered in our member’s projects. She always supported NUCA of Indiana and our positions. She would also always make us defend our positions, and wasn’t afraid of the back-and-forth it took to get us on the same page. I feel terrible for her staffers and their families—she was generous to them like her own family. I’m just at a loss,” remarked Kurt Youngs, president of NUCA of Indiana.
“I was saddened to hear of Rep. Walorski and her staffers’ deaths. I will always recall how engaged she was with us whenever we were in Washington to meet. She would take the time out of her busy schedule to make sure she met with us personally and listen to our thoughts and concerns and how our issues impacted all of her constituents. She was a champion for us Hoosiers and all Americans. I have met several Representatives and Senators over the years, and I found her and her staff always to be some of the most genuine and caring. Her passing will be a great void to fill,” said David Howell, division manager for Midwest Mole in Greenfield, Ind.
“I had the honor of meeting with Rep. Walorski every year since I began attending NUCA’s Washington Summits since 2013. If she was in the Capitol voting on issues, she would have her staffers escort us from her office over to the U.S. Capitol so she could meet us, sometimes even having to pause our meeting so she could go and vote, and promptly returning and picking right back up where we left off. Congresswoman Walorski was just a genuine, wonderful woman who truly cared for people, constituents, and non-constituents. Her staffers absolutely loved working for her. She treated everyone with such kindness. She was everything you could have wished for in a Congresswoman and will be deeply missed,” said Rebecca Risdon, executive director of NUCA of Indiana.
“There are good people who come to Congress and bring their genuine warmth and care to their job, and Rep. Walorski was certainly one of those exceptional lawmakers. She always enjoyed meeting our Indiana members during our annual fly-ins over the last nine years and went the extra mile to make the most of their visit. Our members across this nation extend their heartfelt prayers and kindest sympathies to her family and to those of her staff during this very difficult time,” said Doug Carlson, NUCA Chief Executive Officer.
Congresswoman Walorski, we were so lucky to have you as our Congresswoman. It was an honor to have known you. Capital Hill will never be the same.
Here, NUCA of Indiana members share their thoughts about Rep. Walorski and the considerate and honorable impressions she made on those she met with her over the years.
“I’ve worked with Rep. Walorski for over a decade, and she exemplified all that I could wish for from my congressional representative. Jackie always made time for constituents, cared about our industry’s issues, and would do her best to resolve any problems we encountered in our member’s projects. She always supported NUCA of Indiana and our positions. She would also always make us defend our positions, and wasn’t afraid of the back-and-forth it took to get us on the same page. I feel terrible for her staffers and their families—she was generous to them like her own family. I’m just at a loss,” remarked Kurt Youngs, president of NUCA of Indiana.
“I was saddened to hear of Rep. Walorski and her staffers’ deaths. I will always recall how engaged she was with us whenever we were in Washington to meet. She would take the time out of her busy schedule to make sure she met with us personally and listen to our thoughts and concerns and how our issues impacted all of her constituents. She was a champion for us Hoosiers and all Americans. I have met several Representatives and Senators over the years, and I found her and her staff always to be some of the most genuine and caring. Her passing will be a great void to fill,” said David Howell, division manager for Midwest Mole in Greenfield, Ind.
“I had the honor of meeting with Rep. Walorski every year since I began attending NUCA’s Washington Summits since 2013. If she was in the Capitol voting on issues, she would have her staffers escort us from her office over to the U.S. Capitol so she could meet us, sometimes even having to pause our meeting so she could go and vote, and promptly returning and picking right back up where we left off. Congresswoman Walorski was just a genuine, wonderful woman who truly cared for people, constituents, and non-constituents. Her staffers absolutely loved working for her. She treated everyone with such kindness. She was everything you could have wished for in a Congresswoman and will be deeply missed,” said Rebecca Risdon, executive director of NUCA of Indiana.
“There are good people who come to Congress and bring their genuine warmth and care to their job, and Rep. Walorski was certainly one of those exceptional lawmakers. She always enjoyed meeting our Indiana members during our annual fly-ins over the last nine years and went the extra mile to make the most of their visit. Our members across this nation extend their heartfelt prayers and kindest sympathies to her family and to those of her staff during this very difficult time,” said Doug Carlson, NUCA Chief Executive Officer.
Congresswoman Walorski, we were so lucky to have you as our Congresswoman. It was an honor to have known you. Capital Hill will never be the same.
Washington Summit 2021
Washington Summit 2019
Here is a link to the new law that NUCA of Indiana greatly encouraged and supported.
Senate Bill 472 signed into law!
Design Ticket Notice became available July 1, 2017
Requests to locate underground utility facilities. Amends the statute concerning the locating and marking of underground utility facilities (Indiana's 811 law) to allow a person responsible for: (1) a construction project; or (2) any other project or operation; that will involve an excavation or demolition operation to provide a voluntary design information notice to the association known as the Indiana Underground Plant Protection Service (association) before commencing preliminary engineering studies or construction planning activities in the project area that will be affected by the excavation or demolition. Provides that a design information notice must be received by the association at Requests to locate underground utility facilities. Amends the statute concerning the locating and marking of underground utility facilities (Indiana's 811 law) to allow a person responsible for: (1) a construction project; or (2) any other project or operation; that will involve an excavation or demolition operation to provide a voluntary design information notice to the association known as the Indiana Underground Plant Protection Service (association) before commencing preliminary engineering studies or construction planning activities in the project area that will be affected by the excavation or demolition. Provides that a design information notice must be received by the association at least 10 full working days but not more than 20 calendar days before the commencement of the preliminary engineering studies or construction planning activities. Specifies the information that must be included in a design information notice. Provides that not more than two design information notices for the same project and from the same person or source may be submitted in any given 180 day period. Requires the association, upon receiving a design information notice, to: (1) notify each utility operator that has underground facilities located in the affected project area; and (2) provide the person serving the design information notice a list of the identified operators. Requires an operator, upon receiving notice of a submitted design information notice, to contact the person serving the design information notice within 10 days and do one or more of the following: (1) Provide a description of, and location information for, the operator's underground facilities in the affected project area. (2) Allow the person serving the design information notice to inspect, at a location acceptable to the operator, drawings or other records for the operator's underground facilities in the affected project area. (3) Designate with temporary facility markers the location of the operator's underground facilities within the affected project area. Allows an operator to reject a design information notice: (1) based on security considerations; or (2) if producing the required description of, or location information for, the operator's affected underground facilities would place the operator at a competitive disadvantage; pending the operator's verification of the legitimacy of the design information notice. Provides that the submission of a design information notice does not relieve a person responsible for the excavation or demolition operation involved in the project from providing the notice required under the law before commencing the excavation or demolition operation. Removes a provision in the statute that requires a county recorder who receives an inquiry from a person seeking to provide the required notice of an excavation or demolition to refer the person to the association
2018 Washington Summit was attended by David Howell (Midwest Mole) and Kurt Youngs (Youngs Excavating). They met with both Senators Joe Donnelly and Todd Young and all 9 Congressmen and Congresswoman's offices meeting with many of the Representatives themselves. This years topics included:
Infrastructure financing
Workforce development and training
Fighting or reversing harmful regulation
Thank you gentlemen, for you representation on behalf of NUCA of Indiana. Your dedication to our group is greatly appreciated!
Infrastructure financing
- Congress must include water and wastewater funding in any infrastructure package.
- Lawmakers need to take a comprehensive approach when writing laws to save costs and address multiple infrastructure needs simultaneously (such as H.R. 1670).
- EPA estimates the total need for water infrastructure investment at $516B: $271B for clean water and $245B for drinking water.
- The default rate for water infrastructure projects is less than 1%.
Workforce development and training
- When infrastructure investment does occur and workloads increase, the shortage of qualified workers will worsen.
- The federal government must invest in Career and Technical Education (CTE). Since 2007 CTE federal funding has declined 13%.
Fighting or reversing harmful regulation
- Regulations should be implemented only to correct problems with an evidence-based, feasible, and necessary solution.
- Lawmakers should introduce legislation to repeal or substantially alter OSHA's Crystalline Silica Rule, which will cost the construction industry hundreds of millions.
- Any "Buy American" regulation should be workable, and the review and waiver processes must be easily navigated and swift.
Thank you gentlemen, for you representation on behalf of NUCA of Indiana. Your dedication to our group is greatly appreciated!