The American Fence Association works to advance the legislative and regulatory priorities of fence, gate, and perimeter security professionals in the fence industry.
Advocacy
We, at the AFA, pursue initiatives and act on issues that help our member companies succeed and grow. As a leader in the industry, the AFA also partners with other organizations throughout the country to raise awareness about the issues that are important to fence professionals.
At the AFA, we track and monitor legislative, regulatory, and legal issues that may have an impact on fence, gate, and perimeter security professionals and businesses in the fence industry. Our Government Relations and Industry Standards Director works closely with our Board of Directors, our Government Relations committee, and our Chapters throughout the country.
The Government Relations committee is comprised of AFA members from various sectors of the industry. The Committee works together to help evaluate the policies that affect our member companies. They accomplish this by working directly with our Director of Government Relations and Industry Standards, our Chapters, and individual members. The Committee also educates themselves on the issues that are important to membership businesses and presents them to our Board of Directors. With BOD approval, our staff can then advocate for these policy initiatives and set our policy agenda. AFA members, through our Chapters, also work with our Director of Government Relations and Industry Standards to enact change at the local level through grassroots activism.
Contact Your Representatives
You can contact your local and federal representatives through the link below.
Who Represents Me?
Our Policy Agenda
Workforce Development: The fence industry, like so many others, has not been immune to the labor shortage that has been affecting industries throughout the country. To increase the skilled workforce in the fence industry, a multipronged strategy is needed. Some of the policies we support that would give employers more labor options and would work to increase the skilled workforce are listed below.
The Freedom to Invest in Tomorrow’s Workforce Act: This Act, (H.R. 1477/S. 722) would expand eligible uses of tax-favorable “529” savings plans to cover costs associated with workforce training and credentialing programs. It would also allow 529 plans to be used to pay for examinations necessary to obtain and maintain recognized private professional certifications and other credentials.
H-2B Visas: The American Fence Association supports access to the H-2B guest worker program for fence industry businesses. The program allows approved workers to come to the U.S. for seasonal or peak employment periods and then return home. We believe the fence industry should maintain their eligibility for the use of this program and that Congress should work to increase the current cap of 66,000 visas to meet the demand of the current U.S. economy.
Employee Benefits: Employee benefits are often a deciding factor for workers looking to make a choice between comparable job opportunities. We support benefits for employees that aid in their quality of life and ability to work. We also realize that many insurances plans, and other factors, have made the cost of covering employees out of reach for some. We support common-sense employee benefit plans that give the most to the employee, without putting an excessive burden on the employer.
Health Insurance: All industries across the country have seen a steady increase in health insurance costs for their employees. We support health policies that encourage quality health care and address the medical costs and other challenges that make healthcare unaffordable for many.
Prevailing Wage Rates: We support prevailing wage rates that are reasonable and make sense in the market to which they are applied.
Supply Chain: Innovation is the backbone of many of our member companies, whether they are manufacturing a new fence system, parts, trying a new installation method, or introducing new technology. Because of this, we support policies that allow the supply chain to move freely and operate smoothly, so that our member companies can continue with their projects and complete their jobs in a competitive and timely manner.
Government Regulations: The American Fence Association believes that industry businesses grow best when their owners and operators are not tethered by regulatory constraints. However, we also understand that some regulations are important for life safety. We support regulations that help our country and industry to be the best it can be, while at the same time, working to oppose regulations that may work to overburden businesses in the industry.
Economy: A strong U.S. economy is paramount for any business. In our recent survey, many respondents commented that the economic outlook for 2024 and consumer confidence is in question. These responses echoed similar sentiment voiced by an even larger survey conducted in the 4th quarter of 2023 by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. In it, they found that only 25% of small businesses said the U.S. economy was in good health. With that in mind, we support policies that increase the strength of the U.S. economy and create an economic environment where businesses in the fence industry can grow into 2024 and beyond.
