A federal judge right here in the Hub City has officially saved the nation from the crushing tyranny of… making sure blue-collar workers get paid properly. In a stunning victory for people who love cheap labor, a Lubbock court permanently killed a Biden-era update to the 1931 Davis-Bacon Act. The regulations were meant to ensure that truck drivers and material suppliers working on federally funded projects actually received a “prevailing wage.” Thankfully, our local heroes stepped in to put a stop to that crazy socialist dream.
Who do we have to thank for keeping corporate wallets heavy and worker pockets light? The Lubbock Chamber of Commerce, alongside an Amarillo construction firm and the Associated General Contractors of America, bravely sued to stop the updates. Local attorney Fernando Bustos argued that expanding wage protections was unconstitutional, colorfully claiming the administration was trying to “make the laws himself like a king.” Because nothing screams absolute monarchy quite like ensuring a guy hauling concrete can afford groceries.
To be fair, the regulations did sound terrifyingly reasonable. The feds wanted to protect:
- Material suppliers doing actual work on government job sites.
- Truck drivers who were doing more than just minimal drop-offs.
- Underpaid workers, by enforcing higher wages even if a bureaucrat forgot to attach the proper paperwork to the contract.
Lubbock Chamber Chair Chris Chambers warned that if companies had to pay these higher national minimums, it would create massive “problems in competitive markets”—which is executive-speak for “we might actually have to compete for labor by paying people what they’re worth.” The Chamber fretted that if local road and school projects took federal grant money, they’d be forced to raise prices just to cover the cost of human labor.
The Department of Labor tried to argue that these rules were necessary, pointing out they’ve had to claw back $229 million in back wages for over 76,000 workers who got stiffed by contractors. But the federal government finally stopped defending the rules, allowing US District Judge Wesley James Hendrix to sign the final order killing the regulations nationwide.
After all, why pay workers a 21st-century wage when we can keep Lubbock’s economy right where it belongs—firmly stuck in 1931?
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