VTCA Members Join NSSGA's 2026 Hill Day to Advocate for Virginia's Aggregate & Roadbuilding Industri
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Left to right: Doug Palmore, Luck |
Virginia Transportation Construction Alliance members traveled to Washington, D.C. this week to take part in the National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association's 2026 Hill Day, the capstone of NSSGA's annual Legislative & Policy Forum. The forum ran September 20–22, with Hill Day meetings on Capitol Hill taking place September 22, drawing more than 300 aggregates industry leaders from across the country.
VTCA has been a regular participant in NSSGA's Hill Day for years, and the alliance typically uses the visit to put Virginia's aggregates producers directly in front of the Commonwealth's congressional delegation — historically securing meetings with seven or more Virginia representatives and senators in a single day. Participation is open to VTCA aggregate producer members who also belong to NSSGA, and NSSGA — working alongside partner associations the National Asphalt Pavement Association and the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association — handles the scheduling and briefing materials, so member companies can focus on the conversations themselves rather than the logistics.
This year's visits centered on a handful of priorities central to the aggregates industry: advancing a strong five-year surface transportation reauthorization, reforming the permitting process for materials extraction, expanding workforce development efforts, and protecting fair access to materials research. Chief among the legislative wins industry advocates pointed to was the BUILD America 250 Act, a $580 billion five-year surface transportation reauthorization bill that cleared committee on a bipartisan 62-2 vote. NSSGA recognized House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee Chairman Sam Graves (R-Mo.) and Ranking Member Rick Larsen (D-Wash.) with its ROCK Star Award for their work advancing the bill.
VTCA representatives included members: Doug Palmore & Mark Williams from Luck Stone, David White, A.J. Boyd, Tyler Mitchell from Superior Paving, Ken Lin from Vulcan Materials, Michael Elliott from Carmeuse, Travis Bailey from Allan Myers, and Jason Epstein from new VTCA member - MSHA Safety Services, Inc. Trenton Clark of the Virginia Asphalt Association and Rob Lanham, VTCA Aggregate Program Manger were the team leads and navigated Capitol Hill and provided introductions.
Unfortunately, House members went to recess and many of the Senate members were not available, and we were only able to meet with one member personally, that was Rep. John McGuire. Our groups did meet with staffers for both Senators, Kain & Warner and Representatives Subramanyam, Beyer, Walkinshaw, and Wittman.
"Our Legislative & Policy Forum gives our members a direct opportunity to show lawmakers how aggregates are essential to every major infrastructure project," NSSGA President Michele Stanley said of the gathering.
For VTCA members, the trip reinforces a message the alliance carries year-round in Richmond and Washington alike: Virginia's roads, bridges, and transit projects depend on a steady, locally sourced supply of stone, sand, and gravel, and the policies that govern permitting, workforce, and federal transportation funding have a direct line to the Commonwealth's construction economy. With a new surface transportation bill moving through Congress, this year's Hill Day carried added weight for producers watching how the next multi-year federal funding cycle will take shape.