Power and Communication Contractors Association

05/14/2026

Your U.S. House Representative needs to hear from you! The U.S. Senate passed the PIPELINE Safety Act on April 29, urging states to implement stronger damage prevention programs and to improve enforcement of one-call laws. And now the House needs to act to pass one of the bills moving through the chamber: the PIPES Act or the Pipeline Safety Authorization Act of 2026.

The need for action is urgent. According to CGA Connect data, buried utility lines are damaged nearly 200,000 times annually—approximately once every three minutes—causing more than $30 billion in economic damage each year while disrupting communities and threatening public safety.

Congress has an important opportunity this year to advance meaningful underground damage prevention reforms as part of pipeline safety legislation and/or broader surface transportation reauthorization policymaking.

Follow the link and make your voice heard!

05/08/2026

Check out this excellent discussion from JJ.P. Morganon electric grid transformation in the face of aging infrastructure and surging demand from data centers and electrification.

"Global grid spending increased from $300 billion in 2020 to $480 billion in 2025. Looking ahead, $5.8 trillion of cumulative grid investment is forecasted globally between 2026-⁠2035, with 12% ($700 billion) projected for digital-related grid capex.

"In the U.S., grid investment is expected to hit ~$1 trillion over the coming decade, split between transmission (37%) and distribution (63%). U.S. private capital indicates investors also see a growing opportunity, with volumes increasing from $3.2 billion in 2021 to $6.6 billion in 2025."

Electric grids worldwide are undergoing a transformation as surging electricity demand from data centers and electrification collides with aging, risk-prone infrastructure. This creates both national security imperatives and investment opportunities for grid resilience.

04/21/2026

Your federal lawmakers need to hear from you! They must act now to stop the Faster Labor Contracts Act, which pro-union legislators are pushing via a rarely used procedural maneuver called a discharge petition (filed on April 20, 2026) to fast-track the bill and appease powerful union special interests.

Tell lawmakers that this is an unprecedented expansion of federal power into private business decisions. For the first time, Washington bureaucrats could override voluntary negotiations and impose contract terms on small businesses and their employees. Act now to stop this effort before it advances!

Please go to PCCA's Grassroots Action Center to easily send your comments to your lawmakers, President Trump, and Vice President Vance. Your voice matters!

04/06/2026

Paul Bunyan Communications announced that it will be expanding its all-fiber optic network, the GigaZone, to more than 2,400 more locations in Aitkin County, Minn., this year. Construction will take place over the summer, and services are expected to be available by winter. The Aitkin Age has the story.

''We’re excited to share our plans to expand into additional areas of Aitkin County, bringing gigabit broadband to more residents and businesses,' said Chad Bullock, CEO and general manager of Paul Bunyan Communications. 'Reliable internet access is no longer a luxury; it is a necessity. Our cooperative remains committed to delivering this essential service to communities across northern Minnesota.'

"'This project represents a major service upgrade for these areas,' said Leo Anderson, chief technology officer of Paul Bunyan Communications. 'Without true high-speed internet, everyday tasks, whether for work, school or business, can be extremely challenging. Our all-fiber optic network delivers fast, reliable connectivity with speeds up to 10 gig and it will be a game changer for these communities.'"




https://www.messagemedia.co/aitkin/news/local/major-broadband-expansion-will-bring-all-fiber-optic-internet-to-over-2-400-homes-and/article_d578e819-2609-424a-a605-e972a7075b4d.html

04/02/2026

The National Utility Locating Contractors Association (NULCA) this week released a candid and powerful new white paper, The System Is Designed to Fail: A Call for Structural Reform in the 811 System, and it is a must-read for anyone who works in the underground space. The paper provides an informed view of where the 811 system is today, how we got there, and what can be done to fix it.

There is also a message to excavators, like the contractors who belong to PCCA:

"To the excavation community: we are not pointing at you.

"Most excavators are doing exactly what the system incentivizes them to do. When submitting tickets is free, unlimited, and consequence-free, rational actors submit more of them. When the system has trained you to over-notify because you can’t trust locates will come back on time, you over-notify. The system reinforces the very behaviors that are driving the problem. We understand that cycle. We live in it too.

"But we need to have an honest conversation about what happens downstream when 200 tickets land simultaneously in a locating queue, all due in two business days, for a highway corridor from St. Louis to Kansas City. The locating crews find out when the tickets arrive. There is no warning. There is no additional time. There is no additional pay. There is just the queue, and the clock, and a workforce that was sized for normal volume.

"We want to work with you to fix this. We are done fighting with you about who caused it."

By Aaron C / March 30, 2026 This System Is Designed to Fail. We’re Done Pretending Otherwise. By the National Utility Locating Contractors Association (NULCA) A five-year-old boy is dead. On April 9, 2025, in Lexington, Missouri, a subcontractor had contacted 811 five days before breaking ground. ...

03/18/2026

At the Annual PCCA Convention last week in Hollywood, Fla., the association inducted two industry stars into the PCCA Hall of Fame: Bob Sellenriek, founder of Sellenriek Construction, Inc., and John Hale, retired from John Deere.

PCCA President & CEO Tim Wagner said, "Bob Sellenriek is a pioneering contractor, industry leader, and founder whose life’s work helped shape the modern communications infrastructure across Missouri and the Midwest. Through grit, vision, and an unwavering commitment to doing things the right way, Bob built not only a company, but a legacy defined by integrity, resilience, and service."

And of Hale, Wagner said, "From 2006 through 2021, John Hale was a fixture at our events and on our committees. He didn’t just show up—he got involved and made the industry better. He served two four-year terms on the board of directors and was actively involved in our government affairs committee. He is exactly the type of member an association executive wishes for. He’s a high-quality guy and PCCA is lucky to have had him as a member. Hard working, ethical, intelligent, loyal, and enthusiastic are words that come to mind when I think about John Hale."

Sellenriek Family of Companies

03/12/2026

Speaking at the 2026 PCCA Annual Convention this week in Hollywood, Fla., outgoing Chairman Rob Pribyl, MP Nexlevel, spoke eloquently on the impact of our members and our industry.

"For 81 years, PCCA has been a unified voice for power and communication contractors, focusing on safety, workforce development, industry advocacy, and strong partnerships that keep America connected and powered. That longevity is a testament to you, our dedicated members who continually invest in strengthening our industry.

"Our work is the backbone of modern life. When communities turn on the lights, power hospitals, access the internet, or recover after a storm, it’s because of the skill and commitment of our members. We build and maintain the infrastructure that keeps our nation moving forward."

03/10/2026

In a truly important session at the PCCA Convention this week in Hollywood, Fla., crisis management expert Anthony Huey provided practical, actionable advice on how to prepare for a crisis situation at your company and how to respond during and immediately after a crisis. He said a crisis is something "worthy of pressing the button and getting your team up at two in the morning. That's what I'm defining as a crisis. It's all hands on deck."

"Speed rules the day. If something goes south at your construction company, you hit a gas line, or someone gets hit by a dump truck, you must respond with speed. I've been saying that word for the 20 years that I've been doing this. Now, with AI, it's even more important because you're going to have bad actors, evildoers, creating videos and pictures that aren't even real."

03/09/2026

Keynote speaker Mark Breslin discussed culture, values, and worker engagement at the Opening Session of the 81st Annual PCCA Convention this week in Hollywood, Fla. He said that the construction industry provides good jobs and good wages, but for true worker engagement and effective retention, you must do more.

"What are we going to offer people to engage them? We're talking about values. Younger people, the next workforce, Gen Z, and really, really good people who can go anywhere, they want to know what you stand for. They want to know what you're all about. They want to know what the values of your company are."

03/08/2026

Jerrod Henschel, Quanta Services and Chair of the Damage Prevention Action Center, opened the Excavation Safety Summit at the Annual PCCA Convention this week in Hollywood, Fla., talking about the normalization of deviance.

"Normalization of deviation is when a shortcut, workaround, or deviation of the rules is repeated so many times without consequence that it stops feeling like a risk. It starts feeling like standard practice. It doesn't happen overnight. It creeps in slowly. Eventually, deviation becomes the norm, but at some point, the situation changes, and the consequences finally arrive.

"When the whole crew does it, it feels validated. It's self-reinforcing. Every close call that doesn't result in an incident proves the behavior is safe. But it isn't."