POLICY The Energy Department pushed its fossil-fuel limits for federal buildings to March. A notice published and effective Sept. 2 stays compliance with the clean-energy rule at 10 CFR parts 433 and 435 until March 1, 2027. It is the third delay since the rule was finalized. The 2024 rule requires new federal buildings and major renovations to cut on-site fossil-fuel-generated energy 90 percent against a comparable fiscal 2003 building for projects in fiscal 2025 through 2029, and 100 percent for projects in fiscal 2030 and after. It reaches federally owned public buildings above $3.6 million and leased space above $1.8 million, in 2024 dollars. Compliance originally attached to designs begun on or after May 1, 2025. Stays in May 2025 and April 2026 moved that date to May 1, 2026, then to Sept. 1, 2026. The department says it is reviewing the rule and its implementation guidance for consistency with stated energy policies. The docket is titled for repeal, and comments are not being accepted.
Sources: Federal Register, Sept. 2; Federal Register, April 20; U.S. Department of Energy, Federal Energy Management Program
BIZ Construction spending fell again in July. The Census Bureau put July construction at a $2,157.6 billion seasonally adjusted annual rate in its Sept. 1 release, down 0.5 percent from June and 3.8 percent from July 2025. Private work was $1,614.2 billion, down 0.5 percent for the month. Public work was $543.4 billion, down 0.2 percent. Highway and street construction, the largest public category, was $150.3 billion, down 0.2 percent from the revised June figure.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, monthly construction spending, July 2026
WORKFORCE Construction job openings hit their highest level in nearly two years. Openings reached 326,000 in July, a rate of 3.8 percent, in the Labor Department’s job openings and labor turnover data released Sept. 1. That is 28,000 more than June and 21,000 more than July 2025. Hires rose 47,000 for the month and 33,000 for the year, while separations fell 3,000 and the quit rate stayed below 2 percent. Anirban Basu, chief economist at Associated Builders and Contractors, tied the demand to data centers and the power construction that follows them, and said contractors expect to expand staffing over the next six months.
Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, July 2026 JOLTS; Engineering News-Record, Sept. 1
FUNDING Comments on MnDOT’s lower DBE goals close Sept. 7. MnDOT proposes cutting its Disadvantaged Business Enterprise participation goal on federal highway work from 15.3 percent to 6.2 percent, and on federal transit work from 8.7 percent to 2.8 percent. The revised goals posted Aug. 5 and the comment window runs through Sept. 7. MnDOT completed the priority reevaluation behind the change on Aug. 18, and reports that its DBE program plan is under Federal Highway Administration review.
ENG The Highway 169 intersection in Garrison closes Sept. 8. MnDOT is closing the Highway 169 crossing at Highway 18 and Monroe Street to all traffic to build the permanent connections for a four-legged single-lane roundabout. A temporary roundabout has carried traffic through the summer. Through traffic detours on County Road 26, County Road 8, Highway 18, Highway 6, and County Road 14/11 to Bennettville. The $12.4 million project rebuilds five miles of Highway 169 in Crow Wing County with city storm sewer and sidewalk. Construction runs through mid-October. TNT Construction Group is the contractor.
ENG The Cape Cod bridges replacement cleared its federal environmental decision. The Federal Highway Administration published notice Sept. 2 that its final actions on the program are complete, which starts the 150-day clock for judicial review. Claims are due on or before Feb. 1, 2027. The combined final environmental impact statement and record of decision, signed June 26, selects replacement of the Sagamore and Bourne bridges over the Cape Cod Canal in Bourne, Massachusetts, built to modern design standards. The notice covers approvals under the National Environmental Policy Act, the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act, and Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, among others.
Source: Federal Register, Sept. 2
FUNDING EPA put $11.75 million into drinking-water cybersecurity and resilience. The agency announced ten grants on Aug. 31 under its Midsize and Large Drinking Water System Infrastructure Resilience and Sustainability program. Eligible work covers SCADA modernization, programmable logic controller replacement, backup generation, and security equipment, along with wells, tanks, mains, and stormwater improvements. San Diego and Bloomington, Indiana drew the largest awards at $2,375,000 each. Denver Water took $1,125,000 and Hemet, California $1,150,000. No Minnesota system is on the list.
MnDOT · Model as Legal Document (MALD) bridge support, prequalified consultants · due Sept. 22 · Notice
The 60th annual Engineering Excellence Awards are open for entries, with winners named at the gala on February 18, 2027 and advancing to the national ACEC competition. The four-session Emerging Leaders program for early-career staff runs this October and November.
The (Almost) Daily Brief publishes most weekdays: policy, funding, workforce, and industry news for Minnesota’s engineering firms, in a few minutes of reading.