IBEW 1245 Senior Assistant Business Managers Dylan Gottfried and Ralph Armstrong meet with Congressman Thompson.
IBEW 1245 leadership traveled to Washington, D.C. to advance key federal priorities that directly impact our members’ jobs, rights, and long-term stability in the energy sector. Senior Assistant Business Managers Dylan Gottfried and Ralph Armstrong, along with Assistant Business Manager Hunter Stern, met with Congressman Mike Thompson, Senator Alex Padilla, Senator Adam Schiff, and the Chief of Staff for Congressman John Garamendi. We also shared our priorities with Senator Schiff’s office and several additional congressional offices.
Our top priority was H.R. 2550, the bill to restore collective bargaining rights for federal employees. This legislation is essential for our members at USBR and WAPA, who operate and maintain the backbone of the West’s power and water infrastructure. We made clear that H.R. 2550 is not an isolated request—it is part of the ongoing fight to fully restore bargaining rights that have been eroded for years, including our recent action involving Section 704 bargaining protections. We urged lawmakers to sign the discharge petition and support immediate passage of H.R. 2550. Restoring these rights ensures fair wages, consistent working conditions, and real representation for federal workers who keep critical systems running every day.
We also pressed for action on several urgent issues raised in our conversations this week:
- Federal Wildfire Legislation – We discussed the federal wildfire prevention and mitigation bills currently advancing in both chambers. These efforts are directly tied to system reliability, workforce stability, and the long-term safety of the communities our members serve.
- Diablo Canyon (DCPP) and Grid Reliability – We reiterated the ongoing operational and workforce issues at DCPP, stressing the importance of federal engagement to ensure the facility can maintain reliability, staffing stability, and safe operations as California navigates the future of baseload generation.
- Restoring Clean Energy Project Tax Credits – We thanked Congressman Mike Thompson for his leadership as an author of legislation to reinstate clean-energy project tax credits. These credits—covering solar, wind, hydrogen, and other technologies—are essential to sustaining long-term construction and maintenance work for our members, while ensuring prevailing wage and apprenticeship standards remain tied to these projects.
- Permit Reform: The SPEED & Reliability Act (H.R. 5600) – Authored by Congressman Westerman (R-AR) and Congressman Golden (D-ME), this bill aims to streamline federal permitting for major energy and infrastructure projects. We emphasized that balanced permitting reform is critical to reducing delays, modernizing the grid, and supporting thousands of union jobs—while maintaining existing labor protections.
- Tax Fairness for Workers Act (H.R. 2671 / S. 1286) – We reiterated our support for restoring deductions for union dues and essential work-related expenses, helping reduce financial burdens on working families.
These federal priorities translate directly into more work, better wages, and stronger rights for IBEW 1245 members—whether we are building out renewable energy projects, modernizing the grid, supporting nuclear safety and reliability, mitigating wildfire risks, or defending the bargaining rights of federal workers.
Senior Assistant Business Managers Ralph Armstrong and Dylan Gottfried along with Assistant Business Manager Hunter Stern on behalf of Business Manager Bob Dean want to thank you for standing united as we continue advocating decisively for the issues that matter most to our members and our future.