U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy welcomed four new top officials to the Department following their confirmation by the U.S. Senate on October 7, 2025, in an en bloc vote of 51-47. They are:

• Michael Rutherford to serve as the first Assistant Secretary for Multimodal Freight Infrastructure & Policy,
• Gregory Zerzan as General Counsel,
• Derek Barrs as the 8th Administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), and
• David Fink as the 16^th Administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA)

“Michael, Gregory, Derek, and David are accomplished leaders in their fields who will help us advance the transportation, safety, and infrastructure needs of the American people,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy. 

Good news broke ground for contractors in July as construction stress eased across the board. The rate of construction freezes and cancellations plummeted in July, according to the latest data from Cincinnati-based ConstructConnect. The Project Stress Index, a measure of construction projects that have been paused, abandoned or delayed, fell 24.3% between June and July.

Despite ongoing labor shortages and rising costs, commercial service contractors are entering the second half of 2025 with cautious optimism, according to a new industry report from ServiceTitan and Thrive Analytics.

More than two-thirds of contractors surveyed reported stable or growing revenues through May, and 53% are optimistic about the market outlook for the rest of 2025 and beyond. The survey, which gathered insights from over 1,000 contractors working primarily in mechanical, electrical, and plumbing services, highlights a mix of confidence and persistent operational pressure.

The construction industry had 306,000 job openings on the last day of July, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey. JOLTS defines a job opening as any unfilled position for which an employer is actively recruiting. Industry job openings increased by 64,000 last month and are up by 77,000 from the same time last year.

“The construction job opening rate rose to the highest level in over a year during July,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu.