23 U.S.C. § 114 — Construction

(a) Construction Work In General. Building a federal-aid highway, or part of one, is the job of the state's own transportation department, carried out under that department's direct supervision. The Secretary (of Transportation) can inspect the work and take whatever corrective action the Secretary decides is appropriate. The work must follow both the laws of that state and any applicable federal laws. Construction can start as soon as money is available for spending under section 118(a) of this title. Since July 1, 1973, while construction is underway and visible to highway users, the state department cannot put up any signs at the site other than official traffic-control devices that meet the Secretary's standards — no other informational signs are allowed. (b) Convict Labor and Convict-Produced Materials. (1) Limitation on convict labor. Convict labor cannot be used to build federal-aid highways unless the convicts doing the work are on parole, supervised release, or probation. (2) Limitation on convict-produced materials. Materials made by convict labor after July 1, 1991 can only be used in this construction if either: (A) the convicts who made them are on parole, supervised release, or probation; or (B) the convicts made them in a "qualified prison facility," and that facility isn't now producing more of the material for this kind of highway construction in any 12-month period than it produced in the 12 months ending July 1, 1987. (3) Qualified prison facility defined. A "qualified prison facility" is a prison where convicts, during that same 12-month period ending July 1, 1987, produced materials used in building highways that were then part of the Federal-aid system. (c) Construction Work in Alaska. (1) In general. On a remote Alaska highway project, the Secretary must make sure that any worker who doesn't live locally receives meals and lodging. (2) Lodging. That lodging must meet the standards in a specific federal labor regulation covering temporary labor camps (29 C.F.R. § 1910.142). (3) Per diem. (A) Contractors are encouraged to use commercial hotels and lodges when they're available. When they aren't, the contractor may instead pay a per diem of $75.00 for each day, or part of a day, the worker is on the project, instead of providing room and lodging. This per diem, or the cost of room and lodging the contractor provides, does not count as part of the worker's wages. (B) The Secretary of Labor sets this per diem rate for all covered remote Alaska highway projects. (C) Exception: no per diem is allowed on three specific remote routes — west of Livengood on the Elliot Highway; from Mile 0 on the Dalton Highway to the North Slope, and north of Mile 20 on the Taylor Highway; and east of Chicken on the Top of the World Highway, and south of Tetlin Junction to the Canadian border. (4) Definitions. "Remote" means a project that is 65 road miles or more from the international airport in Fairbanks, Anchorage, or Juneau, or that a regular 2-wheel-drive vehicle cannot reach by road. "Resident" means a person who lived within 65 road miles of the project's midpoint for at least the 12 consecutive months right before the project was awarded. (d) Veterans Employment. (1) In general. A recipient of federal money under this chapter must, as much as is practical, encourage the contractors working on its highway projects to make a genuine, best-faith effort to hire or refer veterans — as that term is defined in section 2108 of title 5 — who have the skills needed for the construction work. (2) Administration. This rule does not apply to projects covered by section 140(d). It also cannot be enforced in a way that would force an employer to prefer a veteran over an equally qualified applicant who is a racial or ethnic minority, a woman, or an equally qualified former employee.