HVAC professionals are always juggling the next day’s installation and repair jobs versus what’s coming down the pipeline on the business front. Fortunately, the Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA) has got it covered. ACCA has long been at the forefront of advocating for contractors and technicians, particularly when it comes to workforce development, regulatory challenges, and the need for fair competition within the industry.
And it’s a good thing, considering that the industry faces increasing pressure from changing policies, technological advancements, and evolving market demands.
Through it all, ACCA’s leadership is working to ensure contractors are equipped with the resources and support they need to succeed.
The ACHR NEWS spoke with Barton James, president/CEO of ACCA, and Kate Wessels, vice president of communications, marketing, and partnerships, about what the organization is looking ahead to this year. Here is what they had to report.
What trends/regulations is ACCA focusing on?
BJ: With our primary focus at the federal level (where we certainly are busy keeping up with new folks coming in and the changes that are happening), more than anything we’re following up on the seeds that we planted a long time ago. We play both sides of the political aisle as far as who we give money to from our political action committee, who we are rubbing elbows with; explaining to everyone the important aspect of the contractor — of how contractors and technicians are really the key to all this. It doesn’t matter how great the technology is (and we’re all about technology) or how great the company is if equipment is not being installed correctly. … That’s the important part we seem to have missed here, but we’ve been beating that drum.
– Barton James
president and CEO
ACCA
The administration’s leading everything right now, so that’s been interesting to watch. Our team has been at Capitol Hill making sure we’re meeting as people have gotten new committee assignments, that we’re leveraging to make sure they’re focused on what they need to be. We just got some good news on the IRA at some of the immediate cuts that they were going to do. It looks like we’re going to end up with some more flexibility where the states that were interested in it will have a chance to move forward with it. That money is not going to be totally pulled back as the Trump administration had first indicated. So, we’re excited to be able to go to bat for that. Along those lines, we were very clear that money should be spent on the contractor side of things; it shouldn’t go towards unlicensed contractors and unfair competition.
None of our messages are super easy — there’s always an “and this” aspect of it. We can be excited about the IRA, but if it’s going to another unlicensed contractor that’s illegally venting the refrigerant they’re recovering, we’ve done nothing but actually worsen the situation. Similarly, everything happening currently around refrigerants — it’s a complete nightmare. The prices aren’t matching up, and we don’t have any incentives for people to recover. For the people who are doing it right, the price that they’re getting paid for the refrigerant is not really worth the trouble — the cost in terms of an hour standpoint, of how much slower it is to do it correctly versus illegally.
EXPO: Next year’s ACCA Expo will be held in Las Vegas. (Courtesy of ACCA)
The AIM Act — we wanted federal preemption. ACCA was the only one that did, and unfortunately, we didn’t have our way, and now people are coming back full circle. It doesn’t do us any good now to take the position of “we were right,” but we kind of needed to start that way. This industry is far too important, and I think that’s even what we are seeing from the [Trump] administration’s negotiating standpoint is start strong and then come back, but don’t start off weak. After all, that’s how we’ve ended up with certain states that are looking to be more aggressive regarding standards and impose some stupid stuff on contractors — and ultimately, the consumer — to prohibit them from accessing refrigerant they might need to keep their system going, forcing them into a replacement. And meanwhile, the state doesn’t care anything about how it’s done. California is the poster child of not caring. They say on paper that they care, but when it comes to the permitting side of it, they prove year after year that they don’t really care at all.
How is ACCA aiding members in navigating trends/regulations?
BJ: It’s a never-ending process. We’re blessed to have some great member leaders that really keep their ear to the ground and help us show the reality of how this’ll work out. I think that’s really where, oftentimes, the industry gets off course — forgetting the aspect that we need a carrot, we need a stick — where the rubber meets the road. But our Government Relations Committee is really on the front lines of that. … We’re working right now with our [Allied Contracting Organizations]. These are state associations (regional or local) that help us with input, to make sure our priorities line up with what they’re running into.
To no one’s surprise, workforce is at the top of the list. And there are new ways we’ve been trying to tackle that. Kate Wessels is one of the people on the front lines of our children’s book. … We’re looking at ways to level the playing field on workforce. For too long, schools have prioritized a fancy lab over the output of quality technicians that are coming out workforce-ready. For far too long, money and funding have gone towards schools and vocational paths that [the world] just doesn’t have enough of a demand for, but the HVACR industry does.
What should the industry be paying the most attention to?
BJ: There are so many opportunities. I think it’s important to not forget that we had to fight to be recognized as essential. That pays dividends if we beat that drum until the end of time, but we have to beat it over and over again. The drum being the priority of funding for workforce and logical regulatory paths that recognize the contractor and proper HVAC installation to ensure the consumer and ultimately, that taxpayers and utilities all get what they’re paying for.
We’ve got to leverage relationships. We’ve got to remember that we’re the only industry that gets a chance to be in someone’s home or business once, if not twice, a year and help them with the most expensive purchase they’re going to make. Whoever that is. Whether that’s a member of Congress or their spouse, their kids, or a member of their team … We have got to leverage our ACCA army. And we’re going to bring that army to D.C on September 9 and 10 for our annual Advocacy Day, to reinforce that message, because it’s gotta happen back home. And we’re pushing and holding up the members of ACCA that are doing that and challenging others to be involved.
Quit being scared. So many contractors think that it’s someone else’s job, but it’s all of ours. We need to work together as an industry. We need manufacturers spending more time with their contractors, and not always a customer. And the same holds true for a distributor. They need to spend every moment they can with a contractor to support them, because they need it now more than ever. On our Contractor Forum, people have already seen and been discussing the challenges of the supply chain. They can’t get simple parts they need to keep systems going. And with the talk of tariffs, it’s only going to be exacerbated. We have to make sure to get ahead of that — and I’m not a technical person — but by doing things like making sure the top maintenance items that will need to be replaced have backups, in case what they need isn’t available.
What events does ACCA have coming up?
KW: Well, it’s been a few years since we’ve done our Advocacy Day, and what we really want to do with that is invite our contractors to come and see firsthand how they can be plugged into the policy setting and government relations processes. This is a members-only event. We know a lot of people have a lot of opinions about what’s going on right now as it relates to government relations, politically, policy-wise — so we’re really shaping this event to be specific for ACCA members and for it to be an impactful experience for them. If anybody is interested in coming and having their voice heard, they just need to sign up for a membership, and we’d be happy to welcome them.
When looking forward, what does ACCA hope to provide to members?
BJ: We’re here to help contractors do better in their business. Policy and regulatory codes are different tools in our toolbox of how we service our members. From a policy standpoint, from a D.C standpoint, from a state standpoint: we’re there to really help them. We want to make sure we’re hearing what their needs are, their pain points, and then we’ll carry that message back to stakeholders like manufacturers, who we view as important strategic partners to us. Again, without [installation standards], people are doing a disservice to the quality product that they design and build, by installing it poorly. We hope to get all of them on board and really understand that. And then ACCA will help contractors hold up their end of the bargain.
Our goals are multifaceted. Our priorities will no doubt shift. The [Trump] administration is throwing things out there right now that they hope catches on, and resonates with people, but there will be issues they have to regroup on, and we want to be there when they’re regrouping and make sure that logic comes into play.
There’s a lot of opportunity for you. If you’re not separating yourself in the market, now is the time to invest in your team. Our workforce challenge is one of the top ways you can address that: become an employer of choice. ACCA has great tools you can leverage to do that, and great people to rub elbows with. It’s not only about the great content, but also the great members that you get to spend time with.