As the only nationwide, non-profit association for HVACR professionals, we at Air Conditioning Contractors of America are proud to serve more than 3,000 business members, and thousands of individuals by providing networking, education, and advocacy services that support the interests of our ACCA members while championing the national health of our industry. As we push through the COVID-19 pandemic, we continue to prioritize the success of our contractor members above all else.
Over the past year, we have been fighting to ensure that your voices are heard on Capitol Hill and before state legislators, utilities, code officials, and manufacturers. We’d like to share a few of the initiatives ACCA has taken on for the advancement of our industry since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In March of 2020, we worked with the Department of Homeland Security to ensure that our ACCA members stay as essential businesses during the pandemic. Through our actions, we were able to issue a nationwide action alert for the HVACR industry, and as a result were able to send 21,000 emails and letters to President Trump and every member of congress. Additionally, we also urged the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) to grant early vaccine access for HVACR professionals from the beginning of the vaccine’s announcement.
We have also prioritized refrigerants, regulatory reform, maintenance, tax deduction, energy efficiency, commercial efficiency programs, taxes, and climate change issues to policy and law makers. Over the past year, ACCA has worked on a handful of bills and policies such as:
- Jumpstart Our Businesses by Supporting Students (JOBS) Act (H.R.2037, S.864)
- Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act Reauthorization (WIOA)
- Protecting the Rights to Organize (PRO) Act
- Main Street Tax Certainty Act (H.R. 1381, S.480)
- Residential Energy Efficiency Tax Credit Permanence and Expansion
- Home Online Performance-Based Energy-Efficiency and the Homeowner Managing Energy Savings (HOPE4HOMES) Act (H.R. 3456. S. 1768)
- Incentivize Residential Energy Efficiency Act
Additionally, we have also been working to keep our workforce strong as we continue to face labor shortages. As your trusted association, we know that the role of skilled labor is vital to promoting proper installation and maintenance of innovative energy efficient equipment. However, we know the difficulties that come when finding workers with the right skill set. In an effort to help alleviate these problems, we’ve created the ACCA Workforce Development initiative. The initiative provides ACCA members with direction and a variety of online resources to help attract and train students to enter and thrive in the HVACR trade.
As we are an ever-changing industry with continuous trends and updates, we also know how valuable it is to keep your technicians ahead of the game. In addition to the ACCA Workforce Development initiative, we also offer a variety of training and education courses, both virtually and in-person, for all members of the HVACR industry to participate in, including:
- Practical HVAC- HVAC Training for Enhancing Your Team’s Performance
- Residential HVAC Design for Quality Installation
- Tech Rehab
- Design Essentials
While skilled technicians are an important component to a successful business, we also know the value of networking for a business’ overall growth. To help every company improve through honest and frank counseling from non-competing peers, ACCA has developed the MIX Group® Program. In addition to the ACCA MIX Group® Program, ACCA has offered other networking opportunities through multiple events such as:
Within these events, we not only promote networking between our ACCA members, but also recognize their hard work and dedication. During these events, we have awarded countless contractors and individuals with our prestigious annual honors such as:
- ACCA Commercial and Residential Contractor of the Year
- ACCA Community Leadership Award
- Distinguished Service Award
- Federated Insurance ACCA Super S.T.A.R Award
- Service Manager of the Year
- Spirit of Independence
- Marketing Masters Award
I am grateful for our hardworking and passionate ACCA contractor members, and I look forward to all the possibilities and growth that we can accomplish together. We should be proud of how we have upheld the quality of work during such a challenging time. On behalf of the entire ACCA staff, thank you for choosing us to be your association.
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