The new regulation applies not only to the Orange County Industrial Development Agency, but also to any other municipal Industrial Development Agency operating in Orange County.

Sen. Skoufis said that before introducing the legislation, which ultimately became part of the final state budget, he met with a number of stakeholders, including the Orange County Industrial Development Agency, the Orange County Partnership, the building trades and others. He said the final budget language was nearly identical to legislation he introduced in January.

Sen. Skoufis said he made it clear since January that this was his position during budget negotiations and that the new regulation “should have come as no surprise” to stakeholders in Orange County.

While the legislation applies only to Orange County, Sen. Skoufis said he would eventually like to see the requirement expanded statewide to private projects receiving public benefits.

“Fundamentally, I have always believed, and I argue that the large majority of the public would also agree, that if you get tax subsidies, especially a property tax break given how sky high property taxes are in New York, and you are getting a property tax abatement, there should be a high level of expectation associated with that project that you are paying people well,” he said. “I mean both construction workers and post construction jobs.”

Todd Diorio, president of the Hudson Valley Building & Construction Trades Council, said, “I am never going to not support prevailing wage language.”

He said the legislation also gives private developers receiving certain benefits the option of entering into a Project Labor Agreement with the building trades. He noted that the Hudson Valley Building & Construction Trades Council offers three distinct Project Labor Agreements with varying terms based on project size that include concessions designed to lower labor costs.

“We truly believe that labor costs are incremental in the overall project cost,” Mr. Diorio said. “We’ve won jobs against nonunion, nonprevailing wage firms every day. So is there a real big difference between prevailing wage versus nonprevailing wage? I would say no.”

The new labor requirements on private projects have received a lukewarm reaction from the business community.

Conor Eckert, president and CEO of the Orange County Partnership, acknowledged the new requirements, stating: “This regulatory shift only reinforces the importance of moving faster, thinking bigger, and creating new competitive advantages for Orange County. We’ve built momentum by announcing projects like Garonit Pharmaceuticals, Balchem and Poly Craft, and securing funding to build a next generation rail served industrial park in Maybrook. We’ll continue adapting and innovating to ensure Orange County remains one of the Northeast’s premier destinations for business investment.”

Bill Fioravanti, CEO of the Orange County Industrial Development Agency, released a statement on the new regulation, saying: “While we’re concerned about the impact this new law will have on current and future projects, we are working with the building trades, our elected officials and our partners in economic development to overcome these challenges. Regardless of any obstacle, Orange County will continue to prepare shovel ready sites for development, offer aggressive incentives and maintain our competitiveness in the business attraction landscape.”