Ryan sits down with former Local 502 colleague Erik Elzy — now the full-time lobbyist and political outreach lead for the Kentucky Pipe Trades to recap the UA’s 41st General Convention in San Diego. They talk the jump from business agent to the Capitol, the bills Erik worked in the 2026 General Assembly, what’s coming next session (backflow certification, prevailing wage, unemployment), the Pipe Trades’ endorsement of Rocky Adkins for governor, and where union workers stand in Kentucky politics right now.