Advocating for an Industry

Robbie Bradshaw’s path to the front lines of industry advocacy wasn’t a straight line—but it was a deliberate one.

Raised in Portsmouth, Virginia, Bradshaw’s interest in public service began early. “I started getting involved in politics when I was probably about 18 years old,” he said. After working in the Virginia State Legislature for four years and completing law school, Bradshaw found that traditional law practice didn’t quite suit him.

“For some reason, I never saw an area of law that I really enjoyed,” he said. “But one thing I think lawyers typically tend to forget is that they interpret the law, but if you’re an advocate, you can actually help make the law.”

That realization brought Bradshaw to the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC), where he now serves as director of government relations.

A new era for the IICRC

While the IICRC is widely recognized within the cleaning and restoration sectors for its certifications and ANSI-accredited standards, it hasn’t always had a prominent voice in public policy. Bradshaw’s role is helping change that.

“The consumers don’t necessarily know who we are, and I can tell you based on my conversations, the legislators don’t either,” Bradshaw said. Yet lawmakers are increasingly interested in regulating areas related to the cleaning and restoration industry—without always understanding the standards and certifications that already exist.

“If they want a mold standard, a water damage standard, or a carpet cleaning standard, it’s already there,” Bradshaw emphasized. “They just don’t know that it exists.”

Advocacy, he said, is about bridging that knowledge gap: “It stops them from having to reinvent the wheel.”

Legislative wins

One of Bradshaw’s most notable recent achievements involved a bill in Virginia that aimed to regulate mold remediation through state licensure. Initially, the legislation risked pulling in agencies unfamiliar with industry practices. Bradshaw advocated for amendments that would recognize existing industry certifications—like those from the IICRC—as sufficient to meet the bill’s requirements.

“I asked them, what is your overall goal? They said, ‘We want to make sure when someone calls in a mold remediator, they’re going to get a good job.’ So, I said, well, there is a standard that exists,” he recalled. The result? The bill passed with the IICRC’s S520 standard listed as an acceptable guideline.

A similar victory came in Montana, where lawmakers sought to address the cleanup of fentanyl and methamphetamine residue. Working closely with legislators, Bradshaw helped guide them toward adopting standards-based language, paving the way for future recognition of the IICRC’s upcoming S900 standard on drug residue remediation.

“We are certainly supportive of being certified, but also following the industry standard of care,” Bradshaw said. “That’s a really big win.”

The workforce challenge

Another major advocacy focus is workforce development. States like California are investing millions in training initiatives for disaster recovery but haven’t always defined what that training should include. Bradshaw sees this as an opportunity.

“We have FSRT; we’ve got a new fire standard,” he said. “We can train these folks to restore buildings and properties that have been lost to wildfires.”

At the federal level, IICRC and other industry allies are supporting the “Investing in Tomorrow’s Workforce Act,” which would allow families to use 529 education savings plans for industry certifications, not just college degrees. “This would be huge for the cleaning and restoration industry,” Bradshaw said. “I’ve met plenty of people who say, ‘I’ve got money sitting in a 529 account, and my kid doesn’t want to go to college.’ This gives them another option.”

The long road of advocacy

Bradshaw is quick to admit that advocacy work is not for the faint of heart.

“It’s not pointless, but it does get exhausting,” he said. “You’re constantly talking to legislators who have no idea about our industry. We’re a billion-dollar industry that’s underrepresented from an advocacy standpoint.”

He describes the effort as an “Ironman marathon.” Progress is slow, but steady. “Even once you think you’ve solved a problem, I promise you—somebody next year is going to introduce a bill that’s going to screw it up,” he said.

That’s why ongoing collaboration is so important. Bradshaw works closely with other industry advocates, including John Nothdurft of ISSA and the Restoration Industry Association’s (RIA) Advocacy and Government Affairs (AGA) Committee. “It’s important to leverage each other,” he said. “John has more knowledge at the federal level. He’s called on me a couple of times about state-level issues. That cross-pollination makes all of us better.”

Looking ahead: Educating the advocates

One of Bradshaw’s upcoming initiatives is the IICRC’s 3rd annual Educating the Advocates Symposium, scheduled for October 1, in Las Vegas. The goal is to empower others in the industry to become advocates themselves.

“It’s about getting folks in person to talk about how to advocate not just for the IICRC, but for all industry certifications and standards,” he said. “Everyone should know how to represent what we do and why it matters.”

Bradshaw is passionate about his mission. And while the founders of IICRC likely didn’t envision their organization being involved in legislative work, Bradshaw believes this is exactly where the industry needs to be.

“Every company should have a lobbyist,” he said. “We’re not big pharma lobbyists—we’re out there advocating for industry, for standards, and for professionalism.”

With people like Bradshaw leading the charge, the cleaning and restoration industry is finally beginning to find its voice—and ensure that the standards developed by its experts are recognized, respected, and embedded in the policies that shape the future.