Make Plans to Participate in Important Advocacy Effort

In preparation for the next highway bill, there is discussion on Capitol Hill about boosting the federal fuel excise tax, privatizing highways, and raising truck size and weight limits. North American Concrete Alliance (NACA) members must be prepared to weigh-in on these and other issues impacting our industry.

A special NACA session has been organized on Concrete and Climate Change. The session will be led by Ruksana Mirza, Vice President of Environmental Affairs, Holcim (US) Inc.

For any members planning to participate in the conference who need assistance in scheduling meetings with Members of Congress, please contact your Association's government affairs representative.

Click here to register for the annual Transportation Construction Coalition (TCC) Fly-In, scheduled for May 8-9 at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel, Washington, D.C.

The event features a legislative briefing (2:30 to 5:30), followed by a Capitol Hill Reception (at 6:00 p.m.) the first day. The second day activities include a breakfast program, followed by individually-arranged meetings with U.S. Senators and Representatives.

The event provides the concrete and cement industries, as well as other organizations represented by the Transportation Construction Coalition, with the opportunity to discuss key issues of common interest and importance. The registration fee for the two-day program is $175; lower rates apply to individual sessions.

Click here to download a program.

Contact Kerri Leininger.

For assistance in scheduling, contact David Hubbard, Kerri Leininger, or Jerry Voigt.

Unions, Agency Settle Hex Chrome Suit
...... Both say they won't challenge cement exclusions

The construction trade unions of the AFL-CIO have elected not to challenge the exclusion of cement from the several standards contained in a recent rulemaking on hexavalent chromium.

In its final rule, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) determined that levels of hexavalent chromium in cement—as well as the associated risks—were sufficiently low to justify excluding the product from each of the standards in the rule. The various standards cover construction, maritime industries, and general industry.

NACA member PCA was poised to intervene in the case to defend the exclusions against the challenge, but also worked with OSHA to facilitate the settlement, which is the preferred alternative to litigation.

Contact Tom Carter.

More Scientists Press EPA to Tighten Ozone Standard

A collection of 111 independent medical professors and other scientists have urged the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to lower significantly the national ambient air quality standard for ozone.

The letter to EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson echoes the recommendation of EPA's external Clean Air Science Advisory Committee in calling for a reduction of the standard from the current level of 0.08 parts per million (ppm) to between 0.06 and 0.07 ppm.

The strong push for lowering the standard has placed intense pressure on EPA, which will almost certainly propose lowering the standard by the court-imposed June 20 deadline.

Contact Tom Carter.

White House Withdraws Key Nominations

The White House this week withdrew its nominations for two pivotal positions at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The nominations of Bill Wehrum for Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation and Alex Beehler for Inspector General had cleared the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee during last session's Republican majority, but both had been held from full Senate endorsement.

U.S. Senate Environment and Public Work Committee Chair Barbara Boxer (D. Calif.) opposes both nominees.

The withdrawal comes on the heels—and might imply confirmation—of rumors that Wehrum will soon leave EPA.

Contact Tom Carter.

Circuit Court Approves Lining All-American Canal

President Bush in December signed legislation that would, among other things, allow for the immediate allocation of funds to line the All-American Canal, which brings Colorado River water to the Imperial Valley in California.

Last week the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals provided the legal authorization to start the project by ruling that the that the federal government can line a major canal with concrete to stop huge leaks, rejecting arguments that growers across the border in Mexico need the leaking water for their crops.

Proponents of lining the All-American Canal say it would save 67,000 acre-feet of water, enough to meet the needs of more than 500,000 homes in fast-growing San Diego County.

The 82-mile-long canal was completed in 1942 to carry water west from the Colorado River. It irrigates crops along both sides of the border in an area about 100 miles east of San Diego.

In related news, the government of Mexico on Tuesday rejected the court ruling allowing the U.S. government to line a border canal with concrete to prevent leakage, saying the project will harm the environment and Mexican farmers.

"The government is reviewing, in contact with parties potentially affected by the ruling, the legal options available" for challenging the project further, the Foreign Relations and Environment departments said in a statement Monday.

The issue is a sensitive one in Mexico. The government statement noted that President Bush and Mexican President Felipe Calderon discussed it last month during a meeting in Merida.

Contact John Sullivan.

Agency to Seek Comments on California Rule

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will seek public comments over the next few months on whether it should approve or disapprove California's clean vehicle standards after the U.S. Supreme Court's global warming ruling.

EPA Press Secretary Jennifer Wood said the agency is "going to put [the notice] out shortly" in the Federal Register. EPA will announce a 60-day public comment period and a public hearing on the decision, which EPA officials said is likely to be held this summer.

Wood would not comment on whether EPA is signaling that it will ultimately approve or disapprove California's rules, saying only that its decision would be made "sometime after the comment period" closes. Industry, environmental, and public interest groups could seek an additional 30-day extension of that two-month comment period.

California finalized its clean car rules in 2004 and submitted its request for a waiver from EPA in 2005. The state's rules target carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and hydrofluorocarbons. The waiver request has never been formally acted on by EPA, although it signaled last year that it would make its determination once the Supreme Court had ruled on the broader greenhouse gas case.

The Supreme Court's 5-4 ruling, handed down April 2, rejected the Bush administration's contention that it lacks the authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from automobiles under the Clean Air Act. The court said the agency had "offered no reasoned explanation" for its position.

The court also said the Clean Air Act's broad definition of what constitutes an air pollutant clearly includes greenhouse gas emissions. That ruling means EPA still has a separate decision to make on whether it should proceed itself to regulate carbon dioxide from motor vehicles given that the Supreme Court ruling rejected its contention that it lacked such authority under the Clean Air Act.

Contact Deidra Ciriello.

Senators Dubious of Catastrophe Fund

Top members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs on Wednesday rebuffed a plea from Governor Charlie Crist (R-Fla.) that Congress pass legislation to create a federal backstop for natural catastrophes.

Crist described how Florida homeowners face skyrocketing insurance premiums because of recent hurricanes, forcing the state legislature to establish a state reinsurance fund up to $32 billion.

The governor said states along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts face a similar situation, adding that the federal government must ultimately help out in the aftermath of a large natural disaster.

Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd (D-Ct.) was sympathetic to Crist's arguments, but said the insurance industry was bitterly divided over the issue. He also indicated there is a lack of lack of consensus among stakeholders and policymakers about what national action, if any, is appropriate in the long term to help homeowners and businesses contend with rising property and casualty premiums.

Dodd stressed, however, that mitigation was critical to helping to decrease insurance costs and he noted that now was the time to strengthen the National Flood Insurance Program.

Contact Robert Sullivan or John Sullivan.

Questions about this newsletter? For more information or to unsubscribe, send an e-mail to info@washingtonbriefing.com.