EPA Findings Declare CO², 5 Other Greenhouse Gases Endanger Public Health – The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a finding on December 7 that greenhouse gases (GHG) endanger public health which sets the stage for the agency to begin regulating the emissions from vehicles and, subsequently, other mobile and stationary sources under the Clean Air Act. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson made the announcement saying “accumulation of CO2 and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere can lead to hotter, longer heat waves that threaten the health of the sick, the poor, the elderly - that can increase ground-level ozone pollution linked to asthma and other respiratory illnesses.” The announcement comes as world leaders meet in Copenhagen at the United Nations Climate Change Conference to discuss the next steps in addressing global warming. Ms. Jackson said that the announcement would provide “another incentive for far-reaching accords in our meetings this week.” EPA’s proposed GHG standards for light-duty vehicles would reduce GHG emissions by nearly 950 million metric tons and conserve 1.8 billion barrels of oil over the lifetime of model year 2012-2016 vehicles. EPA’s endangerment finding covers emissions of six key greenhouse gases – carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons and sulfur hexafluoride. The decision to announce the finding was not an attempt to push Congress into passing climate change legislation. The House passed a bill (H.R. 2454) that would establish a nationwide emissions cap-and-trade system affecting stationary sources, but not vehicles. Similar legislation (S. 1733) is under consideration in the Senate but will likely not be considered until next year. According to Ms. Jackson, the EPA’s final findings are in response to the 2007 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Massachusetts v. EPA that GHGs fit within the Clean Air Act definition of air pollutants. The findings do not in and of themselves impose any emission reduction requirements but rather allow EPA to finalize the standards proposed earlier this year for new light-duty vehicles as part of the joint rulemaking with the Department of Transportation. Ms. Jackson said that she believed that legislative action could move the entire country ahead on the issue and give businesses more certainty in the future. The proposed emissions limits on cars and light trucks is an example of regulatory action complementing legislative action, she noted. NCMA representatives are closely following developments related to the climate change issue both on Capitol Hill and in the relevant regulatory agencies. For more information on how these developments might affect you, please contact Bill Plenge at 703-713-1900.

House Passes Estate Tax Legislation, Hands Off to Senate – On December 3, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 4154, estate tax legislation, by a vote of 225-200. The bill would make permanent the current 45 percent estate tax rate and the current per-person exemption amount of $3.5 million. This House measure would replace the present temporary repeal of the estate tax, which is scheduled to expire in 2010 but return in 2011 at the pre-2001 rate of 55 percent and a per-person exemption of $1 million. This issue still faces significant congressional debate. The Senate still must take up the bill but it is possible that this floor debate will occur this year. Assuming Senate passage at some point, there would then have to be a House-Senate conference to iron out differences between the House and Senate bills.

NCMA has been on record with Congress and the Administration as this issue has been developing for several years with the following position most recently recapped in the Summary of NCMA Positions and Strategic Actions of Public Policy Issues (Midyear Meeting 2009):

“NCMA favors making permanent the repeal of the federal estate tax and will continue to educate the Congress and Administration about concerns on the impact of small businesses. If the tax is not repealed, NCMA favors exemptions of at least $7.5 million.”

NCMA has just released a Legislative Alert urging all members to contact their Congressmen and Senators requesting support for NCMA's position on this issue. Because the House passage was close, it might be possible to persuade wavering House members to come over to NCMA's position during the conference committee negotiations and before final passage, and Senators during the upcoming Senate debates. So now is a good time for NCMA members to weigh in with their elected officials in Washington on this issue.

The Legislative Alert included a tally of how specific House members voted on December 3 and urged NCMA members to either a call, send a letter, or send an email to their Congressmen and Senators to make the industry’s position known. Our voice will be critical and can make a difference. If members have any questions about their elected representatives or how to get in touch with them, please see the www.house.gov or contact Bill Plenge, NCMA Director for Government Relations, at (703) 713-1900.

EPA Proposed Rule Making Fly Ash a Hazardous Waste Expected Soon – In an ongoing chain of actions accelerated by the promise of its new Administrator, Lisa Jackson, at her recent confirmation hearing, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is expected to release for public comment before the end of the year a proposed rule that would make fly ash a hazardous material under Subtitle C of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). Presently, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is coordinating an interagency review to determine whether a proposed EPA rule should regulate coal combustion byproducts (including fly ash) as a hazardous waste. The exact wording of the proposed rule has not been made known to the public. If the language passes muster with OMB, it will then be published in the Federal Register as a proposed rule and opened for public comment. (The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is conducting a cost impact study on the proposed rule, but it has no authority to stop the rulemaking process.) As the Obama administration has made no secret of its intent to cripple the coal industry, it is expected that the public comment period of the rulemaking process will be brief, wrapping up early next year. Unless public or political pressure causes EPA to reverse itself, there is a high likelihood that onerous use and handling restrictions will in very short order drive the concrete and manufactured concrete products industries to the employment of other more expensive or less sustainable, (cementitious materials), making concrete masonry less competitive in the marketplace. Our industry relies on fly ash as an inexpensive and readily available material to enhance “green” performance and durability, and NCMA is therefore monitoring the rulemaking process carefully. Fly ash improves longevity, increases strength, reduces chloride permeability, enhances durability, makes an excellent cementitious grout, and improves cost effectiveness of concrete masonry. There is also a greenhouse gas savings realized with the use of fly ash in concrete mixtures. Additionally, fly ash replaces some of the cement used in our products, reducing CO2 emissions. Finally, the beneficial re-use of a waste material eases the load on the nation’s already stretched landfill infrastructure. NCMA has joined the Coal Combustion Byproducts Coalition (CCBC) in order to more fully understand and advocate against the expected proposed rule. See www.uswag.org/ccbc.htm for greater detail about this important issue, including letters sent to federal officials by industry and state government officials as well as templates for use by concerned citizens.