Jim Riley, Director, Government Affairs
John Boling, Director, Government Affairs
Patricia Maeder, Division Coordinator
www.nssga.org
Action Center
e-Digest
- NEW E-DIGEST AND WASHINGTON WATCH TO DEBUT IN 2007
- 109TH CONGRESS BIDS FAREWELL; PASSES $45B TAX BILL BEFORE SESSION ENDS
- DEMOCRATS LOOK TO EXTEND CR FOR REST OF YEAR
- WATER RESOURCES BILL NOW JUST FLOTSOM AND JETSAM
- CONGRESS APPROVES OFFSHORE DRILLING BILL; EMSRA LEFT OUT IN THE COLD
- CONGRESS GIVES NOD TO BILLS ON SAFETY OF DAMS
- DEMOCRATS AND REPUBLICANS CHOOSE PANEL LEADERSHIP
- UNIONS MAKE PASSAGE OF EMPLOYEES FREE CHOICE ACT TOP PRIORITY
- DUDLEY NOMINATION DIES IN COMMITTEE
- NSSGA PARTICIPATES IN ATM-SPONSORED NATIONAL COUNCIL OF STATE LEGISLATURES TRANSPORTATION FORUM
NEW E-DIGEST AND WASHINGTON WATCH TO DEBUT IN 2007
This is the last NSSGA Washington Watch you will receive for the remainder of the year. We are set to launch a newly designed newsletter combining content from both the NSSGA e-Digest and Washington Watch. When you return from the holidays, you'll start receiving a new weekly electronic newsletter from NSSGA beginning Jan. 16. This new version will provide more timely information on what impacts you the most - from political and legislative developments to issues that affect the stone, sand and gravel industry and the people who work in it. We welcome your comments.
As the last must-pass piece of legislation, leaders added numerous pieces of legislation to the tax package in order to satisfy various factions. Trade bills, abandoned (coal) mine land reform, the offshore drilling bill opening acreage in the eastern Gulf of Mexico to oil and gas development but not including assistance for mining and petroleum schools (see article below), and a number of health related measures were included in the final product passed on Dec. 8 by the House on a vote of 367 to 45 and the next day by the Senate on a 79 to 9 vote.
The outgoing Republican majorities in both chambers also passed a Continuing Resolution (CR) to keep the government operating until Feb. 15, 2007, leaving most of the current fiscal year's spending decisions to the next Congress when Democrats will take control of both the House and Senate. Despite NSSGA's and its coalition partners best efforts, the CR continues to fund the highway and transit programs at last year's level, essentially putting on hold the $3.5 billion increase authorized under SAFETEA-LU the programs would have realized this year until such time as a final transportation spending bill is completed.
109TH CONGRESS BIDS FAREWELL; PASSES $45B TAX BILL BEFORE SESSION ENDS
The 109th Congress adjourned in the early hours of Dec. 9, with a surge of legislation including extending popular tax breaks such as the research and development tax credit for businesses and the tax break for college tuition. Despite predictions, Congress passed the massive $45 billion tax bill as the lame-duck session ended and members officially adjourned and went home.
House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey (D-Minn.) and Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Robert Byrd (D-W. Va.) stated they would make "limited adjustments" to the current Republican-written CR to address important policy priorities, but that the extended version would have none of the earmarks contained in the remaining FY 2007 spending bills. The Democrats said they were placing a "moratorium" on all earmarks until reforms are put in place. Obey and Byrd noted the last time all the spending bills were completed separately and on time was 1994 -- the last year of Democratic control of Congress.
The national transportation coalitions, including NSSGA, will continue efforts to ensure that Congress restores the funding level authorized by SAFETEA-LU for FY 2007 that was included in both the House and Senate committee passed FY 2007 Transportation Appropriation bills as part of the adjustments that Chairmen Byrd and Obey referenced.
DEMOCRATS LOOK TO EXTEND CR FOR REST OF YEAR
The incoming chairmen of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees announced Dec. 11, they plan to enact a Continuing Resolution (CR) for the duration of FY 2007, rather than complete work on the nine remaining appropriations bills covering the domestic portion of the federal budget that the Republicans left unfinished at the close of the 109th Congress. Only two spending bills have been signed into law, the Defense and Homeland Security measures, leaving approximately $463 billion in unfinished agency budgets that will be funded under the yearlong CR. President Bush is expected to submit his FY 2008 budget and a new supplemental spending request for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan in early February.
When the Democrats take control at the start of the 110th Congress, there will be new chairmen and ranking members in the House as well as the Senate, along with significant changes to the subcommittees with jurisdiction over WRDA. The only constant will be an ever larger backlog of much-needed water projects across America demanding attention. NSSGA will continue to educate Congress on the need to pass a comprehensive Water Resources Development bill.
WATER RESOURCES BILL NOW JUST FLOTSOM AND JETSAM
In the closing days of the lame-duck session, marked by a desire to get out of town quickly, conferees to the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) agreed they would not be able to reach an agreement, effectively killing the bill. While the latest version of the WRDA was the closest to passage over the past six years, conferees simply could not agree on how to allocate projects. According to staff, the primary reason for the failure was a Senate demand that the House remove half of its projects in order to create enough room for Senate priorities. The House made a number of compromises, but in the end no agreement could be reached. The Senate passed a $12 billion version of the WRDA bill on July 19, while the House passed a $10 billion version on July 14, 2005.
A previous House-passed version of the bill included the Energy and Mineral Schools Reinvestment Act (EMSRA) that provides additional funding for petroleum and mining schools, but the Senate bill adopted by the House does not. NSSGA along with ad hoc coalition partners will continue to look for opportunities to enact EMSRA and increase funding to mining schools.
CONGRESS APPROVES OFFSHORE DRILLING BILL; EMSRA LEFT OUT IN THE COLD
In one of the final acts of the 109th Congress, the House of Representatives approved as part of its tax legislation a Senate-passed bill (S. 3711) allowing limited offshore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico in the effort to increase the nation's energy independence. The legislation opens 8.3 million acres of Gulf waters 125 miles from the Florida Panhandle. It was part of a massive tax package that cleared the Senate early Dec. 9 shortly before the 109th Congress adjourned. The bill calls for the Interior Department to begin offering leases within a year. Actual production likely would be at least four or five years beyond that.
CONGRESS GIVES NOD TO BILLS ON SAFETY OF DAMS
Late in the evening on Dec. 9, the House passed the Senate version of the Dam Safety Act of 2006, clearing it for the president's signature. The legislation reauthorizes a program that provides technical and financial assistance to state dam safety officials to mitigate potential failures. There are approximately 80,000 dams in the United States; of these, approximately 10,000 dams are considered to have high-hazard potential, meaning their failure could result in loss of life or severe property damage. Private individuals, corporations, and state and local governments own more than 95 percent of the dams in America, with the remainder owned by the federal government. The legislation deals specifically with the non-federal dams. NSSGA has worked through coalitions to support these two bills. If you have any question, please contact the Government Affairs team.
The House Resources Committee saw little competition for chairman or ranking member positions. Rep. Nick Rahall (D-W. Va.) was selected to lead the panel for the Democrats and Don Young was selected to be the ranking member. Congressman Rahall has said he wants to focus on reforming the 1872 Mining Act, oversight on national parks, ending royalty relief for oil and gas exploration, and specifically pointed out he is not going to look at mountaintop mining, reforming the Endangered Species Act or the National Environmental Policy Act. Rahall served as the top Democrat when Young served as chairman of the Resources Commitee (1996-2000) and when their positions switch they are expected to forge a working alliance whenever possible. Further, Rahall is giving a nod to history and changing the name back to the Natural Resources Committee, the name of the panel until the Republicans took control and changed it in 1994. No word yet on whether Oberstar will change his panel's name back to Public Works and Transportation Committee.
DEMOCRATS AND REPUBLICANS CHOOSE PANEL LEADERSHIP
The House Democratic Caucus selected Rep. James Oberstar (D-Minn.) to chair the Transportation & Infrastructure Committee and the House Republican Conference chose Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.) to be the ranking member. While no Democrat challenged Oberstar for the top spot, the ranking member position was hotly contested. Reps. Tom Petri (R-Wis.) and John Duncan (R-Tenn.), along with Mica, were campaigning to be the top Republican on the panel. Late in the race, Rep. Duncan withdrew his bid, leaving the contest to Petri and Mica, which John Mica won. Current chairman Don Young (R-Alaska), was prohibited by the Republican Conference rules from serving more than six-years as chairman or ranking member. Incoming chairman Oberstar's agenda has been the subject of an article in a previous NSSGA publication, but the article did not highlight the differences between Mica and Oberstar. Over the past 12 years, Oberstar has worked closely with former chairman Bud Shuster and outgoing chairman Don Young. Mica, however, has had a number of high-profile partisan conflicts with Oberstar during the past few years that will test the pledge of bipartisanship that Oberstar has committed to during the 110th Congress. The conflicts have been over union issues, the structure of the Federal Aviation Administration and funding for Amtrak, to name a few.
UNIONS MAKE PASSAGE OF EMPLOYEES FREE CHOICE ACT TOP PRIORITY
The AFL-CIO contributed over $1.2 million and thousands of man-hours volunteering to help Democrats gain the majorities in Congress. Last week, hundreds of union members rallied in Washington to urge early passage by the new Democratic majority to pass the Employees Free Choice Act. The bill would make it easier for unions to organize workers by allowing employees to choose a union when a majority of them sign an authorization designating a union as their bargaining representative. The bill was introduced this year by Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), both of who are the presumptive chairmen of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and House Education and the Workforce Committee respectively. Sen. Kennedy and Rep. Miller have both included passage of the Employees Free Choice Act a priority for the 110th Congress. Kennedy told the Dec. 8 union rally, "I quite frankly am tired of playing defense. I think it's time we play offense." Labor organizations have promised more rallies in the face of Republican Congressional minority and White House opposition to giving unions any tools that might help them increase their numbers. NSSGA is assessing the impact of this legislation on its members and will continue to closely follow developments.
Dudley's opponents criticized her over comments she made against increased energy standards for consumer appliances, more stringent fuel economy regulations, and limiting the sale of genetically modified foods. At her Nov. 13 confirmation hearing, Dudley argued that in each case consumers should have more say in the products they purchase rather than relying on the government to limit options. Dudley said her academic writings critical of federal rulemaking were intended to provoke debate, but that she would uphold the regulatory process if confirmed. More than 50 academics defended her work and six former OIRA heads asked the Senate to deliberate her nomination promptly.
OIRA reviews the costs and benefits of major regulations proposed by agencies before they can be put into effect. Dudley previously served in regulatory policy positions at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and Environmental Protection Agency and as an economist at OIRA. NSSGA has met with OIRA officials on numerous occasions to discuss regulatory issues of importance to the aggregates industry.
DUDLEY NOMINATION DIES IN COMMITTEE
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, announced Dec. 6 that she would not seek a vote in committee on the nomination of Susan Dudley to be the next head of Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) in the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Collins stated that there was little time left in the 109th Congress to act on the nomination before its adjournment and Democratic opposition made the vote impractical. With control of the Senate switching to the Democrats in January, it is unlikely that Dudley could win confirmation in the Senate. President Bush can, however, still push her nomination through with a recess appointment.
U.S. Chamber of Commerce Chairman Gerald Shaheen addressed forum participants on Dec. 5. He told them that current taxes and fees paid by motorists are not enough to cover infrastructure maintenance and improvements. Plus, he said, "Those taxes and fees aren't adjusted to account for inflation." Shaheen, president of Caterpillar, Inc., told the state legislators that Caterpillar alone had 1,700 trucks hauling parts and products across the country each day. The number of miles those trucks travel has increased more than 20 percent in the past few years. Shaheen said, "This challenge will become too great to handle if we stay with the current financing system. There is no bigger threat facing American business."
NSSGA's SAFETEA-LU Reauthorization Task Force is working to develop recommendations for reauthorization in coordination with its partners in both the ATM and the Transportation Construction Coalition.
NSSGA PARTICIPATES IN ATM-SPONSORED NATIONAL COUNCIL OF STATE LEGISLATURES TRANSPORTATION FORUM
NSSGA participated in an Americans for Transportation Mobility (ATM)-sponsored National Council of State Legislatures (NCSL) Transportation Forum held Dec. 4-6 in San Antonio, Texas. The two-day forum was attended by state legislators from states across the nation. Attendees heard from National Transportation Surface Policy and Revenue Study Commissioner Jack Schenendorf on the activities of the commission and recent field hearings. Other sessions included presentations on easing gridlock, the economics of traffic safety and finding transportation dollars. Breakout sessions were held to consider the challenges facing transportation leaders across the country and possible solutions.
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