WASHINGTON ALERT
Stephanie Salmon, Artemis Strategies; Jeff Hannapel & Christian Richter, The Policy Group, Washington, D.C.
EPA’s Major Ozone Rule Still Pending T
he U.S. Environmental Protec- tion Agency (EPA) is currently reconsidering the 2008 Na-
tional Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) ozone rule. Te rules are typically reviewed every five years, but in January 2010, the agency had proposed lowering the ozone standard from 75 parts per billion (ppb), set in 2008, to a range of 60-70 ppb. Te new, tougher air quality
standards for the ozone would reduce allowable emissions to a level that would put 85% of the counties across the nation into “nonattainment status,” setting into motion an array of federal and state regulations to limit emis- sions. A few of the regulations would prevent metalcasters from increasing production capacity, expanding current facilities, and/or building new facili- ties because of the added emissions they might cause. EPA estimates the proposed new standard could add as much as $20 to 90 billion per year to the operating costs of manufacturers and other sectors. Te final rule was first scheduled to be finished by August 2010 but
ON THE HILL
Portion of Health Care Law Ruled Unconstitutional In August, the U.S. 11th
Circuit Court of
Appeals struck down the 2010 health care reform law’s individual insurance mandate, ruling “congress exceeded its commerce power.” However, the appeals court upheld other provisions of the law, including its Medicaid expan- sion. The provision requiring all Ameri- cans to carry health insurance or face a tax penalty has been at the center of the legal debate. The individual insurance mandate is set to go into effect in 2014. It requires most Americans to carry insurance—through the workplace, a government program such as Medicare, or individual purchase—or pay a penalty that eventually could go as high as
18 | MODERN CASTING September 2011
several thousand dollars per year. The Obama Administration likely will appeal the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court, and the case could land there as soon as its 2011-12 term or wait until the 2012-13 term, which would put the final resolution after the November 2012 presi- dential election.
Federal Highway and Transit Programs Set to Expire
The current highway and transit authori- zation programs are set to expire by Sept. 30, which will impact the highway and transit construction market. Lawmakers failing to act by the date could lead to a shutdown of the federal-aid highway program and parts of the federal transit program, similar to the recent Federal
Aviation Administration shutdown that took place in early August. In addition, the authority for collecting the federal motor fuels tax expires at the end of September. Failure to act will result in the federal tax not being collected, further depleting the resources of the Highway Trust Fund. Without additional revenue, the highway and transit program funding levels will decline by 30 to 35% in 2012.
The key House and Senate com- mittees with jurisdiction are currently drafting new authorization legislation to establish funding levels and make poli- cy determinations. These decisions will have major ramifications for the ability of the states to address their transpor- tation infrastructure needs.
has run into a number of delays. EPA recently announced it would not release the rule by the end of July 2011 as planned. Te Office of Management and Budget is currently reviewing the rule, and EPA staff has noted it will be released when that process is finished. In August, Earthjustice and several other health and environmental groups filed a motion in the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Mississippi vs.
$20-90 billion Te EPA-estimated additional cost to industrial
operations caused by the proposed ozone standard.
DESPITE DELAYS, EPA REMAINS COMMITTED TO PROPOSED RULE TO LOWER OZONE STANDARDS.
EPA, asking for the EPA to be ordered to sign a revised ozone NAAQS. Manufacturing lobbyists have pointed to studies showing the proposed ozone standard could result in millions of jobs lost and $1 trillion per year in compliance costs. EPA did issue a final rule on the
NAAQS for carbon monoxide this summer. Te agency had originally proposed to alter the national limits of carbon monoxide levels but ultimately kept the current limits, citing the present standards were sufficient for the protection of public health. Since 1980, concentrations of the gas have dramatically declined due to increas- ingly strict vehicle emission standards on automobiles, which emit the largest amounts of carbon monoxide. Te final rule requires states to administer carbon monoxide detection devices on major city center roads to improve upon the monitoring of concentra- tions of the gas. Tese monitors must be set up by January 2017.
To read the final NAAQS for carbon monoxide, visit
www.epa.gov/airquality/carbonmonox- ide/
actions.html#aug11.
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