The Week Ending March 3, 2000
This weekly report is written by ASCE's Government Relations staff. If you have questions or comments about any items in this report, please contact Brian Pallasch, Michael Charles, Martin Hight, Austin Fulk, or Liz Hermsen at 202/789-2200.
Inside This Week:
House and Senate Reach Agreement on AIR-21
With their agreement on the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization bill known as AIR-21 (H.R. 1000), U.S. House and Senate negotiators settled a six-month stalemate on airport construction. The House and Senate are expected to vote on the $40 billion measure next week.
In the three-year agreement hammered out on Thursday by Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (R-MS), $33 billion would be guaranteed from the Airport and Airway Trust Fund and $6.7 billion would be available to be appropriated from the federal government's general fund. The legislators agreed to raise the maximum Passenger Facility Charge to $4, an increase of $1.50 per flight segment, which airports may receive for infrastructure development. In addition, Congress would be required to spend on the FAA each year all the annual Trust Fund receipts and interest. The deal would also compel appropriators to allocate from the government's general fund about $2 billion per year for daily operations of the FAA.
The agreement is due in part to ASCE members who responded to the Key Alert sent last month. The Government Relations Department would like to thank those who contacted their Senators in support of ASCE's position to unlock the Airport and Airway Trust Fund and provide general funds for FAA operations so that all the Trust Fund money is used for its intended purpose - capital improvements to the nation's airports.
Federal funding of airport construction had been halted for the past six months because House and Senate conferees failed to reach an agreement on the level and mechanism to guarantee funding on the long-term authorization bill for the FAA and Airport Improvement Program (AIP). House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chair Bud Shuster (R-PA) argued that the FAA and AIP should be funded at levels equal to incoming ticket tax revenues, the existing $11 billion surplus and interest accumulations in the Airport and Airway Trust Fund, and a guaranteed contribution of $3 billion per year from the federal government's general fund. However, the Senate had previously refused to unlock the Trust Fund and also provide higher general funds for daily operations of the FAA.
ASCE Comments on OSHA Ergonomic Rule
ASCE submitted comments to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) on its proposed rule to institute an Ergonomics Program. ASCE noted that the size, over 300 pages, and complexity of the proposed rule made it very difficult to fully assess the impact on the practice of civil engineering, especially given the limited time for response.
Among its comments, ASCE noted that the rule does not provide employers with effective means of screening employees for pre-existing conditions during the hiring process. ASCE also noted that the proposed rule does not hold workers accountable for failure to use proper tools and work methods after they are trained. ASCE further noted that the proposed rule could lead to increased workers-compensations claims, increased training costs, increased record keeping costs and increased legal costs for employers.
Copies of the ASCE comments are available by contacting Martin Hight of the ASCE Government Relations Department by email at govwash@asce.org. The comments will also be posted to the ASCE web site shortly.
Corps to Issue New Nationwide Permit Rule Next Week
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) will issue final regulations next week that are designed to protect thousands of acres of wetlands from development, a regulatory change that could slow the steady disappearance of the ecologically sensitive areas nationwide.
The regulations would make it much harder to build homes, roads or anything else near small streams and creeks by narrowing the current exemption for small developments from the permitting requirements of the Clean Water Act. In most cases, the new rules would require developers and public agencies to secure specific permits for projects affecting a half-acre of wetlands or more, down from the current minimum of three acres. The old 10-acre permitting exemption was repealed several years ago.
Officials believe that the Corps. plan will stem the nation's annual loss of more than 100,000 acres of wetlands. The streams and creeks covered by these rules account for about one-fourth of the nation's wetlands, which provide homes to a variety of endangered species, reduce floods, and help purify drinking water.
"These new rules should take away the biggest weapon of mass wetlands destruction," said Daniel Rosenberg, an attorney at the Natural Resources Defense Council.
ASCE Sends Letter on Manufactured Housing Bill
On Thursday, March 2nd, ASCE sent a letter to all members of the Senate Banking Committee expressing concern with proposed legislation, S. 1452, which would alter the way the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) establishes regulations for manufactured housing. The legislation was to have been considered by the Committee on Friday, March 3rd, but consideration has been pushed to next week.
In its letter, ASCE agreed that legislation is needed to push HUD to modernize current manufactured housing regulations that have not been significantly altered in more than twenty years. However, ASCE is concerned that the legislation, strongly backed by the manufactured housing industry, would blur the long-standing practice of developing industry safety standards apart from any consequent regulations. The legislation would set up a standard-setting group that would not meet the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) requirements for standards developing groups.
State Legislative Update
ASCE continues to provide updates on state legislation affecting civil engineers as state legislative sessions progress. For more information on the following bills, or any other state legislative matters, please contact Austin Fulk , ASCE's Manager of State Government Relations, at (202) 789-2200 or via email at govwash@asce.org.
ASCE Wins Major Victory in Florida: In a big win for improved building safety, the Florida Building Commission has recommended the adoption of ASCE's standard 7-98 as part of the state building code. 7-98 governs building standards that protect against high wind hazards, such as hurricanes, which have struck Florida's coast numerous times in recent years. These storms cost many lives and cause a great deal of damage, at least some of which could have been prevented with stricter building code standards. 7-98 requires much new construction to be able to withstand winds of up to 120 miles per hour in the hurricane-prone coastal areas of the state.
The Building Commission's standards must still be approved by the Florida Legislature when it convenes in March. The proposal is expected to encounter opposition from homebuilders, while ASCE will support it. Insurance groups are also expected to support the proposal because of the savings that result from better quality construction.
7-98 was included in the draft building code standards and throughout the process the commission refused to cave to pressure from interest groups opposed to safer building standards. If these standards are adopted by the Florida legislature, they will improve the quality and strength of construction, and will save both lives and money.
California's A. B. 1756A would provide funding to retrofit buildings throughout the state to withstand seismic damage. The bill would provide up to $5000 in state tax credits for single family dwelling seismic retrofits and $2500 per unit in credits for multi-family dwellings.
Tort Reform in Colorado: HB00-1250 was defeated in the House Judiciary Committee by a vote of seven to four. The bill, if passed, would have severely limited (and in many cases prohibited) arbitration clauses in contracts.
Infrastructure Financing in Virginia: Legislative wrangling continues over how much to spend on new transportation projects and how to finance them. After being initially defeated, Governor Jim Gilmore's transportation package, which would spend $2.6 billion on new roads and mass transit, was passed by the House of Delegates.
Land preservation in Virginia: A number of bills are pending in the Virginia legislature that would address the issue of smart growth. These include:
- H.B. 1164: Would expand the Land Preservation Foundation that purchases open land for preservation. Passed by House 97-1. Now in Senate committee.
- H.B. 1166: Allows for clustering of detached single-family dwellings to preserve open space. Passed by House, now in Senate committee.
- H. B. 1167: Dictates that when recordation tax receipts reach a certain level, any addition income is funneled to the Land Conservation Foundation. Passed by House, continued to 2001 in Senate committee.
- H. B. 1324: Allows Land Preservation Trust Fund to give grants to localities to acquire open-space easements. Passed by House and currently on the floor of the Senate.
- H. B. 600: Allows grants to localities for purchase of development rights programs. Passed by House and currently on the floor of the Senate.
