Update on Transportation-Construction Items in Omnibus Legislation

The President signed into law on December 26 the fiscal year 2008 consolidated appropriations bill.  Known as the omnibus appropriations bill, the legislation fully funds the highway program at $40.2 billion; adds an extra $1 billion to the bridge program; and eliminates a major diversion of monies from the Highway Trust Fund.

Funding for a number of transportation-construction related items was rescinded.  They include Highways for L.I.F.E., innovative bridge research, and truck parking facilities programs.  Specific amounts rescinded are noted below:

Highways for L.I.F.E. .................................................. $20,000,000

Innovative bridge research/deployment...................$13,100,000

Truck parking facilities...................................................$6,250,000

2% for Ferry Boats earmarks......................................$13,609,620

2% for Federal Lands earmarks.................................$21,264,182

2% for IM discretionary earmarks................................$20,375,000

2% for TCSP earmarks................................................ ...$7,783,650

2% for Rail-Highway Crossing Hazard.........................$5,766,500

ACPA senior staff will be exploring the implications of some of these rescissions with FHWA and others, particularly in terms of those directly related to highway program appropriations, as well as how highway program spending might be affected.  

ACPA will report its findings to members, as well as to other NACA partners following a series of meetings next week.

Contact Jerry Voigt.

European Union Said to Consider Carbon Limits on Imported Goods

The European Commission is considering requiring companies that import carbon-intensive goods into the European Union to buy allowances on the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), according to published reports and an industry source familiar with the proposal.

Under the proposal, energy-intensive industries bringing goods into the European Union would be treated on the same basis as EU companies covered by the ETS. Importers would be allocated carbon caps depending on the volume of imports and would be required to buy additional allowances for emissions in excess of the cap.

The Commission is considering the proposal as part of a review of the ETS that is scheduled to be published January 23. However, its inclusion in the final ETS review document is far from certain. 

Among the issues considered by the review will be an extension of emissions trading to new sectors and additional greenhouse gases beyond carbon dioxide. The review also will consider what proportion of carbon allowances should continue to be given to companies for free, as opposed to auctioned at the outset of the trading period.

In conjunction with the ETS review, the Commission is scheduled to publish detailed proposals for reducing the European Union's carbon dioxide emissions by 20 percent by 2020 compared with 1990 levels and to have 20 percent of the European Union's energy come from renewable sources by 2020. The proposals also will include a legal framework for carbon capture and storage.

Contact Andy O'Hare.

Trade Commission Considers Creating Guidelines for Selling Carbon Offsets

The Federal Trade Commission is considering creating guidelines for the marketing of carbon emission offsets and renewable energy certificates, a commission official said this week at a workshop on FTC environmental marketing guides.

The workshop kicked off the commission's call for public comments on updates to its environmental marketing guides. The guides offer retailers direction on how to be compliant with FTC marketing regulations while advertising their goods as environmentally friendly.

At the workshop, participants debated the value of carbon offsets and renewable energy certificates and the question of what consumers should expect and demand when they purchase offsets or certificates. Discussion included questions about whether money paid needs to go to a new emissions-reducing project; whether renewable energy contributions can count as a carbon offset; and whether the project is good for the environment.

The FTC has not yet committed to updating its guidelines, and so will not make a decision until the public comment periods closes. The comment period for the carbon offset guidelines closes January 25, while the comment period on marketing terms closes February 11.

Contact Andy O'Hare.

Study Links Carbon Dioxide, Fine Particle
Emissions to Health Risk

A study scheduled to appear in an upcoming issue of Geophysical Research Letters (in production in late December) suggests a link between carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, fine particles in the air, and health risks.

The study’s findings were based on a computer model which showed a link between CO2 and other health effects. The model, which isolated effects of CO2 from other greenhouse gas emissions, predicts an annual increase in U.S. air pollution-related deaths resulting from increases in ground-level ozone and small particles.

While other studies have linked ozone to rises in temperature, this study is the first to suggest a health impact linking CO2 to small particles. The study was funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Click here to review a copy of the study.

Contact Tyrone P. Wilson.

Group To Suggest Gasoline Tax Hike

 As reported by Bloomberg news agency, the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission, which is tasked by the U.S. Congress with finding methods to fund road construction projects, will suggest an increase in the federal gasoline tax by as much as 40 cents.

The increase would take place over the next five years with the tax increasing by 5 to 8 cents annually, and then rising every year following, while being indexed for inflation. The current federal gasoline tax is 18.4 cents per gallon.   The most recent increase of 4.3 cents occurred in 1993.

This proposal is expected to strengthen attempts by members of Congress who aim to increase the federal gasoline tax.   Those attempts have have been unsuccessful in the past because of opposition from the White House. 

The tax increase would not take effect until after President Bush leaves office and would be part of the 2009 reauthorization of the federal-aid highway program. Also worth noting is that federal fuel excise taxes also pay for mass transit, which outside of the federal aid highway program.

Contact Robert Sullivan.

Motor Carrier Administration Issues Proposed
Rule on New Driver Training

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) issued a new rule on driver training requirements for receiving a Commercial Drivers’ License (CDL).

The current rule, published in 2004, requires just under 11 hours of in-classroom instruction. The proposed new regulation would mandate a minimum of 76 hours in the classroom and 44 hours behind-the-wheel; a total of 120 hours of instruction.

In December 2005, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ordered the FMCSA to issue a new rule on driver training requirements for receiving a CDL.   The court found in favor of a lawsuit filed against the FMSCA by safety advocacy groups and the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), citing perceived inadequacies in driver training requirements to obtain a CDL.

FMCSA is taking public comments on the proposed rule until March 25. The new rule, which would not affect drivers who already hold a CDL, would not take effect until three years after a final rule is published.

Contact: Gary Mullings, David Ayers, or Kevin Walgenbach.

Mississippi Representative Appointed to Lott’s Seat

On December 31, Representative Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), from the state’s first district, was appointed by Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour, also a Republican, to fill the seat of retired U.S. Senator Trent Lott’s (R–Miss.) seat until a special election can be held.

Congressman Wicker, a 13-year veteran of the House and co-sponsor of the Fuel Tax Equalization Credit for Substantial Power Takeoff Vehicles Act of 2005 (H.R. 652) in the 109 Congress, would serve in the Senate through 2012 if he were to win the special election.

Governor Barbour has called for a special election to be held in November, but critics have noted that the election has to be held within 100 days of the seat being vacated if it occurs during an odd-numbered year.

Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood, a Democrat, has suggested the Governor hold the special election on March 11, in conjunction with Mississippi’s presidential primary.

Contact Robert Sullivan.

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