NACD Details Concerns at Annual D.C. Fly-in
Members of the National Association of Chemical Distributors (NACD) met in Washington recently for the association's annual Fly-In.
During the event, 50 NACD member company participants had meetings with senators, representatives, and congressional staff members representing 33 states. Members urged Congress to
- Eliminate the October 2009 sunset date and allow the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) to be fully implemented and tested before enacting new chemical security legislation.
- Consider Toxic Substances Control Act Reform (TSCA) by supporting approaches like EPA's ChAMP, which has the potential to quickly test and provide public information on more chemicals than a REACH type of framework employed by the European Union.
- Enact legislation to eliminate the railroads' antitrust exemption (S. 146 and H.R. 233) and to reform the STB to give rail consumers some recourse when dealing with rail problems.
- Maintain the railroads' common carrier obligation to transport HazMat and reject the railroads' proposals to shift some of their liability to shippers.
- Oppose the "Employee Free Choice Act," which would allow for a card-check procedure in lieu of a secret ballot for employees when deciding whether to form a union in a workplace.
NACD President Chris Jahn said, "Thanks to the more than 149 meetings being held between NACD members and congressional offices," he continued, "there is now a much greater awareness on Capitol Hill about the value NACD chemical distributors bring to the market chain and how key legislative proposals would impact the industry."