U.S. Legislative Issues

On February 11, the Senate Finance Committee approved a bipartisan proposal from Senators Michael Bennet (D-CO) and Richard Burr (R-NC) that would equalize the tax treatment of liquefied natural gas (LNG) with diesel by converting the tax on LNG to an energy equivalency basis.

Currently, the excise tax rate for both LNG and diesel fuel is set at 24.3 cents per gallon even though LNG produces less energy per gallon than diesel fuel. Specifically, it takes about 1.7 gallons of LNG to equal the energy in one gallon of diesel fuel, resulting in LNG being taxed at 170 percent of the rate of diesel fuel on an energy equivalent basis. The Bennet-Burr measure would reduce the per-gallon fee to 14.1 cents a gallon for LNG, a change proponents say more fairly reflects the energy value.  

The measure, S.344, will now be considered by the full Senate. You can view the PDF of this measure by clicking here.



On February 9, a bipartisan group of 32 Senators sent a letter to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regarding 2014 and future biodiesel volume requirements under the federal Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). In the letter, the Senators urge the EPA to get the biodiesel renewable volume requirements (RVOs) under the RFS back on schedule. (You can view a PDF of the letter by clicking here.)

The senators wrote that the EPA delays in implementing the RFS have created "tremendous uncertainty and hardship for the U.S. biodiesel industry and its thousands of employees. Plants have reduced production and some have been forced to shut down, resulting in layoffs and lost economic productivity...We urge you to get biodiesel back on schedule under the statutorily prescribed Renewable Volume Obligations (RVO) process and quickly issue volumes for 2014 at the actual 2014 production numbers. We also hope you move forward on the 2015 and 2016 biodiesel volumes in a timely manner."

The EPA has said it expects to set the standards for 2014 and 2015 some time this year.

The bipartisan letter was led by Senators Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Roy Blunt (R-MO), and Patty Murray (D-WA), to which NAFA sent a letter of appreciation.   



The Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) is currently in the research stage of developing a rule to prevent accidents and injuries caused by backovers. OSHA defines a backover as a crash that occurs when a driver reverses into and injures or kills a pedestrian. In March 2012, OSHA published a Request for Information which solicited feedback from the public on the backover issue. Since then, OSHA officials have been conducting industry site visits and meeting with relevant stakeholders to determine how the agency can best prevent backovers. Likely rule changes could involve new requirements for backup alarms, backup cameras for drivers, and proximity detection systems.

As a next step, OSHA intends to convene a Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) Panel to engage with small entity representatives likely to be impacted by the rule. NAFA will have the opportunity to nominate one or more members to the panel. NAFA members interested in serving on the panel are encouraged to contact NAFA’s U.S. Legislative Counsel, Pat O’Connor, at poconnor@nafa.org.