A group of about 60 cleaners rallied on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, Oct. 1 seeking more support for the Barton bill in the final days of the 105th U.S. Congress.
At the end of the day supporters were rewarded with the news that Tom DeLay, the House Majority Whip, had agreed to cosponsor the legislation which was introduced by his fellow Texas Republican, Joe Barton, last year. DeLay is the 92nd member of Congress to add his name to the bill.
Barton himself congratulated the supporters for putting drycleaners "on the radar screen" in Congress. He promised to reintroduce the legislation when the 106th Congress convenes next year and said he will press EPA to cooperate with the industry to develop fair and workable clean-up standards for soil and groundwater standards. If that isn't accomplished by next July, he said he will proceed with hearings in Congress.
The October 1 "March on Capitol Hill" was organized by the Mid-Atlantic Cleaners and Launderers Association. MACLA covered the costs for pre- and post-March meetings and coordinated some 40 scheduled appointments with members of the House of Representatives. In addition to MACLA members, cleaners from Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Oklahoma, Texas and Minnesota participated.
The event culminated nearly 18 months of grassroots lobbying of the 105th Congress by the industry since May 1997 when Barton introduced H.R. 1711, the Small Business Remediation Act. At that time, Barton said if the industry could round up 100 cosponsors for this bill he would move to get hearings in the House. The tally at the Oct. 1 March on Capitol Hill fell just short of 100, but in a meeting in his Washington office at the end of the day, Barton told supporters that they had succeeded in getting the attention of both Congress and the EPA focused on the problems that result from applying stringent drinking water standards to cleanups of drycleaning solvent in soil and groundwater.
Currently there are no federal standards for soil and groundwater thus the drinking water standard of 5 parts per billion of perc is applied to those cases, making cleanups extremely costly. Barton's legislation would set the standard for groundwater and soil at one-tenth the amount that OSHA allows for workers to be exposed to in drycleaning plants. OSHA's maximum eight-hour average exposure level for perc is 100 parts per million, that is likely to drop when OSHA finishes are review to that standard. But even OSHA adopted a standard of 10 ppm, cleaning up a drycleaning sites would be more feasible than at a 5 ppb level.
Barton expressed to cleaners at the Oct. 1 meeting that feasible standards are the ultimate goal of his legislation. Earlier that day he had met with EPA officials to discuss the issue and told them he wanted the agency to work with the industry to solve the problem.
Also at that meeting were attorneys from Baise, Miller & Freer, the Washington, DC, law firm that has been assisting industry efforts on Capitol Hill. According to their account of the meeting, EPA does not support a national standard, preferring instead localized regulation.
Barton, however, wants EPA to be a part of the problem-solving process and told agency officials he wants to see something done by next summer. If that is not accomplished, he said he will press ahead with his legislated standard approach whether EPA likes it or not.
But Barton also cautioned that while he believes the legislation could be passed, he doubts there would be enough supporting votes to override a veto by the president. So long as a Democrat is president and the legislation is passed by EPA, such a veto would be likely.
Nonetheless, some significant congressional support was added to the Barton bill just before and during the Oct. 1 event. Perhaps most significant was the addition of House Majority Whip Tom DeLay to the cosponsor list. His legislative director, Dan Flynn, pledged support in moving the bill forward to a full House vote.
Signing on to the bill just at the end of September was Ron Klink, a Pennsylvania Democrat who is his party's ranking member on the Commerce Committee's Oversight and Investigations subommittee, a committee that is chaired by Rep. Barton.
Campaigners for the Barton Bill on Oct. 1 reported positive responses from representatives and their staff assistants in many congressional offices. Some indicated interest in joining the list of cosponsors while others said they would support the measure if it comes to the floor for a vote. Still others, including House Commerce Committee chairman Thomas Bliley, said they understand and appreciate the problem the industry faces but think it should be resolved in the larger Superfund reform bill. And, of course, there are those who say they would defer to EPA on the bill, a polite way of declining to offer their support.
The Baise Miller & Freer "drycleaning issues team," which includes Gary Baise, Marshall Miller. Charlotte Gillespie, Michael McKenna and Michael Formica, is following up on the contacts made Oct. 1.
"We will continue to gather momentum and support in the House, preparing over the recess for a quick pace when Congress returns in January," the firm advised supporters by fax the week after the March.
"Additionally, we hope to obtain support in the Senate, while finishing plans to introduce a Senate counterpart to H.R. 1711."
Anyone needing more information material can contact the firm at (202) 331-9100.
The Dry Cleaners Action fund of America (DCAFA), started last year to help pay the cost of keeping the attorneys on the case, needs more contributions from cleaners. Merry Bering, executive director of the Michigan Institute of Laundering and Drycleaning (MILD), reported that $173, 138 had been donated through September. The fund's balance of $22,000 is enough to cover another month or two or expenses.
MILD not only is covering administrative costs for DCAFA, it also has led the way in fund-raising. Earlier this year MILD asked each Michigan cleaner to pledge to the fund; about $50,000 has been given by Michigan cleaners so far.
Other significant contributions to the effort have come from the Martinizing Environmental Group and Comet franchises.
Bering said other contributions have been "sporadic" and that some state and regional associations have donated from their own funds.
"We need states to get busy and raise some money," she said at the Oct. 1 meeting.
The Details...
- Text of the Barton Bill
- Summary of HR 1711
- Dry Cleaners Action Fund of America
- Rep. Barton's "Dear Colleague" letter
- The Barton bill Scorecard
- Barney Deden's letter to drycleaners
Be Your Own Lobbyist
- Sample Congressional Letter
- Talking Points
- How the Barton Bill Protects Cleaners from Excessive Clean-up Costs
- Environmental Problems Facing Drycleaners
- Possible Arguments Against The Bill
Information from FLARE to help cleaners get the message to Congress
