Phone & Fax Day Instructions
Note: the following is adapted from material produced by MACLA.
To participate in the Congressional Phone and Fax Day, here's what to do:
- Locate the name and telephone and fax number of your elected Member of Congress. You can locate your representative's contact numbers on the U.S. House of Representatives web site. Also, see "Contacting Your Representative on the previous page. If you need further assistance, send email to The Corner Cleaner.
- Call the office and ask to speak with the legislative assistant who handles environmental issues.
- Use the H.R. 1711 Congressional Talking Points to state your case and ask for support.
- Or, simply print out and send the fax below, filling in the appropriate information, including your name, address and phone number.
- Please do this on Wednesday, March 4.
- Do not send this instruction portion with your fax.
IMPORTANT CONSTITUENT COMMUNICATION
Via Fax To: From: I am sending this communication to ask for your support of H.R. 1711, the Small Business Remediation Act. This bill, sponsored by Representative Joe Barton and nearly 70 of your colleagues, seeks to establish a reasonable clean-up standard for any possible soil contamination associated with drycleaning sites. Right now, clean-up standards for soil remediation are governed by a de facto application of the federal safe drinking water standard for the relevant compound, perchloroethylene, thus creating a strangulation hold on drycleaners, landlords, property owners and lenders. Even if you achieve it, what is the sense in cleaning up dirt to the point that it is safe enough to eat? The provisions in H.R. 1711 would put in place a stringent, fair, problem solving, scientific, common sense, cleanup standard for perchloroethylene where none now exists. H.R. 1711 does not change the federal drinking water standards nor affect the ability of EPA or the States to require remediation of drycleaning sites. But without this Bill becoming law, lost jobs, bankruptcy and yet another clean-up debacle to deal with will be the legacy of our industry. You have a chance to help fix an expensive national failure that makes criminals and victims out of innocent people who have broken no law. Please sign on as a cosponsor of H.R.1711, or support the Bill during Committee and floor votes. It's a good bill that deserves your affirmative consideration. Can I count you? Yours truly,
