NRCA was heavily involved in lobbying for and against a wide array of government
issues affecting the roofing industry during the 2008-09 fiscal year. This period
also was a time of transition for NRCA's Washington, D.C., office with long-time
Vice President of Government Relations Craig Brightup transitioning Jan. 1, 2009,
to part-time consultant, and NRCA Senior Director of Federal Affairs Duane Musser
taking over leadership of NRCA's government relations efforts.
NRCA continued to work on immigration-related regulatory and legislative issues
during the year as co-chair of the Essential Worker Immigration Coalition (EWIC).
With continuing litigation regarding the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's
(DHS's) supplemental proposed "no-match" rule, Brightup helped organize a Capitol
Hill briefing June 3 by economist Richard Belzer regarding the expected adverse
economic implications of the DHS proposal. Belzer's analysis was funded by EWIC
and submitted to DHS during the public comment period on the proposed rule.
On June 2, Musser attended a White House briefing with President Bush and a panel
of economists who warned of dire consequences for the U.S. economy if the tax cuts
enacted in 2001 and 2003, which are scheduled to expire at the end of 2010, are
not extended. The president urged Congress to approve legislation to make permanent
the lower rates on individual income, capital gains and dividends to avoid what
would be "the largest tax increase in history." The briefing set the stage for the
coming debate regarding tax rates, which will be one of the most significant legislative
battles in Congress during the next two years.
Also in June, NRCA joined other business organizations in lobbying Congress "to
take decisive, effective and immediate action to address the rising cost of energy
in the United States." NRCA later scored a victory on this issue when Congress allowed
the moratorium on offshore drilling for oil and natural gas to expire Sept. 30.
The moratorium had been renewed annually in federal appropriations bills since 1982,
and its lifting will allow for developing new domestic energy supplies.
In July, NRCA helped facilitate the development of the H-2B Workforce Coalition's
comments submitted to the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) regarding proposed regulations
aimed at streamlining and modernizing requirements for the H-2B temporary guest
worker program. The comments provided input regarding how the proposed regulations
will affect employers that use this program and were highly critical of the DOL's
proposed regulations.
In August, NRCA worked with EWIC to submit public comments on a proposed rule that
would require federal contractors to use the E-Verify program to verify employees'
immigration statuses. EWIC's comments raise numerous concerns about the proposed
rule's potential effects on employers and workers. The comments state that EWIC
members are concerned the E-Verify system is not ready for increased usage resulting
from the proposed rule and the result will be uncertainty, confusion and increased
costs for federal contractors. NRCA later worked to have the rule's effective date
delayed until at least June 20, 2009, and lobbied the new Obama administration to
rescind the rule. On July 8, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced
it will move forward to implement the E-Verify rule for federal contractors, and
the current effective date is Sept. 8, 2009.
In September, a delegation from NRCA attended the Republican National Convention
in St. Paul, Minn., as well as many associated convention activities. NRCA's delegation
was spearheaded by NRCA President Rob Therrien, Immediate Past President Bob Daly,
Vice President Liaison Rob McNamara, Government Relations Committee Chairman Bob
Kulp, Executive Vice President Bill Good and NRCA's Washington, D.C., office staff.
On Sept. 18, NRCA Vice President Jim Eckstein testified on behalf of NRCA before
the House Small Business Committee regarding health care reform. Eckstein testified
in support of the Small Business CHOICE Act (H.R. 6582)—which would allow creating
new purchasing cooperatives for employers—as a solution to excessive health insurance
costs. Eckstein concluded by stating that NRCA is committed to working with Congress
to obtain enactment of the CHOICE Act and other proposals that address the problems
employers face when obtaining affordable health insurance.
NRCA also lobbied during 2008 in support of legislation to extend numerous tax provisions
scheduled to expire at the end of the year, including the solar investment tax credit
(extended through 2016) and the commercial building energy-efficiency tax deduction
(extended through 2013). The renewable-energy tax credits and deductions enjoy broad
bipartisan support within Congress, but their extensions have been delayed because
of a tax policy dispute. These tax credits finally were approved by Congress in
October as part of the EESA.
In October, more than 100 members and affiliate executives gathered for NRCA's Fall
Committee Meetings/Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C. By all accounts, the
meetings and related activities were successful and productive. ROOFPAC held a fundraising
dinner at Gadsby's Tavern in Old Towne Alexandria, an 18th-century tavern frequented
by George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. NRCA members enjoyed a luncheon speech
by former Maryland Governor and Congressman Bob Ehrlich, who offered insights regarding
the presidential race, congressional elections and several major political issues.
The members also attended a White House briefing by Jon Lieber of the National Economic
Council about the financial markets situation and implementing the EESA.
NRCA's Political Action Committee, ROOFPAC, achieved a milestone in November by
contributing more than $500,000 to members of Congress and other federal candidates
during the 2007-08 election cycle. Seventy-four percent of the candidates to whom
ROOFPPAC contributed won—a solid success rate in a tough political environment.
In December, NRCA scored another victory in litigation over DHS's "no-match" letter
rule when U.S. District Court Judge Charles Breyer ruled in favor of NRCA and other
plaintiffs challenging the rule, which had been issued in final form in October.
Breyer rejected the government's arguments to expedite consideration of the case,
which ensured the litigation over the rule would not be resolved until well after
the Obama administration took power. Extended litigation in this matter will make
it easier for the Obama administration to rescind the rule, and NRCA continued working
to achieve this goal during the past year.
In early January, NRCA worked with Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.) and Rep. Wally Herger
(R-Calif.) to have the Green Roofing Energy Efficiency Tax Act of 2009 (GREETA)
introduced in the House. This legislation (H.R. 426) would reduce the current 39-year
depreciation schedule for commercial roof systems to 20 years for newly installed
roof systems that meet benchmark energy-efficiency standards. GREETA would accelerate
demand for energy-efficient commercial roof systems, generating increased economic
activity and creating new jobs within the roofing industry while also helping to
conserve energy and achieve environmental goals. NRCA President Rob Therrien testified
in support of GREETA at a House Small Business Committee hearing Jan. 14.
In early February, the government relations staff organized several events at NRCA's
122nd Annual Convention in Las Vegas to raise money for ROOFPAC. NRCA members participated
in the Richard Petty Driving Experience at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where they
received the opportunity to ride in a NASCAR vehicle at speeds approaching 140 miles
per hour. Other members had a fabulous day of golf at the Angel Park course. Finally,
members purchased the chance to win an extravagant Mediterranean cruise, which was
raffled at the NRCA luncheon.
As Congress worked on the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act legislation in
January and February, NRCA worked to make the bill as positive as possible for the
roofing industry. NRCA was pleased to see the bill included several tax provisions
of interest to employers, such as extending bonus depreciation and small-business
expensing provisions, as well as a one-year delay of the 3 percent withholding law
for government contractors. NRCA worked to see that the bill contained funding for
building infrastructure improvements, including energy-efficiency retrofits for
federal buildings, military facilities and schools. During the House/Senate conference
committee, NRCA also worked with several members of Congress to encourage removing
from the final version of the bill an onerous amendment that would mandate use of
the E-Verify program by employers.
Shortly after passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, NRCA
issued a Special Report that identified and summarized the dozens of provisions
in the bill that may potentially interest the roofing industry. In March, NRCA held
a series of four webinars that provided even more detail and analysis of the economic
stimulus act as it pertains to the roofing industry.
NRCA was active during the first half of 2009, working with the Coalition for a
Democratic Workplace to oppose the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), or "card check"
legislation, that would effectively eliminate secret-ballot elections for union
organizing and mandate binding arbitration of a first union contract in certain
circumstances. NRCA sent letters opposing EFCA to key senators and a grassroots
"action alert" to urge all members to contact their members of Congress. NRCA also
established the "EFCA Working Group" for members interested in becoming heavily
involved in lobbying activities regarding EFCA.
As Congress prepared to take up health care reform legislation, Musser participated
in a "roundtable" discussion on the topic with Democratic members of the House Small
Business Committee. Musser told the committee members NRCA supports market-oriented
solutions that address the rising cost of health insurance, such as the Small Business
CHOICE Act. He also stated that NRCA is opposed to any mandate that requires employers
to offer health insurance and also discussed concerns about a potential government-run
health plan option that could lead to greater levels of government involvement in
the health care system.
On April 29, NRCA Senior Vice President Rob McNamara testified before the House
Small Business Committee regarding climate change, telling the committee that the
"roofing industry is uniquely positioned to play a significant role in developing
innovative solutions to climate change and energy-related issues now being addressed
by Congress." He urged Congress to adopt market-based solutions aimed at achieving
policy goals related to climate change, such as GREETA. McNamara also discussed
NRCA's concerns regarding the effect on the roofing industry of increased energy
costs that could result from climate-change legislation or an effort by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency to regulate greenhouse gas emissions.