During the 2009-10 fiscal year, NRCA lobbied in support of the Green Roofing Energy
Efficiency Tax Act (GREETA) (H.R. 426), which would create an estimated 40,000 jobs
in the roofing industry by accelerating demand for energy-efficient commercial roof
systems. GREETA would provide building owners with a more favorable 20-year depreciation
schedule—compared with the existing 39-year schedule—if a newly installed
roof system meets a benchmark energy-efficiency standard. As of May 2010, GREETA
had 36 bipartisan co-sponsors in the House.
NRCA also supported the Energy-Efficient Commercial Roofs Act of 2009 (H.R. 2615),
which would provide a new 30 percent tax credit for energy-efficient roof systems
installed on commercial buildings and residential rental property higher than three
stories. The tax credit would be available for low-slope roof systems where insulation
is installed entirely above the deck and would cover new and existing buildings.
A qualified roof system requires a minimum R-value that is at least 75 percent more
stringent than the R-values required under existing building codes.
A major priority for NRCA during 2009-10 was ensuring defeat of the so-called Employee
Free Choice Act (EFCA), or "card check" legislation, which effectively would deny
workers the right to a secret ballot election for union organizing and also mandate
binding interest arbitration by a government-appointed arbitrator. NRCA sent numerous
letters to Congress and made many lobbying visits to ensure the bill was not able
to attain the 60-vote threshold needed to pass the Senate. In fact, 60 votes in
the Senate remained elusive for even a "compromise" version of the card check bill.
In August, NRCA hosted Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.), a key swing vote on EFCA,
at a roofing manufacturing facility in Arkansas at which she reaffirmed her strong
opposition to EFCA and any related compromise bill.
In July 2009, NRCA achieved a major policy victory when the Department of Homeland
Security (DHS) announced it would rescind the "no-match" rule NRCA strongly had
opposed for several years. NRCA, as a co-chair of the Essential Worker Immigration
Coalition, urged the Obama administration to rescind the fundamentally flawed rule,
which would have imposed hardships on employers and legally authorized workers without
improving the enforcement of U.S. immigration law. DHS's proposal to fully rescind
the rule was finalized Oct. 7, 2009.
In October 2009, NRCA held its annual Fall Committee Meetings/Legislative Conference
in Washington, D.C., during which members participated in about 150 meetings with
their senators and representatives to lobby on NRCA's key legislative issues.
ROOFPAC, NRCA's political action committee, hosted a reception and dinner during
the Fall Committee Meetings/Legislative Conference for members of the Political
Insiders Council (PIC). PIC members were joined by ROOFPAC's special guest, Sen.
Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), the Senate minority whip, for a rooftop reception overlooking
the White House.
NRCA spent a great deal of time during 2009-10 lobbying in opposition to the health
care proposal put forward by President Obama and Democratic leaders in Congress,
which eventually was signed into law in late March. NRCA sent numerous letters to
senators and House members, as well as frequently visited congressional offices,
opposing the health care reform bills.
NRCA was successful in getting Congress to remove a provision in the health care
bill that would have excluded small construction firms from a key small-business
exemption in the new law. The law exempts employers with fewer than 50 employees
from a requirement to provide government-approved benefits to employees or pay a
$2,000 per employee penalty, but an amendment in the Senate bill reduced this threshold
to fewer than five employees for construction industry firms only. Construction
was the only industry excluded from the bill's small-business exemption. NRCA and
a coalition of groups lobbied Congress to have the five-employee threshold removed
in the final health care reconciliation bill approved by Congress.
Once the health care bill was signed into law, NRCA produced an extensive Special
Report for all members, providing an overview of the major employer-related
responsibilities and provisions in the new law on a chronological basis during the
next decade.
In early 2010, NRCA worked with union and industry partners to develop the Building
Star Energy Efficiency Rebate Act of 2010 (S. 3079), a short-term program aimed
at creating jobs in the commercial construction industry by providing building owners
with a rebate for installing qualifying energy-efficient equipment, materials, products
or services. The roofing component of S. 3079 would provide a rebate of 80 cents
per square foot for low-slope roof retrofits that achieve R-values significantly
higher than required by building codes. As introduced, the Building Star legislation
would provide $6 billion for rebates in 2010 and 2011 and is estimated to create
more than 160,000 jobs in the commercial construction industry.
In February, NRCA lobbied in opposition to President Obama's nomination of Craig
Becker to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) in the Senate. NRCA opposed
the Becker nomination because of his interest in implementing the Employee Free
Choice Act ("card check" bill) administratively via the NLRB—even if Congress
fails to pass the bill—and because of a strong anti-employer bias expressed
in his published writings. NRCA and allied groups succeeded in preventing the nomination
from obtaining the 60 votes needed to overcome a bipartisan filibuster supported
by all Republicans and two Democrats. Although President Obama exercised his authority
to give Becker a "recess appointment" to the NLRB in March, Becker's term on the
board will conclude in 2011 and is considerably shorter than if he had been confirmed
by the Senate.
ROOFPAC hosted two events at NRCA's 123rd Annual Convention and the 2010 International
Roofing Expo in New Orleans. The first was a sporting clays tournament sponsored
by Johns Manville, Denver. ROOFPAC also held a silent auction sponsored by GAF Materials
Corp., Wayne, N.J. The sporting clays tournament and auction raised $130,160 for
ROOFPAC.
On March 31, NRCA and other business associations filed comments raising concerns
with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA's) proposed regulation
to require employers to record musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) in a separate column
on OSHA 300 logs.
On May 5, NRCA testified before the House Small Business Committee at a hearing
titled "Tax Initiatives that Promote Small Business Growth." NRCA board member Chad
Collins testified on behalf of NRCA in support of GREETA. Collins also testified
in support of the Small Business Tax Relief and Job Growth Act (H.R. 4841) recently
introduced by Rep. Nydia Vel&aacuate;zquez (D-N.Y.).