Earlier this month, the United States and 13 other World Trade Organization members (Australia, Canada, China, Costa Rica, the European Union, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Switzerland, and Chinese Taipei), accounting for 86 percent of global trade in environmental goods, launched negotiations on the Environmental Goods Agreement (EGA) in Geneva, Switzerland. ISRI,…
Scrap recycling will be in the spotlight at the NCSL Legislative Summit in Minneapolis, Minnesota, August 19-22, 2014. You will not want to miss this opportunity to show state policymakers how their actions and legislation impact your business. If pictures speak more than a 1,000 words, then the Scrap Recycling Exhibit Hall Lunch at the…
Announced widely by press release and pre-released unofficial version, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve the use of five “climate-friendly” refrigerants in new appliances/machines only for certain applications as part of President Obama’s Climate Action Plan. Four of the five “climate-friendly” refrigerants are highly flammable hydrocarbons while the other is a slightly…
While action in the Senate on a temporary extenders bill has stalled until most likely the fall, the House continues to move permanent extensions of some of the provisions that expired on December 31, 2013. In a bipartisan 272 to 144 vote on June 12, the House passed H.R. 4457, “America’s Small Business Tax Relief…
The political world was rocked last month with House Majority Leader Eric Cantor of Virginia lost his primary election to a little-known, little-funded candidate. It marked the first time in the country’s history that a sitting majority leader was defeated, and was completely unexpected. The well-known Cantor raised more than $5 million compared to the…
Senator David Vitter (R-LA) and his son Jack toured All Scrap Recycling in Kenner, Louisiana to learn more about how scrap recyclers are complying with the Louisiana metal theft law. Additionally, Jack received instructions on how to operate a material handler, a wire stripper and chopper and went through the process of selling scrap with…
What is it? After three years of ISRI’s efforts, a very significant and important development occurred with the inclusion of Sec. 441 in the U.S. House Appropriations Committee’s Fiscal Year 2015 Interior and Environment appropriations. The bill has been reported out favorably (29-19) by the Appropriations Committee. §441 of the Interior, Environment & Related Agencies…
Have you visited ISRI’s State Specific Policy Resources page lately? If not, prepare for some changes; each state now has its own profile page. The state metal theft summaries have already been updated with amendments passed this year in Arizona, Connecticut, Idaho, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Utah, as well as the new law pending…
Last week, Congressman Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), who chairs the House Judiciary Committee visited ReMA Member Gerdau Steel in Lynchburg, Virginia to learn more about the scrap recycling industry and see firsthand how the scrap recycling industry is helping combat metals theft. At the beginning of his tour, Chairman Goodlatte witnessed several scrap transactions and the…
ISRI outreach efforts to state attorneys general is now expanding to state district attorneys with some notable success as the industry seeks to educate those who are responsible for prosecuting metals theft cases. In collaboration with the National District Attorneys Association (NDAA), ReMA is launching a campaign directed at convincing prosecutors that metals theft is…
Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) again tried to attach her metals theft legislation to the bi-partisan Shaheen/Portman energy efficiency legislation after failing to attach it to a manufacturing improvement bill in April. Her bill was blocked by several Senators, especially Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) who engaged in a debate with her over the merits of the…
The House Ways & Means Committee on May 29 marked up and favorably reported out six tax bills, including a nearly $300 billion proposal to permanently extend the currently expired “bonus depreciation” provision, which allows businesses to write off 50 percent of many capital investments right away. According to the Joint Committee on Taxation, a…