Congress Considers New Measure To Fund Cleaner Diesels on Federally-Funded Highway Projects

AGC and the non-profit Clean Air Task Force (CATF) are jointly supporting bipartisan federal legislation that would provide state transportation officials the authority and funding to incorporate the use of clean construction equipment on federally-funded transportation projects in areas of the country that are not meeting the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) standards for fine airborne particulates (PM-2.5).  AGC and CATF share a common interest in improving air quality and ensuring that the next generation of infrastructure projects is built using clean emission control technology. The bipartisan Clean Construction Act of 2011, H.R. 3122, introduced earlier this month by Rep. Richard Hanna (R-N.Y.) and Rep. Donna Edwards (D-Md.), provides a targeted approach to reducing emissions from construction machines that are currently being used in areas with particulate matter (soot/dust) concerns. The legislation would establish procedures to advance the use of cleaner construction equipment on federal-aid highway and public transportation construction projects and make the acquisition/installation of emission control technology an eligible expense in carrying out such projects.  Under the bill, states would first require successful bidders for federally-funded transportation projects in PM-2.5 nonattainment and maintenance area to identify the off-road diesel equipment they plan to use on designated projects.  After exploring EPA-approved options for reducing diesel emissions, states would issue change orders requiring contractors to pursue the best of those options. The change orders would entitle contractors to recover 100 percent of their costs. Of huge importance to AGC is the fact that the bill includes procedures to protect construction jobs, the long-term performance and value of in-use construction equipment, as well as the safety of workers on the jobsite.  The “requirement” to use cleaner equipment would not undermine the competitive bidding process.  AGC believes that allowing the government to administer the program through a fully-funded change order process is a key to preserving the competitive bid process.  As such, the Clean Construction Act ensures that smaller firms that are the least able to invest in retrofits are not shut out of bidding for public projects, thereby making sure that some of the oldest equipment in service are eligible for clean up. Congestion mitigation and air quality improvement (CMAQ) funding, which already makes diesel retrofit a funding priority, could be used by states to meet this requirement. If project funds are used instead, the “requirement” is met when the contracting agency has spent one percent of the project cost on diesel retrofit. Cleaner equipment would cost taxpayers more money, but they could also benefit from cleaning up the air -- according to U.S. EPA, replacing the oldest diesel engines saves lives and yields a 12-to-1 benefit for public health. In addition, bill provides DOTs with the flexibility to identify and clean up the dirtiest equipment that will be operating on the project for at least 80 hours over the life of the project. AGC testified before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee this summer in support of similar legislation introduced by Sen. Tom Carper, S. 972.  Reps. Hanna and Edwards, and Sen. Carper intend to include the legislation as part of the surface transportation reauthorization. There are only small differences between the two bills, and while both have won the backing of AGC, some additional provisions included in the House version would make the legislation more workable. Namely the House version would ensure there is a process for states to include off-road emission reductions in their State Implementation Plans for meeting federal air standards and in transportation conformity and/or general conformity determinations; it provides a de minimus exception from implementing clean diesel requirements on projects that are of short duration or of minimum dollar value; and it streamlines the process for securing CMAQ funding to meet the requirements of the Act. AGC will continue to work with staff throughout the legislative process to ensure this or any other legislation requiring diesel retrofit does not have a negative impact on the construction industry. The Underlying ‘Principles’ AGC has worked over the past several years with the Clean Air Task Force (CATF), the leading environmental group in the field of diesel pollution, to develop a set of underlying “Clean Construction Principles.” As a result of much communication and collaboration, we are in agreement that states should respect the competitive bid system and the public should bear the cost of retrofitting equipment already in use. Our hope in working cooperatively with CATF is to establish a workable solution for reducing diesel emissions without adversely impacting the construction industry or undermining our national efforts to address transportation infrastructure needs. We believe that the principles largely achieve these objectives, and AGC is pleased that these principles became the basis for the Clean Construction Act of 2011. If there is a desire in Congress to cut air pollution from construction projects, this is a good way to fund it, according to AGC.  And certainly a lot more fair than forcing contractors to pay out-of-pocket the cost of reducing emissions from machines that met all relevant clean air standards at the time of purchase – which would be akin to telling drivers to buy new cars because the nation's fuel economy standards have changed. For more information, contact Leah Pilconis at pilconisl@agc.org.