The Capitol Line

August 2006

AISI Helps Bring About Passage of Much-Needed Congressional Energy Development Legislation

On August 1, the U.S. Senate approved the "Natural Gas Exploration Bill" (S. 3711) following a solid 71-25 vote. This comes on the heels of a late-June passage by the U.S. House of Representatives of the "Deep Ocean Energy Resources (DOER) Act," which received a convincing vote of 232-187. Passage of these bills would not have been possible without the hard work and grassroots efforts of the manufacturing industry. In addition to substantial Congressional outreach, AISI also issued several statements of support for the bills, as well as several "Legislative Action Alerts" encouraging member company advocacy.

Although S. 3711 has a much narrower focus than the comprehensive DOER Act legislation passed by the House, its approval is considered a major success for domestic manufacturing and steel producers in particular. This bill will provide the current four Gulf Coast energy-producing states, Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi and Alabama, with 37.5 percent of revenues from leasing in the new areas. Beginning in 2017, they will also get 37.5 percent of revenues from leases entered into after enactment of the bill in areas of the gulf where leasing is already authorized. S. 3711 also directs 12.5 percent of federal revenues to the Land and Water Conservation Fund.

Other noteworthy details include the Florida Senate delegations success in securing a ban on leasing east of the military mission line until 2022 and a 125-mile buffer from Gulf of Mexico drilling for other parts of the Florida coast until mid-2022.

With both bills having been approved by their respective Congressional bodies, conference negotiations will now take place to hammer out the disparities between the two. This conference process is expected to begin shortly after Labor Day and could be quite complex.

To view the press release applauding passage of the DOER Act click here .

To view AISI's letter of support for S. 3711 please visit the National Journal Policy Council Web site.

To view the "Action Alert" encouraging passage of S. 3711 please visit the Legislative Action Center.

AISI Promotes "Trade Law Reform Act" Through Congressional Outreach Efforts and Targeted Radio Spots

In July, AISI intensified its outreach efforts and support for legislation introduced by Congressional Steel Caucus Chairman Rep. Phil English (R-Pa.), aimed at comprehensively reforming and strengthening U.S. trade laws and providing more effective remedies for U.S. manufacturing and its workers. Among its many provisions, the "Trade Law Reform Act of 2006," or H.R. 5529: amends the antidumping (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) laws, makes the Steel Import Monitoring and Analysis Program permanent and sends the message to U.S. negotiators that U.S. trade laws must not be weakened in the WTO Doha Round Rules.

In addition to AISI's work with Rep. English's office to promote this legislation and encourage co-sponsorship from other house members, the Institute issued a "Letter to the Editor" of American Metal Market in support of the bill and also produced a radio news spot commending the legislation for its defense of domestic trade laws. The radio spot is slated to air nationwide on more than 750 stations throughout August and is currently available online (see related Front Page story).

To view the press release in support of H.R. 5529 click here.

To view AISI's "Letter to the Editor" of AMM click here.

To hear the "Trade Law Reform Act" radio spot please visit the Steelworks homepage. Click on the "Newsmakers Speak Out."

Rep. Tom Udall Keynotes 2nd Annual Climate VISION Workshop

Rep. Tom Udall (D-NM), an active participant in the Congressional global warming debate, and a member of the House Resources Committee, recently took part in AISI's 2nd Annual Climate VISION Workshop in Washington, D.C. The Congressman addressed member company Energy and Environmental Managers regarding general global warming and climate change issues and also took time to discuss H.R. 5049, "The Keep America Competitive Global Warming Policy Act of 2006," which he believes will tackle these concerns in an economically sound, yet environmentally responsible manner.

During his comments, Rep. Udall also challenged steelmakers to maintain the industry's exceptional environmental track record and continue striving for greenhouse gas emissions improvements.

To view the press release announcing Rep. Udall's participation please click here .

Check Out AISI's Public Policy Efforts on the Web

AISI's Public Policy Homepage

AISI's Legislative Action Center

National Journal's Policy Council - AISI Micro-Site Homepage

For more information on these websites, please contact Matt Davison.

If you have any questions regarding AISI public policy issues, please feel free to contact any member of the Public Policy Team:

AREA	AISI	STAFF PHONE	E-MAIL
Trade & Economic Policy	Barry Solarz	202.452.7139	bsolarz@steel.org
Energy & Environment	Jim Schultz	202.452.7180	jschultz@steel.org
Recycling & Market Development	Chip Foley	202.452.7177	wjfoley@worldnet.att.net
Government Relations	Jennifer Diggins Matthew Davison	202.452.7214 202.452.7133	jdiggins@steel.org mdavison@steel.org