By Robert L. Redding, Jr.
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ASA is busy tracking congressional committee appointments and appointments by the Bush administration because of all the important issues coming up that can affect the automotive industry.
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Congress is finalizing key committee leadership appointments and member committee assignments. The Bush administration, having named top cabinet slots, now focuses on subcabinet positions. In many cases, these second-tier positions are the most critical to the aftermarket's policy initiatives.
Former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman will become the administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). During Governor Whitman's confirmation period, U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., introduced legislation to elevate the EPA top job to the cabinet level. Not directly related, senators are reviewing options to shift some of the EPA's regulatory authority to the U.S. Department of Energy as part of major energy policy legislation.
Positions at the EPA other than the top slot have not been decided. The aftermarket is closely watching the appointment of the assistant administrator for air and radiation. This office will oversee air quality issues at the EPA and requires U.S. Senate confirmation. The associate administrator for policy, economics and innovation is a critical position for industry/EPA partnership programs, but Senate confirmation is not required.
President Bush has selected Norman Mineta, former congressman from California and former Clinton administration commerce secretary, as secretary of transportation. Secretary Mineta has worked a great deal on highway and other transportation matters as a member of Congress. The administration has not selected an administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to date. This position, along with Secretary Mineta, is even more essential this Congress because of the reauthorization of NHTSA.
This election puts the parties much closer, as far as numbers, in the House and the Senate. The House of Representatives moved to 221 Republicans, 211 Democrats, two independents and one vacancy. The Senate stands at 50 Republicans and 50 Democrats. The vice president will break ties.
Senate leaders have agreed to have a 50-50 ratio on all committees. Republicans will officially chair each committee. Committee staffs will be of equal size. Either party's leader may get the full Senate to consider bills or nominations that receive a tie vote in a Senate committee. If a vote by a subcommittee is tied, the committee chairman can still bring the measure before the full committee for deliberation. The question of membership on conference committees with the House of Representatives was left open.
If a senator resigns or dies and the ratio changes, party leaders would revisit the agreement.
Key Senate committee chairmen will remain the same: Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., as Senate Commerce chairman; Sen. Robert C. Smith, R-N.H., as Senate Environment and Public Works chairman; and Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, as Senate Appropriations chairman. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, retains the Judiciary Committee gavel.
The House of Representatives is finalizing committee assignments, but top positions have fallen in place. House Commerce Committee chairman's appointment went to Rep. Billy Tauzin, R-La. Rep. Tauzin has been active in reforming NHTSA and will be a central figure for NHTSA's reauthorization in this Congress.
Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, was named chairman of the House Education and the Workforce Committee and Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., as chairman of
the House Judiciary Committee. Although Representative Sensenbrenner has indicated an interest in reviewing antitrust law early in this Congress, it is not predicted that he will attempt to address federal regulation of the insurance industry.
Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, will serve as chairman of the Transportation Committee and Rep. Bill Young, R-Fla., will continue as chairman of the House Appropriations Committee. The Small Business Committee chairmanship slot goes to Rep. Donald Manzullo, R-Ill. Representative Manzullo has an excellent record defending the small business community and is related to former Automotive Service Association (ASA) Chairman Russ Verona.
At the subcommittee level, Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, has been named chairman of the newly formed House Commerce Committee's Energy and Air Quality Subcommittee. Representative Barton will be in a pivotal position for the upcoming clean air debate. He has had much experience with air quality issues as the former EPA oversight subcommittee chairman. He was very involved in remote sensing emissions testing hearings several years ago. Barton also represents ASA's headquarters in Bedford, Texas.
Top issues on the table early this year are campaign finance reform, tax cut legislation and education legislation. The aftermarket will be very interested in clean air legislation, NHTSA reauthorization, information availability legislation, auto choice deliberations and other initiatives that should come before the Congress in the next year or so.
The General Accounting Office report on aftermarket crash parts has been sent to the Congress. It is anticipated that the House and Senate Commerce committees will review this report prior to the NHTSA reauthorization debate.
Federal regulations being finalized in the closing days of the Clinton administration have been put on hold by President Bush. This includes the on-board diagnostic testing regulation that was sent to the Office of Management and Budget.
ASA will continue to track key appointments in the Bush administration. Appointments at the U.S. Department of Transportation and the EPA are especially important because of the issues that will be considered in this particular Congress.
