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REGULATORY NEWSREEL
REGISTER NOW for the 2017 EFO Regulatory Newsreel! EFO is partnering with the ODEQ, OCC and OWRB again this year to hold the 2017 Regulatory Newsreel. The Newsreel will be on Thursday, June 22nd, at the Metro Tech Conference Center, located at 1900 Springlake Drive, in Oklahoma City. Registration begins at 7:45 a.m. Click here to register and for more details.
Please consider a Sponsorship for Regulatory Newsreel:
- $175 - Morning Coffee Break/Continental Breakfast
- $175 - Mid Morning Coffee Break
- $500 - Lunch
- $175 - Afternoon Drinks/Snack
Contact Bud Ground to be a Sponsor at efo@envirofdok.org or by calling
(405) 843-5745.
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Budget Talks Continue – Leads to Weekend Session
The legislature adjourned on Friday and legislative leaders left later that evening without an agreement on how to raise revenue to fill the approximately $900 million budget shortfall for FY17. In an unprecedented move, the Senate and House will meet Saturday, May 20th. The Senate convenes at 9:30 a.m. and tentatively plans to meet on Sunday, at 6:00 p.m. The House will convene at noon on Saturday.
There is one vehicle sitting on 4th reading, HB 2360, that theoretically, if the negotiating parties came to an agreement on raising general revenue, the bill could be amended and heard in one legislative day, provided it is passed before Monday. The Oklahoma Constitution, under State Question 640, prohibits revenue raising bills to pass during the last five days of session.
Oklahoma Legislature Headed for Special Session?
As GOP budget proposals aren't going anywhere without Democratic support in the House, Democratic Leader Inman refuses to negotiate without an increase in gross production tax. With a deadline looming and no budget agreement in sight, lawmakers are starting to question whether a special session will be required to fill next year’s budget gap — the third consecutive year the state has faced a budget shortfall and the possibility of deep cuts to state agencies. Click here to read more on budget proposals and the possibility of special session.
Fallin signs second bill to penalize protesters
Despite protests from activists, Gov. Mary Fallin signed a second bill that cracks down on trespassers and anyone who financially supports them. House Bill 2128 steepens the penalty for people who get arrested, but not necessarily convicted, for property damage. State Rep. Mark McBride, R-Moore, said during the House committee that he authored the bill after seeing the havoc wreaked during Dakota Access Pipeline protests in North Dakota. He wanted to prevent a similar situation from unfolding here in Oklahoma. He noted how widespread the protests were and how long they ended up lasting, and he attributed that to donations. That’s why the measure also seeks to punish any individual or organization affiliated with protests resulting in property damage. Either the protester or the sponsor can be held liable for any costs associated with the damage.
Fallin Vetoes Final Admin Rule Bill
Gov. Mary Fallin vetoed the last of three bills Wednesday seeking to make changes to the state's administrative rules process. SB 697, by Sen. Anthony Sykes, R-Moore, and Rep. George Faught, R-Muskogee, declares all rulemaking authority delegated by the Legislature to executive branch agencies be used only to implement law or policy as set by the Legislature. It requires all administrative rules, including those already in existence, to include a specific reference to the statutory provision or federal regulation that delegates the authority for promulgation of such rule within three years. In her veto message, Fallin states the bill creates a "significant financial burden" on Oklahoma state agencies. "While I understand the intent behind this amendment, I cannot in good conscience sign this legislation during our current fiscal crisis," she wrote. Further she adds, "While I am willing to support a change in the APA (Administrative Procedures Act) that requires a federal or state statutory citation for all new rule filings, I remain opposed to applying it retroactively."
New Legislator Fills Vacancy
Following his successful election last week, Zack Taylor (R-Seminole) was sworn in as the Representative for House District 28 on Tuesday evening. Rep. Taylor’s first vote was one of the toughest votes of the week for legislators. The House’s attempt at raising revenue this week, HB 2414, that included a $1.50 per pack of cigarettes tax increase, a 6-cent increase per gallon of motor fuel, and reduces the time for the 2% gross production tax rate from 36 months to 18 months. The bill failed the required number of votes for a revenue-raising measure, 76, but passed by enough with a vote of 51 to 46, to be sent to a vote of the people, provided the Senate also passes the bill.
BILL TRACKING LISTS
The lists below are each linked to a more detailed report. Each bill number is linked to bill information. The lists include only active bills.
EFO Environmental Issues
EFO Water Issues
EFO Eminent Domain Issues
EFO Miscellaneous Issues
REVISED House Conference Committee Deadlines:
- 4:30 pm, Tuesday, May 23rd – Deadline to submit 1st Conference Committee Reports (CCRs) on House bills (completed and signed)
- 12:00 pm, Thursday, May 25th – Deadline for completion of all House standing Conference Committee meetings
- 2:00 pm, Thursday, May 25th – Deadline to submit all 2nd and subsequent CCRs on House bills (completed and signed)
To view House conference committee reports as they are filed, click here. From the drop-down menu, you can select to view by House Conference Committee.
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SAFETY & HEALTH COMMITTEE
Updated OSHA Injury and Illness Forms Electronic Submission of Records
On May 17, 2018, OSHA announced that it is not accepting electronic submissions at this time, and that they will propose extending the compliance deadline of July 1, 2017 date by which certain employers are required to submit the information from their completed 2016 Form 300A electronically. Updates will be posted to the OSHA website www.osha.gov/recordkeeping when it is available.
OSHA and oil and gas network renew alliance to protect workers
The OSHA and the Mid Continent Exploration and Production Safety Network (MCEPS) renewed a three-year alliance in April to promote worker awareness of industry-related hazards and solutions in the exploration and production of oil and gas. MCEPS hosts monthly free safety collaboration meetings with oil and gas safety personnel. Safety personnel from other industries are welcome to attend also! To sign up for their meeting announcements, etc., click here. Their meetings are held the 3rd Thursday of each month at the Francis Tuttle Technology Center, Rockwell Campus.
Free webinars on preventing heat stress scheduled for May and June - NCDOL
With summer fast approaching, the North Carolina Dept. of Labor is offering a series of free 90-minute webinars on the hazards of heat stress in construction and general industry. The first webinar will be held on May 22, and six additional webinars are set for May and June. For more information or to register, see the webpage. OSHA also has a Heat Illness webpage for additional information on heat illnesses. A downloadable app is available for both Android and Apple phones or to make it easy to determine the heat index for the location, risk level to outdoor workers, and the protective measure that should be taken to protect employees.
Click here and log in to download this EFO Committee report.
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Click here for the Revised May/June Calendar of Events for DEQ.
Bureau of Reclamation Funding Goes to Research Studies, Includes Oklahoma
U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke announced last week that the Bureau of Reclamation awarded $23,619,391 to communities in seven states for planning, designing and constructing water recycling and re-use projects; developing feasibility studies; and researching desalination and water recycling projects. Title XVI Feasibility Studies are for entities that would like to develop new water reclamation and reuse feasibility studies. Oklahoma will receive $150,000 for the Oklahoma Water Resources Board Feasibility Study of Potential Impacts of Select Alternative Produced Water Management and Reuse Scenarios, as part of the state’s Produced Water Working Group efforts.
REGULATORY NEWS
Court pauses lawsuit over Obama methane rule. The Hill. A federal court on Thursday formally paused a lawsuit over an Obama administration methane regulation. The order, from the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, halts consideration of an oil industry suit challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) rules cracking down on methane emissions from oil and gas drilling wells. President Trump signed an executive order in March asking the EPA to review that regulation as part of an effort to undo several Obama-era environmental rules he argues hurt the energy industry.
In early April, Trump administration lawyers asked the court to hold the case in abeyance because they had started the process of reviewing the rule. “Pursuant to the executive order, EPA is initiating its review of this rule and providing advanced notice of forthcoming rulemaking proceedings consistent with the president’s policies,” federal lawyers wrote in a motion then. “If EPA’s review concludes that suspension, revision or rescission of this Rule may be appropriate, EPA’s review will be followed by a rulemaking process that will be transparent, follow proper administrative procedures, include appropriate engagement with the public, employ sound science, and be firmly grounded in the law.”
A three-judge panel formally paused the rule in a one-paragraph ruling on Thursday. The methane case is one of several to be stalled following Trump’s March executive order on energy. A federal court is also weighing whether to pause litigation over the Obama administration’s landmark climate rule, the Clean Power Plan.
Supporters of the rule say the court should not freeze the case and instead send the rule back to the EPA for rewriting. Such a decision would allow Clean Power Plan backers to file a new lawsuit against the Trump administration if and when regulators decide to repeal the rule.
FEDERAL REGISTER
EPA
RULES: Air Quality State Implementation Plans; Approvals and Promulgations: Oklahoma; Revisions to Minor New Source Review Permitting Program. The Environmental Protection Agency is approving severable portions of revisions to the Oklahoma New Source Review State Implementation Plan submitted by the State of Oklahoma on February 14, 2002 (the February 14, 2002, SIP submittal). This action addresses revisions to the Oklahoma Administrative Code, Title 252, Chapters 4 and 100, concerning the State’s Minor New Source Review air permitting program. This rule is effective on June 14, 2017.
ARTICLES OF INTEREST
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REGISTER NOW for the 2017 EFO Regulatory Newsreel!
EFO is partnering with the ODEQ, OCC and OWRB again this year to hold the 2017 Regulatory Newsreel. The Newsreel will be on Thursday, June 22nd, at the Metro Tech Conference Center, located at 1900 Springlake Drive, in Oklahoma City. Registration begins at 7:45 a.m. Click here to register and for more details.
The 2017 EFO Annual Meeting dates have been set for October 2nd, 3rd and 4th in Oklahoma City at the Embassy Suites – Medical Center. Please mark your calendars for the 26th EFO Annual Meeting.
The theme for the Annual Meeting this year is “Protecting the Environment while Encouraging a Vibrant Economy – How to have Both”.
The Activities Committee is now submitting a call for Speakers and Presentations to be used during the Conference. Please submit your presentation idea to efo@envirofdok.org as the linked instructions indicate or forward this information to someone that you know of that would be a good speaker toward this theme. We want to make this the Best EFO Annual Meeting ever!
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