Grassley Propane Amendment Can Save America's Farms And Rural Communities From Unnecessary Government Rules
Washington, DC - The National Propane Gas Association is urging its members and agriculture allies to contact their U.S. Senators in strong support of an amendment introduced today by Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA). This amendment to the FY2008 homeland security appropriations bill would remove tens of thousands of small businesses and rural farms that store propane from the arbitrary requirements of new DHS chemical security regulations.
Sen. Grassley's amendment would prohibit DHS from applying their new regulations to small businesses and rural communities storing less than 100,800 pounds of propane, saving them from having to comply with another burdensome-and expensive-government rule.
Tanks that store this amount of propane are common in rural areas. The owners of hog, turkey and chicken operations, grain drying, grain elevators, stand-by power systems for small rural industrial or construction operations, storage for mobile home parks that now face expensive regulatory burdens by storing this amount of propane would become exempt from the DHS requirements if Sen. Grassley's amendment is enacted into law.
As currently written, the new DHS rules will affect all propane retailers and customers that store over 1,785 gallons of propane. Propane nis a very common fuel that serves millions of rural, agricultural, and small business customers. It makes no sense for the government to classify stationary tanks as security risks.
America's propane retailers are very concerned about the effects this regulation would have on so many of its customers. If the arbitrary DHSrules are implemented without any changes, every propane marketer and customer facility above the 1,785 gallon threshold, regardless of location or type of operation would have to submit via the Internet only facility information so that DHS can determine if the facility is a security risk. DHS estimates research costs per each facility to be $2,300-$3,500.
The DHS rule also will reduce safety of propane customers. The arbitrary 1,785 gallon threshold limit will result in customer requests for more frequent deliveries of smaller amounts of propane. This means more truck travel and more fuel transfer operations - the source of most propane related incidents.
The list of propane facilities covered by the existing 7,500 lbs. (or 1,750 gallons) threshold is extensive. A conservative estimate of 136,000 propane customers would have to comply with the rules. The DHS regulations also indicate that total storage capacity on a piece of property will trigger the threshold, so the user of three 1,000 gallon tanks in separate locations on a farm or orchard would have to comply with the rule.
SOURCE: National Propane Gas Association