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Kimberly Schwartz is Contributing Editor. Email her at kschwartz630@gmail.com.


Overheard in D.C.

April 5, 2011
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Last week I went to Washington D.C. and enjoyed a drive-by view of the cherry blossoms while headed to AHRI’s annual media roundtable and public policy symposium. I heard a few interesting political tidbits and some good quotes, and thought I’d share some of the more intriguing ones here.

On the EPA:

“There’s regulation, and then there’s the EPA.”

-Said by a staffer from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce (who said it was his job to fight the EPA every day).

“We may see some retrenching by the EPA administration.”

-Said by an AHRI VP discussing the pushback against EPA regulations. There are currently three amendments that the Senate may vote on that focus on curbing the EPA’s authority to regulate greenhouse gases.

On New DOE Regulations:

“We are in favor of saving energy but we are not in favor of being destroyed.”

- Said by a manufacturer protesting a newly published rule from the DOE that apparently requires what seems to be an impossible amount of testing in order to enforce certification for base models.

On Tax Credits:

“Spending is really under the microscope right now.”

- Said by a staffer of Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., discussing the possibility of extending the 25C tax credits.

On Dry R-22 Shipping:

“The goal was to not encourage wholesale lose of value of equipment for the average American. This was the line of thinking.”

- Said by an EPA employee.

On the 2012 Elections:

“Independents are the people who matter. They’re the most volatile.”

“It’s really unlikely that Republicans will lose their majority in the House. There’s a very, very high probability the Republicans will control the House and have a majority in the Senate.”

“People vote their pocketbooks in this country more than anything else. The rule of thumb is, if unemployment is at or near 9 percent, this president would have a hard time getting reelected. If unemployment is at 8.2 percent, the Republicans would have a hard time beating him.”

-All said by political analyst Charlie Cook during his keynote address.
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Dry Shipping

William Ball
April 19, 2011
It really irks me that all this industry can talk about is how terrible it is that a customer may be able to buy an R-22 unit. Boo hoo. No responsible person will install a dry shipped unit without due diligence. The problem boils down to regulation. The continual march toward government dominance over the lives of Americans is beyond belief. And, the way that those at the top in our industry just eat-up and say "yes" and lay down for the EPA and all the greenies in order to go-along is shameful. No one wants to destroy the environment, NO ONE! The continual escalation of minimum efficiency standards isn't a bad thing. To do it every couple of years is not fair to the buying public. People are not replacing, they are repairing and putting off purchases. Question: what use more electricity, producting and destroying equipment or maintaining existing equipment with responsible practices. Sure, we all need to sell equipment to stay in business. The COO of HARDI is decrying the "scary fall-off" of 95% furnace sales. Again, I say, Boo Hoo. Rebates and tax credits caused an artificial bump in sales. What else could be expected, just as the Cash for Clunkers deal ruined auto sales for an extended period. Basic science/economics: for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

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