July 8, 2022
Last Chance to Sign Up for Employee Training
Spots are still available for the 2022 PPGA Employee Training. The training offers certified and non-certified courses for those employed in the propane industry or looking to obtain propane training certification. Classes are open to members and non-members and pre-registration, at least two weeks in advance, is necessary. Consider sending your employees to this valuable training.
Clean School Bus Funding
Congressman Bob Latta (OH-5), along with twelve other Members of Congress, sent a letter to the Environment Protection Agency (EPA) asking the agency to explain how they calculated funding levels for the Clean School Bus Program. In April, EPA announced its intent to provide $375,000 for an electric school bus while only providing $30,000 for propane buses as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). The IIJA directed EPA to award funds based on the lowest overall cost of the bus and technologies that reduce the most emissions – propane is better than electric in most instances on both of these requirements. In the letter, these Members ask EPA to explain their calculations and ask the Agency to reconsider the funding amounts.  Find the full letter HERE.

If you have any questions, please reach Andrew Healey, Manager of Legislative Affairs.
Room Block Expires Today
You don't want to miss the PPGA & WPGA Summer Conference at Semiahmoo Resort in Blaine, WA. Our discounted room block expires today, reserve your room before 5:00pm.

In addition to education sessions and membership meetings, the conference includes networking receptions and a seaside banquet dinner as well as add-on activities including a golf outing and wine tasting.
OSHA Proposal: Searchable Website with Case Specific Information
NPGA responded to a proposal by the Occupational Health & Safety Administration (OSHA) that would change workplace injury and illness reporting requirements for the propane industry, among other industries. OSHA proposed to expand Section 1904.41(a) to more industries with a minimum of 100 employees or more, and the creation of a publicly accessible, searchable website sharing case-specific, company-specific injury and illness information. Section 1904.41(a) would require annual electronic submission of Form 300 Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses (employee information, date and location of injury or illness, and outcome), Form 301 Injury and Illness Incident Report (additional details about each case recorded on the Form 300 including treatment, how the incident occurred, etc.), and Form 300A Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses (employers required to post at workplace, and electronically submit to OSHA under company name).

NPGA argued that the additional data collection is merely to enable OSHA to publish more details about workplace injuries and illnesses for more companies on the proposed public website. We condemned the public website as an unprofessional shaming tactic to instigate improvement in workplace safety. In the proposal, OSHA acknowledged that the agency does not have the resources to investigate all injury and illness information it is proposing to collect, but it intends for the public website to cause a change by influencing public opinion and investors’ decision-making. We challenged this tactic as ineffective, outside the bounds of the agency’s general authority to issue rulemakings to improve safety, and raised past rulemakings that were successfully litigated against OSHA.

NPGA also requested that the agency address any possible connection to the failed vaccination or testing mandate that NPGA successfully litigated earlier this year. In this proposal, OSHA presents changing the employee threshold to 100 or more employees, which deviates from past threshold numbers but correlates with the employee threshold used in the vaccination or testing mandate emergency temporary standard.

Questions? Contact NPGA Vice President, Regulatory & Industry Affairs, Sarah Reboli.
West Virginia vs. EPA
On the heels of last week’s West Virginia v. EPA decision by the Supreme Court of the United States, NPGA and regulatory counsel dived into the technicalities of the opinion to analyze how it may shape agency actions. While we continue to evaluate the potential advantages of the Court’s decision, our regulatory counsel with expertise in agency efficiency and environmental rulemaking has provided an overview memorandum for our members to review. The memorandum is available on the Member Dashboard under the Regulatory tab.

At a high level, the decision weakens federal agencies and strengthens reviewing courts on actions pertaining to agency rulemaking.

The Court’s decision may bolster NPGA’s advocacy to the U.S. Department of Energy regarding several on-going rulemakings to set product efficiency standards. For example: While the Department of Energy’s statutory authority to set efficiency standards is defined in the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, NPGA will argue that it does not clearly define the agency’s authority to regulate certain product types like decorate fireplace logs or outdoor propane products.

Questions? Contact NPGA President, Steve Kaminski, or NPGA Vice President, Regulatory & Industry Affairs, Sarah Reboli.
Propane Presents Webinar
Clean, cost-effective propane-powered school buses are often the simplest path to begin selling autogas or grow that market for your business. The Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Clean School Bus Program funding opportunity is now available and offering up to $30,000 per vehicle making it easier than ever to help grow our nation's fleet of over 22,000 propane autogas school buses already on the road today.
 
The Propane Education & Research Council (PERC) proudly highlights new and emerging technologies with the Propane Presents Technology Series -- our webinar series focusing on propane innovations that are in use today.
 
We invite you to join us on Thursday, July 21, 2022 at 2 p.m. ET for our latest webinar in this series to learn how to best position your company to sell year-round autogas gallons while serving the school districts and children in your community. Jennifer Goldbach of Rhodes Energy, Tim Gordon with Bluebird, Steve Lake with Southwest Allen County Schools, and Jim Bunsey of Superior Energy Systems will join PERC's Director of Autogas Business Development, Steve Whaley, to provide perspective on how to approach a school district and make a sale, how to work with school bus manufacturers to get vehicles on the road, and why propane autogas's simple, cost-effective infrastructure can be a crucial part of the deal. The time is now to start taking advantage of the range, reliability, and performance of today's crop of propane-powered school buses.

Member Benefit Programs
Marketing Services
Safety Compliance
Compliance Safety
The information contained herein is provided as a service by the Pacific Propane Gas Association (PPGA) for the purpose of education, communication, and information and PPGA accepts no liability relative to the contents, accuracy or use of these services. Nothing in this publication is intended to be construed as legal advice. The user is strictly cautioned to seek legal assistance when attempting to determine any legal rights, responsibilities and procedures with respect to business affairs, coding, or other legal aspects of operating a propane company. PPGA disclaims any and all liability for injury and/or other damages which result to a user from the material offered or discussed herein.