EPA Defeats 2nd Amendment With A Backdoor Deal.

by: bruce nix | published: 09 03, 2010

I bumped into a man the other day, who's profession is house painting. This is what he has done for many years and has made a decent living at it. He is a contractor who takes on the sometimes difficult and challenging task of painting homes. I know from personal experience that painting is something that I am not very good at and will almost always get more paint on myself, than the target area. It is just plain and simple, physics to me. Paint and a paint brush require a lot of clean up after I have finished. It will inevitably wind up in places that never needed painting in the first place and I would have to scrape it off. Basically, I suck at painting. I imagine that there are a lot of people that have the same skill levels as I do and painting, would be out of the question for them also.

So what do we do when a paint job, becomes a necessity? Well, you call in the Pro's from Dover. (That is one of my favorite lines, from the original movie; MASH. I stole it and am very fond of it and I use it a lot, thank you very much!) Or for a better choice of words; you call in a paint contractor. Now I know what you are thinking. This is a conservative, political forum. What could house painting and paint contractors, possibly have to do with politics? Simple. The Ubiquitous EPA. The Environmental Protection Agency. These guys have been very busy as of late, passing a multitude of rules and regulations that you may not even be aware of.

Well...anyways, back to the painting contractor that I bumped into. He was very involved with a job, painting the interior of a friends home. It is a large house with very high ceilings and the homeowners were just not capable of doing the work themselves and hired it out. This guy has been doing this type of work for many years. He is a small business man. He had a couple of helpers and things were going okay for him in-spite of this recession, or depression, depending on your version of the definition. Enter the EPA.

“There is a new EPA Rule. Beginning in April 2010, contractors performing renovation, repair and painting projects for compensation that disturb lead based paint in homes, child care facilities and schools built prior to 1978 MUST have a lead paint certification from the EPA. They must also follow specific work practices to prevent lead contamination. Those affected by this new rule will be contractors, sub-contractors, maintenance workers, painters and other specialty tradesmen who disturb painted surfaces during work.

The rule states that all contractors and firms who perform painting work or are labeled as painters and who disturb lead based paint as part of their work in pre-1978 built homes, schools and other buildings must be EPA Certified.

Of course this is an EPA regulation. It does NOT matter what state or United States territory you perform this work in, you will still need this EPA Certification.

The rule is written and enforced by the Environmental Protection Agency, a branch of the Federal Government.”

This is the good part: “There are a lot of EPA regulations and fines for non-compliance. We are specifically targeting the new rule that was passed as of April 22, 2010. It carries fines of $32,500 for non compliance.“

Cool hunh? So he weathered the recession only to come up against new regulations for a small business in an already tight market. What the heck, it's only money right? So now, by federal law he has to acquire a lead paint certification for himself and his crew, at his own expense.

Who will have to comply?

“Not only does the rule affect general contractors, but it also applies to any specialty contractor that in the course of their work may disturb a surface that could have lead-based paint. This would include plumbing, painting, HVAC, electrical, finish carpentry, drywall, insulation, siding, tile, glass and glazing, as well as others. (It would be advisable for general contractors to verify compliance by their subcontractors by obtaining a copy of their certification.)”

What is the contractor required to do?

“The rule requires that anyone doing renovation on targeted facilities obtain certification that evidences they are trained in the use of lead safe work practices and that they will follow specific work practices when performing the renovation. What this means to you is: (a) your company must receive certification, (b) a certified renovator must be assigned to each renovation of a covered facility; (c) all persons performing work on the project must receive on-the-job training by a certified renovator; (d) all renovations must be performed in accordance with the EPA work practice standards related to lead-based paint; (e) you must provide the owner and occupants of the property with an EPA pamphlet advising them of the lead hazards associated with renovation and obtain a signed certificate of receipt; and (f) you must keep records of compliance on all projects.”

The rules and regulations for this boondoggle are something akin to the new Obama-Care legislation that was just shoved down, I mean dutifully passed by our very wise legislators. Several thousand pages of incoherent dribble that only, the federal government could conceive. Try reading it. Here is the link if you dare! http://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/EPA-TOX/2008/April/Day-22/t8141.htm

Just when PBO called off the recession and said that it was safe to go back into the water, here comes another stifling new regulation, that will not only kill more jobs but will probably lead to an increase in really ugly homes without any “curb-appeal!” And this is nation wide! Once again at the mercy of our federal government. As told to me by the paint contractor, the money received by the EPA in fines and fees will go into a special fund for the specific purpose of...guess! Go ahead just guess, I bet you will never figure this one out. Give up? To hire more EPA agents to enforce the law! Is that not incredible? Maybe not, maybe you already saw that one coming, it was kind of a no-brainer.

Now the scary part.

Imagine this scenario, in the not too distant future, the EPA under duress from extreme environmentalists, decides that for everyone's best interests, That lead ammunition should be banned along with lead based paint. Lead is lead...right? It has been proven that lead contamination is the very reason for retardation in children, by clinical analysts and this is just one more link in the deadly chain. It must be eradicated or abated, as they have stated. We would have to accept it, because it is for the good of the country. Right? Why there would be absolutely no objection to the banning of ammunition containing lead by any rational person. Only thing is, there is that silly little little “loop-hole” in the US Constitution called; The 2^ndAmendment. We know that one. The right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed,but; technically they would not be banning firearms, just the ammo. Well heck, that's okay! I'm good with that. If it means saving the planet from destruction as a result of lead contamination, I would agree. Wouldn't you? That's probably what they are counting on.

They passed rules similar to this many years ago, only it was lead bird shot found in shot gun shells. The environmentalists were afraid that it would be used to hunt ducks and of course the shot would inevitably land in ponds and lakes and you guessed it; contamination and we all know what side those crazy environmentalists are on. Right?

Call me crazy, paranoid or whatever, but do you not think that the EPA has gained a little more power than necessary? I know that their job is to protect us, but really.

One cannot help but wonder why the Department Of Homeland Security, recently signed a contract with Winchester Firearms Corporation, for the procurement of 200 million rounds of .40 caliber ammunition and on another note; Heckler and Koch recently inked a deal with the DHS for 65,000 new sidearms to be delivered to agencies under the DHS, representing the single largest procurement of firearms in history for a US Law Enforcement Agency at a cost of $26.2 million dollars. Amazing isn't it? So what do they know, that we do not know? Hurry...go stick your head back in the sand and pretend you did not read this! It is all a dream.

~ How's that “Hopey-Changy” thing working out for you? ~

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  Will M.

  Thank you for your post. We have created a few resources to help contractors understand the EPA RRP rule at http://www.zipwall.com/epa.php and http://www.zipwall.com//lp/EPAFAQ.html. Hope you will find it helpful.

  
  

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