Johanns Cosponsors Bills to Protect Farmers from Costly Regs

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mike Johanns (R-Neb.)  cosponsored two bipartisan bills to protect farmers and ranchers from unnecessary and costly EPA regulations regarding fuel storage and transport.  The Farmers Undertake Environmental Land Stewardship (FUELS) Act would ensure that an EPA regulation addressing oil spills does not unnecessarily capture farmers’ fuel storage containers. A second bill eliminates a burdensome regulation that requires farmers to comply with additional licensing requirements before transporting certain amounts of diesel fuel to their fields.

“These commonsense bills provide farmers and ranchers relief from two burdensome regulations,” Johanns said. “There is no question that we need to protect the land around us, but a one-size-fits-all approach that fails to acknowledge that a farm is different from a gas station and farm trucks are different from long-haul trucks, unnecessarily hurts the ag community. These bills would save farmers tens of thousands of dollars in compliance costs.”
The EPA currently enforces Spill Prevention, Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) regulations to prevent oil from discharging into U.S. waterways. A new SPCC rule is scheduled to take effect this May. The FUELS Act would exempt farmers from these regulations for their above-ground oil storage tanks that hold less than 10,000 gallons and allow farmers regulated at less than 42,000 gallons to certify their own prevention plans. Other cosponsors include Sens. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.). Mark Pryor (D-Ark.), John Boozman (R-Ark.), Thad Cochran (R-Miss.)  and James Inhofe (R-Okla.).
The second bill would exempt agriculture operations from the requirement to obtain a hazardous material endorsement, while operating a service vehicle carrying diesel fuel in quantities of 1000 gallons or less, if the vehicle is clearly marked. In addition to Johanns, original cosponsors include Sens. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) and Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.).