EPA Seeks Small Business Input on Proposed Stormwater Rule

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is inviting small businesses and municipalities to nominate representatives to provide input on a proposed stormwater rule. The rule would strengthen the national stormwater program under the Clean Water Act (CWA) and focus on stormwater discharges from developed sites, such as subdivisions, roadways, industrial facilities, and commercial buildings or shopping centers.

Selected participants would provide input to a Small Business Advocacy Review panel, which will consist of officials from EPA, the U.S. Small Business Administration and the Office of Management and Budget. As required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act, EPA is establishing this panel because the rule could have a significant economic impact on small entities. The representatives will provide input on how EPA can minimize the potential burden on small entities of the proposed regulation. Nominations must be received by August 4, 2010.

More information about participating in the panel: http://www.epa.gov/sbrefa/stormwater.htm

More information about the rulemaking: http://www.epa.gov/npdes/stormwater/rulemaking

Altschuler Warns Taxpayers of Largest Tax Hikes in U.S. History

Randy Altschuler, the conservative Republican candidate for Congress (NY-1), today warned Suffolk County taxpayers to "prepare to be mugged." Altschuler was referring to the expected inaction by Congressional Democrats that will allow the 2001 and 2003 GOP tax cuts to lapse at the end of 2010. Altschuler, a successful self-made businessman, also called on Congressman Tim Bishop to "have the courage to stand-up for taxpayers everywhere and call for the renewal of this legislation."

Randy Altschuler said, "Suffolk County taxpayers should prepare to be mugged! At the end of this year the largest tax hikes in American history will take place. That's when the 2001 and 2003 GOP tax cuts are set to expire and the inaction of Tim Bishop, Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats in Congress will lead to an extra $1 trillion being lifted from the bank accounts of taxpaying American.

"Americans will see across the board hikes in every personal income tax bracket. Those individuals currently in the 10% tax bracket will see a jump to 15% and those in the 35% tax bracket will see that number jump to 39.6%. Similar jumps will take place in all other brackets.

"But that isn't all; the death tax will jump from zero to a 55% death tax rate on estates over $1 million. The capital gains tax will rise from 15% to 20% in 2011 and jump an additional 3.8% in 2013. Add on top of these, taxes linked to Obamacare and hikes on employer taxes as well as the alternative minimum tax and 2011 will be a bad year for taxpaying Americans.

"New York is already one of the highest tax states in the nation and this tax hike is sure to be the 'straw that breaks the camel's back' for many cash strapped New Yorkers. In our current economic crisis Tim Bishop should have the courage to stand up for taxpayers everywhere and call on Nancy Pelosi to renew the 2001 and 2003 GOP tax cuts."

Help Is Coming For The Unemployed

WASHINGTON -- Today, Congressman Tim Bishop voted to extend unemployment benefits for Americans who have lost their jobs and had difficulty finding work in the Bush recession.  The legislation extends unemployment insurance (UI) through November 30, 2010 and retroactively restores benefits to people who may have started losing them as early as the end of May—some after just 26 weeks. 

After weeks of delay by obstructionist Congressional Republicans, the House voted 272-152 for final passage of the bill.  The President is expected to sign this crucial lifeline into law as quickly as possible.

 “Relief for Americans who have lost their job through no fault of their own injects much-needed cash into local economies,” said Congressman Bishop, noting that a recent study by Moody's Analytics found that every dollar spent by the government on benefits for the unemployed produces an overall return of $1.61 for the economy.  “The recession is an economic emergency and Americans struggling to find work deserve help as we recover.”

On July 1st, the House passed the Restoration of Emergency Unemployment Compensation Act under simple majority rules, 270-153.  Senate Republicans filibustered the bill, demanding that the $34 billion cost of emergency relief for jobless Americans be offset in the budget.  The Senate approved an amended extension Wednesday, sending it back to the House for today’s vote.  Nearly 2.5 million Americans had lost their benefits before the extension was approved.

 In recent weeks, Republican leaders have embraced a permanent extension of the Bush tax cuts that disproportionately benefit wealthy Americans without offsetting the cost, adding trillions to the deficit over ten years.  “Claiming it's fiscally responsible to hold up unemployment extension while supporting a new round of tax cuts for the wealthy is playing politics with the needs of the American people,” Bishop said.

Cox - "Democracy does work"

CHRIS COX FILES "OPPORTUNITY TO BALLOT" PETITIONS
Grass Roots Effort Will Force an Open Conservative Primary

SMITHTOWN, NY — Within the short summer window provided by New York State Election Law, a dedicated team of courageous Conservatives, Tea Party patriots, and supportive Republicans has achieved what no Suffolk political observer can recall having been done before: forced an open Conservative Congressional Primary over the no-holds-barred opposition of the Party’s leaders and its millionaire designee.

Under the Law’s “Opportunity to Ballot” (OTB) provisions, the Chris Cox for Congress campaign has sent its petitions today to the Suffolk County Board of Elections in Yaphank. Although only 554 signatures were required, the filing contains 850 signatures.

The grassroots initiative overcame a steady stream of mailers, ‘robo-calls’ and invective from the Conservative Party establishment to gain signatures from registered Conservatives in numbers well over the five percent of enrollment as required by law.

Chris Cox is the real conservative Republican in the First Congressional District contest to unseat a liberal Democratic incumbent. Cox is now poised to win not only the Republican Primary, the party of which he has always been a member, but the Conservative Primary as well.

“Democracy does work!” declared Cox. “Our successful ‘Opportunity to Ballot’ petition drive has put the choice back in the hands of the people, where it always belonged. Now the voices of principled Conservatives can be heard. I was honored to be able to work with so many people dedicated to ensuring a fair and open primary. I congratulate the hundreds of petition signers who were willing to stand up for their right to vote.”

“The success of the OTB effort owes specific debts of gratitude to Long Island’s Tea Party movement, including the Suffolk County 9-12 Project and the Conservative Society for Action,” Cox said.

“The Conservative voters of the First Congressional District deserve a chance to vote for a true conservative to be their Party’s standard-bearer in November. I will be an Ambassador for job creation on Long Island and Suffolk County’s toughest defender in our Nation’s capital,” Cox declared.

Bob Meyer, co-founder and president of the Suffolk County 9-12 Project, agreed.

“This is a monumental achievement for the Tea Party Movement,” Meyer said. “Members from all walks of life, young and old, came out to knock on doors and collect signatures. We feel this sends a loud and clear message to party bosses that the residents of Suffolk will no longer sit back and be told who the nominee will be for their party. Our government is one run by the people, not the party bosses.

“The 9-12 Project has endorsed Chris Cox and we are proud to stand behind him, a rock-solid conservative who will serve the residents of Suffolk County well," Meyer declared.

Stephen Flanagan, director of the Conservative Society for Action, concluded: "This is a historic day for the people of Suffolk County. For too long the party bosses have controlled ballot access. We changed that this week! We The People have taken things into our own hands! We intend to put an end to the long string of losses the party leaders have brought us in the past decade."

Kings Park Sand Mine Owner Agrees to $200,000 Penalty, Removal of Illegal Waste

Settlement Follows Extensive DEC Investigation in Smithtown

Following an exhaustive site investigation that included the digging of 220 test pits, the operator of a King Parks sand mine will pay a $200,000 penalty and will remove illegally disposed solid waste from an Old Northport Road site in Smithtown, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Regional Director Peter A. Scully announced today.

In addition to paying the penalty, the cost of the investigation, and the cost of removing unacceptable solid waste from the site, Anthony Santilli, 72, of Baldwin, Nassau County, has agreed to tough new operating requirements, including the installation of video cameras so that DEC staff can monitor the site in real time on the Internet.

“The successful conclusion of this investigation should send a strong signal to those who might consider flaunting solid waste laws on Long Island that they should think twice,” Regional Director Scully said. “DEC’s Division of Law Enforcement and Solid Waste staff are keeping a sharp eye out for illegal solid waste activities, and they will make those responsible pay for their transgressions.”

DEC’s Divisions of Law Enforcement and Solid and Hazardous Materials began investigating solid waste activities at the Santilli site last November as part of a wide-ranging crackdown on illegal solid waste activities on Long Island. During the course of the investigation, DEC staff determined that the site had accepted numerous truckloads of unauthorized solid waste material without state approval, including dredge spoil, street sweepings and fill material from other sources without proper documentation. 

On March 4, 2010, Santilli, was arrested by DEC Environmental Conservation Officers and charged with operating a landfill inside a deep flow recharge area, operating a landfill without a permit and unlawful disposal of solid waste, all misdemeanors.

As part of its investigation, to determine the extent of solid waste on the site, DEC required the mine operator to complete an investigation that included digging 220+ subsurface test pits, with samples sent to an independent laboratory for analysis. That analysis revealed that some of the illegally disposed of material consisted of paint chips, metals, asphalt, insulation and other non-authorized construction materials. 

Along with paying the $200,000 penalty, Santilli will be required to remove approximately 1,500 yards of solid waste from the site.  An additional $125,000 penalty will be triggered if Santilli fails to comply with the terms of settlement.  Santilli is also required to implement a tough new set of operating conditions that will guide the restoration of the site to grade, including stringent documentation of every load of fill delivered to the site and the installation of video cameras that will allow DEC to monitor activity on the around the clock via the internet.

The DEC’s Order on Consent with Santilli resolves DEC administrative actions against him and his operations at the Santilli mine site.

In late April, following its investigation into activities at the Santilli Mine and other locations on Long Island, Regional Director Scully announced the formation of the Long Island Solid Waste Task Force, including representatives of law enforcement agencies and local governments, to strengthen coordination of solid waste investigation and enforcement activities across the region. Task Force members include the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Nassau County and Suffolk County District Attorneys, DEC’s Bureau of Environmental Crime Investigation, and the towns of Brookhaven, Huntington, Riverhead and Smithtown.

Scully noted that DEC has documented an upswing in illegal solid waste activity on Long Island over the past two years involving the placement of construction and demolition debris and other fill materials at unauthorized sites. Since early 2008, DEC’s Division of Law Enforcement has made 11 separate arrests for illegal solid waste activities, and additional investigations are still pending. Most of the cases involve illegal disposal of construction and demolition debris, known in the industry as “C and D”, often mixed or “cocktailed” with soil or fill. Some of the cases involve soil contaminated with petroleum products, semi-volatile organic compounds, or poly-aromatic hydrocarbons. Others involve what authorities have labeled as “scoop and fill” actions, where an excavation is created through illegal sand mining and then quickly filled with construction and demolition debris or unauthorized fill.

“These illegal activities are a special concern on Long Island because we depend on groundwater for our drinking water supply,” Scully said. “It is because contaminated soils and other solid wastes can threaten our water supply that we have laws in place that restrict landfills in Nassau and Suffolk counties.”

DEC’s actions in the Santilli solid waste case were the culmination of a month-long investigation into solid waste activities at multiple sites in the Kings Park area involving a Bellport man with a history of past criminal convictions for environmental violations. Robert DalCamo, also known as Joseph Dalcamo or “Joey Dirt”, has been arrested twice by DEC Law Enforcement since 2008 for solid waste violations at two sites in Medford.  Charges in those cases are still pending.

Individuals spotting illegal environmental activities are encouraged to call DEC’s Environmental Conservation Officers at (631) 444-0250 on weekdays during business hours, and 1-800-TIPP-DEC (1-877-457-5680) at all other times to report such suspected activities.  For more information on DEC programs and regulations, please visit the Department’s website at: http://www.dec.ny.gov.