Government Affairs Brief

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to wind down, the White House announced it would not issue an emergency safety standard for COVID-19 that would apply to most workers, potentially skirting a campaign pledge. Instead, the administration and OSHA proposed a rule specifically for those in health care and health care settings.  

We are rapidly approaching ILTA’s 2021 Operating Conference and Trade Show, set for October 4-6 in Houston, TX. Every year, our conference brings together terminal professionals, government officials and subject matter experts to share their insights on the challenges facing the terminals industry and its future. In today’s Think Tank blog, we wanted to highlight three more fantastic sessions we have planned for this year’s event. Be sure to register as soon as possible to secure our early bird rates!

ILTA is delighted to announce that participation in this year’s Safety Survey and Awards Program hit record highs, with 49 companies submitting a safety survey and 18 companies applying for the Platinum Safety Award.

Following the Colonial Pipeline shutdown in early May, Colonial Pipeline CEO Joseph Blount faced two days of questioning June 8 and 9 before both the Senate Homeland Security & Government Affairs Committee and the House Committee on Homeland Security. During the hearings, Blount defended his company’s decision to halt the pipeline’s operations and pay a $5 million ransom to DarkSide, the eastern European hacker group responsible for the ordeal.

The White House submitted a $6 trillion budget for the 2022 fiscal year to Congress on May 27, representing the most sustained spending in over 50 years. The budget proposed by the White House is the President' Biden’s initial offer to Congress in negotiations over the federal budget and is likely to change before becoming law. It calls for spending to jump to more than $8 trillion by 2031.