By Brandon Moseley
Alabama Political Reporter
On Tuesday, President Barack H. Obama signed the Aderholt introduced American Manufacturing Technical Corrections Act into law, finally ending successfully an effort by Congressman Robert Aderholt (R) from Haleyville to correct some oversights in the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 which would have negatively impacted several American manufacturers, especially HH Technologies in Cullman, Al.
Rep. Aderholt announced the legislative victory on Facebook, “The President just signed H.R. 6582 into law, legislation I introduced to cut needless bureaucratic red tape, foster innovation in manufacturing and keep jobs in Alabama. This is great common-sense measure and I am pleased to see it become law.”
Congressman Aderholt (R) from Haleyville said in a written statement, “If we want to see economic growth in this country, it is critical that our nation’s policy and laws create a regulatory environment that fosters innovation and job creation. Due to an increase in overreaching, burdensome and unnecessary regulations over the past few years, too many small businesses have had to layoff employees, reduce production or even shut their doors. This is precisely what happened to HH Technologies, an innovative manufacturing company in Cullman County, Alabama. The federal government’s embrace of outdated technology prohibited a new and innovative solution to improved energy efficiency.”
U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions (R) from Alabama said, “America’s workers must be defended, and this law will do exactly that: defending the jobs of workers in our state from the potential closure of their plant. This is an excellent example of how both parties can join together to scale back bureaucratic rules that put jobs and families at risk. Sadly, unwise federal regulations—as this case demonstrates—frequently harm innovation, jobs, and growth. Our state has the best workers in the world and I am determined to defend them from any federal intrusion that threatens their ability to provide for their families.”
Sen. Sessions, working with U.S. Rep. Robert Aderholt and Sen. Richard Shelby (R) from Alabama, have been seeking a legislative fix to a federal requirement that dictated that walk-in freezer doors had to use foam insulation, and as a result, it triggered a steep drop-off in orders of other kinds of walk-in freezer doors including those made by HH Technologies, Inc., a family-owned business in Bremen, Alabama even though the HHT product has similar or better energy efficiency than the foam insulated doors.
Rep. Aderholt said, “Through House Republicans continued efforts to streamline and eliminate bureaucratic red-tape in Washington, like the legislation passed today, we can begin to jumpstart our nation’s economic growth and reinvigorate job creation. I thank my colleagues for supporting H.R. 6582.”
H.R. 6582 makes technical corrections to the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 that would reduce regulatory burdens by correcting clerical errors made and eliminating any problems caused by the errors. Some of these corrections include: “updating the uniform efficiency descriptor for covered water heaters, clarifying language regarding regulatory treatment for small duct high velocity systems made by U.S. manufacturers, coordinating research and development of energy efficient technologies for the industry, and establishes a separate, less stringent standard for over the counter commercial refrigerators, that due to large glass windows are inherently less energy efficient than other commercial refrigeration products.”
Congressman Robert Aderholt represents Alabama’s Fourth Congressional District.
