Political Quotes

“I hereby submit the enclosed letter: Pittsburgh, PA, May 8, 2012. Hon. Howard P. ``Buck'' McKeon, Chairman, Armed Services Committee, House of Representatives, Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC. Dear Chairman McKeon: On behalf of the United Steelworkers (USW) union, I write to express our strong concern with language included in the House Armed Services Committee's FY13 National Defense Authorization Bill (NDAA). As we understand it, the language will necessitate a change of worker health and safety enforcement at Department of Energy (DOE) weapons complex sites from the DOE's office of Health, Safety and Security (HSS) to the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). In addition, this legislation would shift the entire safety and health structure to performance- based oversight based on Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards. Performance-based oversight effectively eliminates the current DOE specific health and safety standards that provide the means for protections to be implemented at these facilities and also removes the enforcement mechanisms that are vital to ensure worker and public safety. The USW represents workers at several DOE facilities. Our members at these sites are exposed to a variety of radioactive and toxic materials. Many of the operations of these facilities are completely unique to the DOE.…”