Zapppppppp...There Goes Another Freedom!

The EPA Is Out of Control!

This column presents a conservative viewpoint about items of interest in our community and our lives. Focus is on items impacting your pocket book, your personal freedoms, and your rights. I hope you will read the column regularly and it occasionally influences your opinions and actions.


It has come to my attention that the EPA has just enacted another arbitrary, costly requirement which will have serious impact on almost everyone’s pocket book, and will significantly increase the cost of any renovation projects which might be needed by the home owner or business owner. It will thus reduce the occasion of these renovations, thus removing work opportunities for construction tradesmen at a time when that segment of our economy is suffering very high unemployment.

The EPA can institute these new costly, repressive requirements without any legislative oversight or prior approvals being needed. It only takes the penned signature of some high ranking, ultra liberal, green minded and empty headed EPA bureaucrat. Woe be the fate of any politician who dares speak against any of the EPA edicts, who among us would want to be branded as being against the needs of the environment, no matter how trivial, costly, or silly.

Effective April 22, the EPA autocrats have ruled that all homes, barns, and commercial buildings constructed prior to 1978, will be deemed to be “lead paint contaminated”, and when any construction materials are removed from these structures the materials must be handled and disposed in the same manner as is currently required for asbestos.

First, a fully certified, lead removal trained contractor must be used. Inspections must be conducted which are designed to detect the most minute presence of lead….even if it happens to be a natural element of the soil upon which the structure is built. The workers will be required to wear masks and protective clothing while removing and handling these terrible materials. The entire work area will have to be encased in plastic sheeting to prevent dust from escaping during the renovation. The materials must then be bagged in appropriate contamination containers for transport to a certified hazardous materials land fill. Who will pay for all of this largely unnecessary extra cost? Guess!

If a contractor does not fully comply with these requirements, the first offense fine is $35,000! So, with little fanfare or advance warning, these powerful “environ-a-crats” have again made new rules which will seriously slow our economic recovery, worsen unemployment, and unnecessarily add billions of dollars in costs for thousands of demolition or remodeling projects.

The worse part is there is no legislative oversight of these all knowing, all seeing herds of misdirected bureaucrats. They are free to enact and enforce their mission on us all, regardless of costs or impact. ZAP! There goes some more of your property rights.

Home owners, if you have a house built before 1978, and you put on new siding, repair overhangs, work on the roof, even decide to repaint an area larger than six square feet.…..big brother EPA is now in your way. In order to accomplish this work you will have to pay much more than before. Mr. Farmer, do you have an old barn or sheds which need reworking, demolition, repair? You must now be sure you are following the new rules set down by the EPA “crats” and are ready to pay for it. Mr. Businessman, does your store, factory building, or warehouse need some repairs…..watch out or Mr. Big Brother EPA will get you!

These ridiculous rules are not the pending EPA rules which are contained in the “Cap and Trade” legislation. Those rules will require you to have your home certified as up to energy efficiency standards and a license purchased stating it has been certified by Big Brother as being eligible for being sold. Otherwise, you will be prohibited by the government from selling your home unless these energy upgrades are accomplished. Another property right gone…zapped by the government.

Where are those legislators we elected to defend our property rights? It probably will not be worth the time it takes, but writing a letter of protest to Mr. Nelson or Mr. Boyd might make you feel as if you did your part and tried to “Get It Right”.

For a full printing of the new regulations, go to: epa.gov.

Rudiments: Odds and Ends Worth Mentioning –

● Our legislators have now extended unemployment payments to 99 weeks. That is almost two years of free money for not working. My heart goes out to those who might really not have been able to find work for two entire years of looking, but I am suspicious that the free money is encouraging many to merely stay unemployed and enjoy the money and the leisure time. I heard of one unemployed family that went to South America on vacation after they found out about the extension. It is only your tax money…so don’t worry about it.

● It appears to me that Governor Crist sold out to the power (and money) of the teachers union. I feel a fair method of judging teaching ability can be developed, and I am very much against the concept of tenure which protects those who should be terminated because of their inabilities to teach our children, or unwillingness to work.

● (Always Say Something Nice)….I applaud all of those volunteers who helped make our Spring festival a big success.

“ You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it…”

Adrian Rogers, 1931



Note: The opinions stated in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Hatcher Publications.