Ozone rules will hurt women-owned contractors

Throughout his term, President Barack Obama has championed the cause of women in the workplace, providing them greater access to federal contracting opportunities and boosting Small Business Administration loan guarantees available for businesses owned by women.

These are positive steps that bring our nation closer to a goal shared by the business owners who make up the Federation of Women Contractor, as well as other businesswomen across the nation. And that, put simply, is equal access to opportunities to compete and excel.

But even as President Obama seeks to open the doors of opportunity, the individuals who make up our organization face tax and regulatory burdens that can divert their energies and resources from our pursuit of expanding our business.

Strikingly, one example of this is a new regulation on ground-level ozone that is being implemented by the president himself.

While the new rule poses a challenge for all types of businesses, it represents an especially high risk for the construction industry. Here in President Obama's hometown of Chicago, as in other cities, construction represents the best opportunity for many workers to regain their financial footing as the economy continues its steady, but slow, recovery from the collapse of the market and severe economic downturn.

On Oct. 1, the Environmental Protection Agency is set to require that the particles that contribute to ozone not exceed 65-70 parts per billion. The current standard is 75 parts per billion. Reducing the current standard by 10 or even five points is a drastic leap with serious economic consequences.

Regions from coast to coast will have to create plans to implement the new rules or face the loss of federal highway money. To reach the new standard, state and local officials would likely have to curtail all kinds of manufacturing and construction activity. The fact is, to erect a building or to construct or repair a road, it is necessary to operate machinery and earth moving equipment.

Even with the latest technologies, some of this work is going to contribute particles that react with sunlight and temperature and create ozone. Implementing the new rules would have an unintended consequence of putting more companies out of business, at a time when some urban economies are starting to improve.

Before moving ahead, the EPA should ponder several realities. One, if it were easy to reduce ozone levels, the current standard set in 2008 would have already been achieved across the country. Instead, a lot of areas are still considered in "nonattainment."

Second, while the administration is right to have confidence that scientists and innovators will continue to come up with the technologies to operate power plants, factories and vehicles with less environmental impact, we do not have all the tools just yet and the ones that are available are often unaffordable. For many small and mid-size businesses, the latest technology is simply cost prohibitive.

Third, the EPA estimates the costs of the new rule would be $15 billion, but this seems very low when taking into account the indirect effects. For example, in the construction field, contractors could face restrictions on activities when conditions are most conducive to raising ozone levels. But these contractors would also be impacted when suppliers of manufactured building materials, machinery and vehicles will bear new costs for reducing ozone-causing emissions.

This will drive costs up and make it more difficult for companies in diverse trades, general construction, specialty contractors, architectural and engineering firms.

Finally, new construction and restoration of older buildings is central to reviving America's urban core. When we reinvest in and rebuild urban neighborhoods, we generate hope and opportunity instead of breeding despair and crime.

The Federation of Women Contractors urges President Obama to consider the negative impact of the ozone rules and to continue his focus on the economic revitalization so important to America's cities.

Beth Doria

Beth Doria is executive director of the Federation of Women Contractors, Chicago.