In This Podcast:

Jon Melchi, director of government affairs with Heating, Air-conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) updates us on regional standards, discusses HARDI’s recent visit to Washington, D.C., and touches on a few other issues affecting distributors.

Q: So, the ongoing saga known as regional standards continues, and the HVACR industry — which is hopefully not holding its breath at this point — is seemingly stuck in neutral. HARDI, on the other hand, continues to push forward. Can you update us on the topic, and share any pertinent info?

A: The case continues to be heard in the D.C. court of appeals. On May 1, the court granted a motion which provided a stay from the May 1 furnace standard. All parties involved in this litigation signed on to this, agreeing that it was the right thing to do. What came as a surprise is that the court asked to be re-briefed on all issues, including HARDI’s motion to substitute. We feel we have nothing to lose to state our case before the court. Shortly thereafter, the American Public Gas Association (APGA) asked the court to reject our request to substitute. It’s worth noting that the APGA had ample opportunity to voice its objection when we filed our motion to substitute, but did not do so.

Q: A large group of HARDI distributors recently returned from Washington, D.C., for the association’s annual Congressional Fly-in. What was on the docket this year, and what did you guys accomplish?

A: The first thing we try to accomplish is to connect our small business owners to their congressional delegations. We have the good fortune of having a HARDI member in every congressional district in the U.S. We build relationships with these officials regardless of party. We advocated for a handful of issues including the estate tax and tax reform. … the preservation of the last-in, first-out accounting method better known as LIFO; equal treatment of ESOPs, employee stock-owned partnerships, that a lot of our companies utilize; and we wanted to make sure that the folks on the Hill know that we have members who file taxes as pass-through entities and under the corporate code. We wanted to make sure that everyone is treated equally.

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Publication date: 7/8/2013 

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