Flashings

National Roofing Partners names vice president of operations

Geoff Craft

NRCA member National Roofing Partners, Coppell, Texas, has named Geoff Craft vice president of operations. National Roofing Partners is a network of roofing contractors who provide roofing and building envelope services and maintenance for customers throughout the U.S.

Craft will be responsible for planning, directing and coordinating National Roofing Partners operations. He will manage daily operations and contractor resources, as well as financial and human resources planning. Craft has more than 20 years' roofing industry experience in manufacturing and distribution from his time as senior vice president of Roofing Supply Group, Independence, Ohio, and vice president of sales for Olympic Fasteners (now OMG Roofing Supply Co., Agawam, Mass.).

Craft serves on NRCA's Industry Advisory Board and The Roofing Industry Alliance for Progress' board of trustees where he was the first noncontractor president to serve on the board.

"Geoff will make a difference in many areas of our organization. We are happy to have Geoff join the National Roofing Partners family," says Dale Tyler, president of National Roofing Partners. "We have seen exponential growth, and with that comes the need for ongoing organizational growth and leadership. Geoff's history, knowledge and excellent leadership will be a perfect fit as we grow the business."

OSHA delays enforcement of injury and illness rule provisions

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is delaying enforcement of the anti-retaliation provisions in its new injury and illness tracking rule to conduct additional outreach and provide educational materials and guidance for employers. Enforcement originally was scheduled to begin Aug. 10 but now will begin Nov. 1.

Under the rule, employers are required to inform workers of their right to report work-related injuries and illnesses without fear of retaliation; implement procedures for reporting injuries and illnesses that are reasonable and do not deter workers from reporting; and incorporate the existing statutory prohibition on retaliating against workers for reporting injuries and illnesses.

For more information, visit www.osha.gov.

The Alliance announces transfer of RoofPoint™ Environmental Rating System

The Roofing Industry Alliance for Progress has announced the administration of RoofPoint has been transferred to the Alliance effective June 22.

Originally developed by the Center for Environmental Innovation in Roofing and co-sponsored by the Alliance, RoofPoint is a voluntary, consensus-based roofing-specific green building rating system that enables building owners and designers to select nonresidential roof systems based on long-term energy and environmental benefits.

"The increasing need for energy-efficient and environmentally friendly roof systems makes RoofPoint an important component of our industry," says Alliance President James T. Patterson, senior vice president—procurement for CentiMark Corp., Canonsburg, Pa.

"We are pleased to have the opportunity to manage RoofPoint and to continue the essential role it plays in promoting environmentally sustainable buildings."

To ensure a smooth transfer of RoofPoint to the Alliance, a task force has been established to examine RoofPoint's data and determine next steps. Task force members include Jim Barr, president of Barr Roofing Co., Abilene, Texas; Mark Graham, NRCA's vice president of technical services; Helene Hardy-Pierce, vice president of technical services, codes and industry relations for GAF, Parsippany, N.J.; Rob Therrien, president of The Melanson Co. Inc., Keene, N.H.; and Brian Whelan, senior vice president of Sika Sarnifil Inc., Lyndhurst, N.J.

The task force will present its recommendations to the Alliance board of trustees during its Nov. 17 meeting in Chicago. Additional information about RoofPoint is available at www.roofpoint.org.

IRS regulations could affect S corporations

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued proposed regulations that attempt to stop inversions of U.S. companies; however, after further analysis of the regulations, NRCA believes U.S. businesses structured as S corporations could negatively be affected if the regulations are finalized.

Under the proposed regulations, the IRS would be authorized to reclassify certain related-party debt as equity (stock), in whole or in part, for federal income tax purposes. S corporations could lose their S statuses and become taxed as C corporations if the IRS reclassifies their debts as stock. Also included in the proposed regulations is the 72-month "per se" rule, which has a wide timeframe that could lead normal business transactions between related companies to alter a business's corporate status.

The regulations have a retroactive effective date for any transactions that occurred after April 4, 2016, and they require hefty reporting requirements, further adding to the burden of paperwork for business owners.

NRCA opposes the regulations and has submitted comments urging the regulations be withdrawn or amended to include wide exemptions for S corporations. Given the concerns of NRCA and other organizations, support for making changes to the proposed regulations is developing among some lawmakers from both parties in Congress.

NRCA also has posted an Action Alert urging members to contact officials in Washington, D.C., and voice opposition to the rule. NRCA's Action Alert is available at www.nrca.net/0816-Action-Alert.

Chamber of Commerce signals interest in Social Security legislation

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the largest business lobby in Washington, D.C., has signaled its interest in new legislation that would address Social Security's funding problems.

The legislation, recently introduced in the House of Representatives by Rep. Reid Ribble (R-Wis.), would aim to close Social Security's 75-year funding gap by increasing payroll taxes, trimming program benefits and raising the retirement age.

Businesses are likely to oppose the payroll tax increase because it would make hiring new workers more expensive. Analysts at the conservative Heritage Foundation criticized the payroll tax provision of Ribble's legislation, telling The Daily Signal it would "cause significant harm to the economy."

However, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is willing to contemplate the idea because of the urgent need to address Social Security's funding problems and the federal debt.

Bruce Josten, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's executive vice president for government affairs, has argued it will take a combination of new revenues and benefit restructuring to secure Social Security's finances.

"Somebody tell me how you do this without additional revenues given the demographic changes facing the U.S.," he says. "You have to restructure and realign this program to today's demographic realities."

Democrats in recent years have become less willing to consider changes to Social Security to reduce spending, sometimes even suggesting certain benefits should be expanded rather than trimmed.

Ribble is retiring at the end of 2016 to become NRCA's new CEO, but four conservative Republican lawmakers and Rep. Jim Cooper (D-Tenn.) have co-sponsored the legislation.

Dow Chemical and DuPont™ shareholders approve merger

Shareholders for agriculture and chemical companies Dow Chemical, Midland, Mich., and DuPont, Wilmington, Del., have approved a merger valued at about $62 billion.

Dow Chemical and DuPont, both founded more than a century ago, have created roofing products, including FROTH-PAK™ Foam Insulation and EcoSmart™ Roof Systems (developed by Dow Chemical) and DuPont RoofLiner roofing layer and Tyvek^® Protec™ roof underlayment. The companies recently have focused on agriculture because of growing global demand for food supplies, but falling crop prices during the past few years caused problems for both companies.

Facing pressure from investors to break up or find other ways to revitalize their businesses, the companies held meetings where shareholders voted on the deal. DuPont reported 98 percent of its participating shareholders voted in favor of the merger while 97 percent of Dow Chemical's participating shareholders did the same. Within two years after the merger is complete, the companies plan to split into three separate publicly traded companies—one company will focus on agriculture, one will focus on material science, and one will produce and sell specialty products. The companies report the merger will reduce their annual spending by $3 billion.