AED has announced that Senate Finance Committee chairman Max Baucus (D-MT.) is among the many speakers addressing equipment industry leaders at the two-day conference in Washington, D.C., April 10 and 11.

"We’re very excited that chairman Baucus has accepted our invitation," AED Washington Counsel Tony Obadal said. "Baucus has been an outstanding leader on both infrastructure and tax issues in recent years. He was a primary force behind the tax bill last year that put us on the path to death tax repeal, he was an early advocate of making accelerated depreciation a part of the economic stimulus bill, and he continues to be one of the most aggressive advocates for the federal highway program on Capitol Hill."

Others who have agreed to speak at the meeting include Sen. Wayne Allard (R-Colo.), a member of the Senate Armed Services and Budget Committees; House Armed Services and Select Intelligence Committee member Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.); House Appropriations Committee member Anne Northup (R-Ky.); and House Transportation Committee member Mike Rogers (R-Mich.).

Peter Ruane, the president of the American Road and Transportation Builders Association; John Horsley, executive director of the American Association of State Highway & Transportation Officials; and Bill Fay, president of the American Highway Users Alliance, will participate in a panel discussion on the morning of April 10 about the outlook for TEA-21 reauthorization and efforts to restore funding to the federal highway program.

As the part of the meeting, AED members also will go to Capitol Hill to meet personally with their representatives and senators to advance the industry’s public policy agenda.

"The meeting provides an important opportunity for distributors to get to know their elected representatives and to make the case first-hand for good public policy. If you support strong road and water infrastructure programs, if you support getting rid of the death tax for good, if you support product liability reform, and if you want to help advance AED’s positions on these issues, join us in Washington next month," Obadal said.

Although attendance at the Government Affairs Conference has traditionally been limited to AED’s board, Government Affairs Committee and Capitol Club members, all AED distributor members are invited to attend this year’s meeting and get involved in the association’s Washington activities.

For more information, call 703/739-9513.

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