[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 42 (Monday, March 25, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2830-S2831]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    AUTHORITY FOR COMMITTEES TO MEET


                  Subcommittee on Governmental Affairs

  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask Unanimous Consent on behalf of the 
Governmental Affairs Committee to meet on Monday, March 25, at 2:30 
p.m. for a nomination hearing on Robert E. Morin, to be associate 
judge, Superior Court for the District of Columbia.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.


         Subcommittee on Social and Security and Family Policy

  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, the Finance Committee requests unanimous 
consent for the Subcommittee on Social Security and Family Policy to 
hold a hearing on the Social Security Advisory Council report on 
Monday, March 25, 1996, beginning at 10 a.m. in room SD-215.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

[[Page S2831]]



                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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         THE SMALL BUSINESS REGULATORY ENFORCEMENT FAIRNESS ACT

   Mr. BENNETT. Mr. President, I am pleased to join the efforts 
of my colleagues on the Senate Small Business Committee to advance 
regulatory reform. As the CEO of a small business during the eighties, 
I witnessed first hand how a business, when left unencumbered by 
intrusive government regulations, can push the envelope of innovation, 
maximize on ingenuity, and create jobs. When I left Franklin Quest 
before running for the Senate, our firm, which did not even exist 10 
years ago, provided over 700 people with jobs.
  Unfortunately, as the decade progressed and the Congress accelerated 
its approval of unfunded mandates to State and local governments and 
businesses, the regulatory machine burgeoned while the job creation 
engine slowed. Americans now are suffering the unintended consequences 
of the Federal Government's good intentions. Over-regulating causes 
prices to go up and wages to go down. It is responsible for increased 
unemployment and a drain on our international competitiveness. And 
because regulation increases uncertainty, it impairs innovation.
  For these reasons, I am excited to help enact laws which will help 
our country's businesses, particularly our small businesses, function 
with less government intrusion. Although I would like to go much 
further in limiting excess regulation of business, this bill is a step 
in the right direction, and I look forward to seeing President Clinton 
support it.
  In a report to Congress issued in October 1995, the Small Business 
Administration noted that small businesses bear a disproportionate 
share of the regulatory burden. It was estimated that small businesses 
pay 63 percent of the total private-sector bill for complying with 
Federal regulations, while employing 53 percent of the work force. Dr. 
Thomas Hopkins, a leading researcher in the field of regulatory costs, 
estimated that small businesses pay 80-percent more per employee in 
regulatory paperwork costs than do larger companies. Meanwhile, small 
business is acknowledged to be the creator of most new jobs in this 
country. For these reasons, it is imperative that we listen and respond 
to the concerns of small business.
  This bill, the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 
1996, S. 942, was developed using recommendations from the small 
business community. During the 1995 White House Conference on Small 
Business, representatives from small business came together and 
prioritized the top ways the Federal Government could help them be more 
successful. Several of the top priorities named during that conference 
are included in this bill.
  The Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 
permits small businesses to take Federal agencies to court if the 
agencies do not comply with a reg flex analysis, a requirement under 
the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 that requires agencies to review 
the impact of new regulations on small businesses. S. 942 also requires 
Federal agencies to simplify forms and publish a plain English guide to 
help small businesses comply with regulations. Additionally, agencies 
are directed to waive certain fines for first-time, nonserious 
violations by small businesses if the violations were corrected within 
a certain time period. The bill also allows small firms to recoup 
attorneys' fees if they win a challenge against excessive enforcement 
of existing regulations. Finally, the bill provides a 45-day 
congressional review mechanism for Congress to reject new rules with 
expedited procedures, subject to constitutional presentment to the 
President.
  I appreciate the efforts of Senators Bond, Bumpers, Domenici, and 
Nickles to pass this legislation which offers at least some degree of 
relief to the American worker. As one leader in the small business 
community put it, ``if Government continues to load regulations on our 
backs, all it will get in return are broken backs.'' I am happy to be a 
cosponsor and supporter of this effort to get Government off small 
businesses' backs, and help them get back to work.

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