[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 148 (Wednesday, October 5, 2011)]
[House]
[Pages H6558-H6559]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 THE IMPACT OF REGULATIONS ON BUSINESS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Alabama (Mr. Bonner) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BONNER. Madam Speaker, while long-term unemployment is now worse 
than at any time since the Great Depression and while Americans in 
growing numbers are becoming more and more concerned about the 
direction their country is heading, the one thing that is uniting 
Americans is the realization that their Federal Government is 
unnecessarily getting in the way of job creators, of both small and 
large businesses alike, by tying the hands of employers with 
bureaucratic redtape and over-the-top, unnecessary and often 
duplicative regulation.
  A recent Tarrance Group survey found that three-quarters of the 
American people believe that businesses and consumers are 
overregulated. Another two-thirds believe that regulations have 
increased over the past few years. Americans, understandably so, are 
concerned that regulations will create a hindrance to job creation, and 
most believe that new regulation will either bring more job losses or 
increased prices.
  Madam Speaker, the American people have good reason to be concerned. 
From higher taxes on workers and businesses to the greater intrusion by 
the Federal Government into personal health care decisions, there has 
been plenty of evidence that this administration wants to grow the size 
and reach and scope of government in ways that we have never before 
seen in the history of America. At any time, the heavy hand of Big 
Government regulation is bad news for jobs, but during the middle of 
the worst recession since the Great Depression, it defies common sense 
for government to place even more roadblocks in front of struggling 
businesses.
  While largely unseen by the public and, more times than not, not even 
debated here on the floor of Congress, Federal regulations directly 
impact jobs and job creation. A Small Business Administration report 
released just last September, in September of 2010, noted that Federal 
regulations cost businesses $1.7 trillion each year and that small 
businesses, in particular, bear a disproportionate share of these 
costs, averaging over $10,000 for each employee.
  Along America's gulf coast, we have recently experienced the direct 
impact of Federal Government overreach in the oil production industry. 
The administration's de facto moratorium on new oil drilling has cost 
our region of the country tens of thousands of jobs--some say as few as 
30,000, others as many as 70,000 jobs that have been lost--at a time 
when the gulf coast is still struggling to recover from the worst 
manmade disaster in American history.
  Just last week, I visited several large and small manufacturers in 
south Alabama, in Alabama's First Congressional District, that are 
doing their very best to turn a profit under the mantle of increased 
Federal regulation.
  In one case, a small manufacturer with 28 employees related how they 
cannot expand their production due to new Federal regulations. In fact, 
they are now being forced to downsize. Incredibly, when EPA visits 
companies to perform audits, oftentimes they take away whole file 
drawers or cabinets full of records. The small business owners pay 
taxes on company profits from their personal income taxes, and they 
have to keep a consultant on retainer just to stay in compliance with 
all of the regulations. A medium-sized manufacturer we visited last 
week told me--and they've got plants in other States as well, not just 
in Alabama--that the new proposed regulations that they are looking at 
would cost their company alone over $100 million in new regulation.
  During his jobs speech to Congress, in this very Chamber just last 
month, the President admitted that government regulations on businesses 
serve to dampen job creation. He even suggested that he would be 
willing to work

[[Page H6559]]

with Congress to review such actions. But in the following weeks, there 
has been little evidence to suggest that the President is serious.
  Let me be clear: Federal regulations do have their place in ensuring 
the safety of both workers and consumers. Federal laws have contributed 
greatly to maintaining our clean air and water as well as the safety of 
our transportation system, our food and consumer products, to name but 
just a few. No one is saying we shouldn't have any regulation. But for 
all the good that a responsible government can provide with reasonable 
oversight, make no mistake that overzealous regulation can stifle our 
economy and contribute to a reduced quality of life for all Americans. 
That is why House Republicans are working to pass legislation to rein 
in out-of-control Federal regulations that strangle job creation.
  Last week, the House passed the TRAIN Act. If enacted into law, this 
one bill would prevent the administration from imposing some of the 
most controversial new EPA rules, which further threaten job creation 
and the economy. It would also force the administration to review the 
impact of new regulations before they're applied. Today, the House is 
considering two additional significant regulatory reform bills--the 
Cement Sector Regulatory Relief Act of 2011 and the EPA Regulatory 
Relief Act of 2011.
  I urge that Congress pass this and help put the government on the 
side of the American workers and job creators, not against them.

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