[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 87 (Tuesday, June 2, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3448-S3449]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
REGULATORY REFORM
Mr. ROUNDS. Madam President, I rise, for the first time speaking in
this Chamber, to discuss the future of our great Nation, how truly
fortunate we are to live in the greatest country in the world.
We are protected by the best military that has ever existed and that,
in turn, allows us to live freely here at home, to focus on our God-
given rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
In my home State of South Dakota, we cherish these rights. We have
the opportunity to make our dreams come true because we have these
rights and because we have a commonsense value system to guide us.
When I was elected, I promised to bring South Dakota common sense to
Washington and to work to solve problems for the good of every South
Dakotan and every American. But, unfortunately, when I travel back
home, I continue to hear from my fellow South Dakotans about the
Federal Government infringing on these rights and values.
You see, our great Nation has been bogged down in recent years with
what I believe is one of the greatest hindrances to job growth and
economic productivity; that is, the overregulation of our citizens.
Overregulation is not a Democratic or a Republican issue, it is an
issue that affects every single one of us. But I believe it is a
challenge we can solve through cooperation and perseverance. It doesn't
matter if you are talking about a doctor or a small business owner or a
farmer or a rancher, overregulation has affected every single sector of
our society.
The regulatory burden on this country is nearly $2 trillion annually,
and this is in addition to the tax burden already placed on our
American citizens. That regulatory burden is larger than Canada's
entire economy. In fact, the cost to comply with Federal regulations is
larger than the entire GDP of all but only eight other countries in the
entire world.
Even more staggering, just a few years ago, we surpassed 1 million
Federal regulations in America--1 million Federal regulations.
Regulations are stifling economic growth and innovation and hurting the
future of this country by crushing the can-do American spirit that
founded our Nation, settled the West, won two World Wars, and put a man
on the Moon--and every year more than 3,500 new Federal regulations are
added.
This just does not make sense, and it certainly is not South Dakota
common sense. What alarms me is not only the volume of regulations
being thrust upon our citizens but also the process for creating them.
The purpose of Congress is to be the voice of the people when making
laws. Unfortunately, the voice of the people in the rulemaking process
has been cut out and replaced by unelected government bureaucrats who
think they know better than the farmer or the scientist or the
entrepreneur.
Our Founders recognized the need for making laws, granting the power
to create laws to Congress and only Congress. They meant that process
to be difficult so our government would not overburden citizens and
restrict their freedom, freedom that those Founding Fathers had just
fought so hard to obtain. Through Congress, every citizen should have a
voice, but unfortunately that is not what is happening today.
Our Founding Fathers created three branches of government with checks
and balances for each one. They could never have imagined that we would
have a regulatory process in place today where unelected bureaucrats
would both write and have the final approval of the rules and
regulations under which our people must live.
This regulatory regime, which is responsible for the 3,500 new rules
each year, has essentially become a fourth branch of government and a
de facto legislative body. The problem is exacerbated because these
bureaucrats in Washington have this misperception that they know how to
run our lives better than we do.
While working as a business owner, a State legislator, as a Governor,
and now as a Senator, I have seen just how detrimental this
``Washington knows best'' mentality is on the daily lives of South
Dakotans and Americans.
Many of my friends on both sides of the aisle have come to the Senate
floor in recent weeks and months with some great ideas and legislation
to limit or stop or repeal or remove some of the worst regulations
currently on the books. I applaud them for these efforts, many of which
I also support.
I look forward to working with the senior Senator from South Dakota,
my friend John Thune, as well as anyone who is willing to work with me
to remove these burdens that are stunting American greatness and, well,
bring a little South Dakota common sense back to our regulatory
environment.
The regulatory system in America has run amok. Too often, burdensome,
costly regulations are crafted by bureaucrats at the highest level of
government, behind closed doors, with little input from everyday
Americans who disproportionately feel the effects of these one-size-
fits-all policies.
It is regulation without representation--and it is wrong. The
American people are being squeezed out, their voices falling on deaf
ears in Washington. Small businesses, which drive our economy and
create the majority of jobs in America, are especially hurt by
overregulation because they, too, have to hire lawyers and employees to
comply with these rules. This takes away capital that could be used to
hire new production employees and expand their businesses.
People in my home State of South Dakota feel victimized by their own
Federal Government. It is keeping crops from getting to market, and it
is keeping businesses from growing. The idea that unelected and
unaccountable bureaucrats should be allowed to make sweeping rules and
regulations with no recourse should be a concern to every American,
regardless of political affiliation, because it impacts everyone. No
party has a lock on the American dream, and American innovation doesn't
have a party affiliation.
From the stack of paperwork required to process a bank loan to the
regulatory price of putting food on the table, the cost of Federal
regulations are ultimately passed down to each and every American.
Without excessive regulation, imagine how much more money American
families could have in their pockets to spend on what they want,
instead of what the government wants. If we cut our redtape, families
can stop having to cut their budgets.
The regulatory regime is a dark cloud over our entire economy. I am
not saying there isn't a place for rules in our society; there is.
Rules are meant to keep us safe and to promote the greater good, and I
do believe there
[[Page S3449]]
are some good rules and regulations which are on the books today. The
problem I have is with the bad rules that keep good people from going
about their daily lives.
Unfortunately, there are too many of these bad rules that are
hindering our freedoms and stifling our growth. These are the
regulations which we should have a process in place to reexamine.
Today, I come to the floor to discuss bipartisan legislation, which
we have already introduced, to permanently end regulation without
representation. It takes a giant leap forward in restoring the people's
role in the rulemaking process. After all, if the American people don't
like the laws we make, they can vote us out, but they have no such
power with unelected bureaucrats. They are stuck.
You see, the bipartisan legislation we have submitted, S. Con. Res.
17, would create a Joint Select Committee on Regulatory Reform, whose
purpose includes reviewing regulations currently on the books and
proposing a new rules review process that includes the elected
representatives of the American people. It is rooted in South Dakota
common sense and the principles that have made this country great,
making government work for Americans, rather than against them.
Madam President, this committee would make several recommendations to
Congress to rebalance this broken regulatory scheme.
First, the committee would be tasked with exploring options for
Congress to review regulations written by agencies before they are
enacted, providing much needed oversight through the possibility of a
permanent joint rules review committee, which would be tasked with
reviewing rules with a cost of $50 million or more. This permanent
joint rules review committee would have the ability to delay the
imposition of these rules for not more than a year from the time the
agency submits the rule for a review to enable Congress to act on the
rule if they do not care for the rule.
Second, the committee would examine an option for agencies to submit
each regulation with a $50 million or more impact to the appropriate
committees of Congress for review before the rule is enacted.
Finally, the joint select committee could recommend ways to reduce
the financial burden regulations place on the economy as well as
sunsetting onerous and outdated ones.
This joint select committee would not be a permanent one, but it
would be bipartisan, bicameral, and hold meaningful hearings so that a
permanent solution to our overregulation problem can be properly
addressed.
This legislation also offers a starting point for the committee by
requiring certain possible solutions to our regulatory problem to be
considered. I firmly believe that regulations should be reviewed by
elected officials, those who are accountable to the American people
through the democratic process.
This is not a new concept. It is not rocket science. It is a common
practice at the State level. In fact, 41 of the 50 States, including my
home State of South Dakota, have a rules review process to make sure
the executive branch is faithfully executing the laws they seek to
implement.
It is worth repeating that regulations are estimated to cost $1.88
trillion annually in the United States, and that is above and beyond
the tax burden our citizens already share. That amounts to just under
$5 billion every single day, and it just doesn't make sense. It is
unfair to those who still believe in and are working to achieve the
American dream. Whether Americans are seeking to buy a car, take out a
mortgage on a house, start a business, or see the doctor, regulations
obstruct them.
When I think of those who sacrificed everything so that our children
and grandchildren could create their own version of the American dream,
I think about the freedoms and liberties they fought so bravely to
defend. They fought so that we could pursue life, liberty, and
happiness and trust that our government would not hinder these lifelong
endeavors. It is not Washington that will continue to make this country
great; rather, it is the collective spirit of individual Americans who
want to work hard to be successful for their families and their
communities. But they need the heavy hand of government to be lifted.
Here in Washington, it is not our job to dictate how Americans run
their lives but to allow them to achieve their dreams, not make them
into nightmares.
The phrase ``Washington is broken'' is far too common. It seems as
though whenever we go home, there is someone who suggests that
Washington is broken. We hear it regularly. People use it to describe
the current state of our Federal Government. ``Washington'' is now used
in a derogatory manner.
This city, the Capital of our Nation, named after our very first
Commander in Chief, the man who led us to victory in the Revolutionary
War and birthed this great Nation, has become, over time, the same as a
four-letter word. Remember, George Washington left the Presidency
voluntarily after two terms in office. He wanted to get away from the
monarch style of government in which rulers held their positions for
life. And now this city that bears his name is full of lifelong
bureaucrats--and even worse, they are unaccountable to the people. It
is a far cry from the Republic our Founders envisioned.
Madam President, in the year 2026 our country will celebrate its
250th birthday. That is just over a decade away. When we get to that
point, I hope to join my fellow Americans in looking back with great
pride in all we have accomplished and all we have to pass on to future
generations.
President Kennedy challenged our Nation to put a man on the Moon
before the decade of the 1960s had passed--less than 10 years. I am not
asking us to do anything as tough as putting a man back on the Moon,
but I think we should commit ourselves to removing the barrier of
government regulations that is weighing on the American spirit and
again set free the American economy before the decade preceding our
250th birthday.
I have not submitted legislation to start a new committee that exists
in name and does no deed. Americans want us and expect us to be up to
this challenge, and I believe we are. We can lift the heavy hand of
government. The Founding Fathers did not anticipate thousands of
regulators and a million regulations when they created this country. It
is time to end this regulation without representation and restore the
lawmaking process to the people.
I thank my friends on both sides of the aisle who have cosponsored
RESTORE and encourage the rest of my colleagues to sign on to this
commonsense approach to addressing the issue of overregulation so we
can work to make this country even greater and safer than we found it.
Then, during our 250th birthday celebration, we can be proud that we
restored a little South Dakota and American common sense for our
children and their children.
With that, Madam President, I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.
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