Last week I mentioned House Speaker John Boehner’s effort to obtain information from the Obama administration regarding new regulations with annual economic costs estimated to exceed $1 billion. After ignoring a similar request last year, the White House has issued a response this time around:
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama says his administration is considering seven new government regulations that would cost the economy more than $1 billion each a year, a tally Republicans will pounce on to argue that Congress needs the power to approve costly government rules.
In a letter to House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, Obama lists four proposed Environmental Protection Agency rules and three Department of Transportation rules estimated to cost in excess of $1 billion. One of the proposed EPA rules — an update to the health-based standard for smog — is estimated to cost the economy between $19 billion and $90 billion.
The letter, dated Tuesday, comes as the Republican-controlled House prepares to consider legislation that would require congressional approval for any new regulations that would impose a significant cost on industries.
The four environmental regulations, which target air pollution and coal residue primarily from coal-fired power plants, have already been attacked by House Republicans, who have said they would kill jobs and harm the economy.
More here. And more on the administration’s job-destroying regulatory regime, and the GOP’s plans to combat it, on the homepage.
Congress needs the power to approve regulations?
Really?
REALLY?
Congress has this power, has always had this power, and our fool congresscritters just dumped it in the bureaucrats laps of their own lazy foolishness.
What we need is a constitutional amendment PROHIBITING Congress from delegating the legislative power.
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abusehilarious idea that a deliberative body has the ability to debate and vote on every regulation of every executive agency that the deliberative body has authorized and over which they still retain oversight.
it's also rather questionable that congressional staffs (which will inevitably be left to the myriad tasks of regulation under that silly amendment) will perform, after undergoing the enormous requisite augmentation, any better than the agency staffs perform.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseCongress-critters do need to run for re-election. Put them on the record in a way that allows challengers to declare: "my opponent voted to implement rules that cost thousands of jobs and billions in lost economic growth."
Today's elected officials pour themselves a double-shot of dishonesty: claiming "credit" for hobbling unpopular industries, then blaming the bureaucrats for hurting their constituents (donors).
It's a shell-game, not worthy of a constitutional republic.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThen perhaps we shouldn't have federal regulations at all.
As I recall at one point this was a democracy and we consented to be governed by the constitution.
Now we face a CFR that grows, exponentially it seems, each year. These regulations have the force of law from the point of view of the citizens yet they were never voted on by congress. Hmmm, how, exactly does that comport with democracy?
Each year the Federal Register comes in at about 68,000 pages. Those pages contain discussion of proposed regs but they also contain new regs and revisions to existing regs.
68,000 federal register pages each and every year. Year after year. New language that limits our behavior.
How, exactly, does that comport with freedom?
If the congress cannot manage the task of regulating the citizens then they should abandon the effort. We'll figure out a way to get by of that I am certain.
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abuseyou're still free to be a curmudgeon and to carp about life, though...and what fun that must be.
enjoy yourself.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThe last thing we need is another constitutional amendment. Jeeze.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI think the responders are missing the original point - Congress already has the power to prevent this kind of thing. If Conrgess didn't write ridiculously broad laws that authorize agencies to make "any and regulations necessary to the implementation" of the statute, they wouldn't feel the need to do this kind of thing. If Congress would provide a little mroe specificity and guidance as to their purposes and goals, then there wouldn't be so many crazy regulations to "review".
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abusethe economy was more than $14.5 trillion last year.... a possible change of $1 billion ( a tiny fraction of a single per cent) is not really significant.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThat was $1billion each. There are thousands of new regulations each year.
The odds are that the real cost of those regulations is at least 10 times what this administration is willing to admit to.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseJob-killing regulation needs to be front and center from every GOP candidate. By the administration's own admission, these will cost the economy billions.
Makes one wonder if Obama doesn't really care about the economy.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseGee I scrolled down forever looking for the Gadaffi family flees into Algeria post?!?!
Why would that be?
Maybe the victory of leading from behind?
Maybe achieving the US objective without a SINGLE AMERICAN CASUALTY is not a popular topic here?
Sad that you people have such bloodlust.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseYou sure have a strange notion of what is and isn't important.
His family may or may not have fled, depending on who you talk to.
Big freaking whoop.
Now a group of people, who will probably end up being worse than Gaddafy will take over. And we are supposed to be somehow overjoyed over this news?
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI believe this is the article you're looking for.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseRight,MillerHighLife, the actual President of the actual United States doesn't care about the country. Excellent comment, very fact-based.
As stupid and as amoral as I believe GWB was, I would never have said that about him.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseDude, excellent idea Mr Really. Every sinvle law governing the method of disposal of cacinogens should be a political football in the House! Imagine the good science, entirely and solely protective of the public, that thereby would be created ?!
And keep cool with Coolidge!
(please moderator, corrected message. I love Big Brother!)
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseMay I commend to you the "reply to this comment" option at the bottom of the comment. It works far better than having your replies down page and separated from the original post.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI take it you actually believe that the beaurocracies in question are completely impartial and free from political consideration.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseAt some point you have to think that all of this is purposeful. Or are these people really this foolish and ignorant? It is astonishing. They will soon be swept away, but maybe not soon enough. It's like watching a slow motion suicide.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseAdd another item that has received no play in the conservative press, that I know of - and barely a mention in the Wshington Post, buried.
The interior department has announced that it will hold the first auction of gulf drilling rights since the Deepwater Horizon affair - after several court orders it might be mentioned - in December. That is 20 months after the original spill.
Now the good part. They have raised the minimum required bid by a factor of about 3 times.
It is almost like they don't particularly want a successful auction - or drilling of any kind, really.
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abusethe idea that the drillers should pay actual money for the right to the oil is just ...gasp.... horrible, horrible, horrible.
publicly-owned resources should always just be given away for the private enrichment of developers, because........because.....because ....because.....because of the wonderful things that they do
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