WASHINGTON (DC) – Congressman Ben Quayle released the following statement after the unanimous passage of an amendment he proposed to the Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies (CJS) appropriations bill for FY 2013.  The amendment prohibits the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) from using any of its funds to “implement, administer, or enforce” a recent hiring guidance which would have made it much more difficult for companies to consider criminal records in their hiring process.  It was cosponsored by Rep. Steve Scalise, Rep. Cliff Stearns, and Rep. Rob Woodall.  The appropriations bill containing this amendment passed the House today.

“This EEOC guidance, which claims that the use of criminal records in hiring is having a disparate impact is simply bad policy.  The guidance goes beyond the EEOC’s legal mandate, it subjects employers to wrongful accusations of bias and makes it harder for businesses to hire new workers.  I’m pleased that my amendment to block the implementation and enforcement of this guidance passed with the support of the whole house today.

“With our economy struggling to create new jobs, we should look for ways to make hiring easier – not create new rules which make hiring more difficult.  The regulatory and rulemaking frenzy that has taken place under this administration has been bad for business and bad for workers.  This amendment is the latest of my continuing efforts to push back this regulatory onslaught.” 

Please see attached Letter of support from the Chamber of Commerce

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