REED SAYS THAT OVER-REGULATION COSTS SMALL BUSINESS JOBS; Urges Senate to take up REINS Act

Saying that over-regulation prevents small businesses from adding jobs, Congressman Tom Reed today urged the Senate to take up the Regulations from the Executive In Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act without delay.  The REINS Act, which passed the House seven months ago, requires Congressional approval for new regulation which has at least $100 million in economic impact. At the end of 2011, there were 212 major regulations in the pipeline which would have required Congressional approval if the REINS Act were in place.

“When we visit small businesses, which are the primary job creators in Upstate New York, we constantly hear stories of how regulations are strangling their businesses,” Reed said. “Reducing onerous regulation will allow them to survive and invest more in new products, services and employees.”   

Reed also mentioned that small business owners frequently attend his town hall meetings and bring up unreasonable regulations which prevent them from growing their businesses. Examples include Environmental Protection Agency efforts to regulate farm dust and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration requirements to use electronic on-board recorders for trucking companies which haul across state lines. The latter example is estimated to have a $2 billion impact on small transporters.

“The costs of compliance hit small businesses particularly hard,” Reed observed. In 2011, 3807 new final rules were published in the Federal Register.  According to the Small Business Administration, the annual cost of complying with federal regulations has exceeded $1 trillion since 2005.

This legislation will make elected officials, instead of unelected bureaucrats, accountable for approving or disapproving new regulations. “More accountability for elected officials is good government,” Reed said. “The Senate needs to give this legislation an up or down vote. It will help small businesses invest in more new jobs.”

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