Monday, December 5, 2016

GOP Senators Ask Obama to Stop Issuing New Regulations

Today, Senator Cory Gardner (R-CO) and 22 other Republican Senators requested Obama administration stop issuing non-emergency rules and regulations in the final month of his term.  The Senators' letter to Obama states that “the American people made it clear on November 8th that they expect regulatory relief.”

Obama’s regulatory efforts can add up to a substantial sum but many of them are likely to be overturned by the next administration. American Action Forum think tank published a report claiming Obama’s regulatory costs during his last two months in office could add up to $44.1 billion. One of the President-elect Donald Trump’s campaign promises is to provide regulatory relief.  For the first time since 2007, the executive and legislative branches of government are run by the same majority. So, many of  Obama’s 11th hour rules are likely to be rolled back.

The GOP Senators’ letter criticized “the Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule unfairly burdening our farmers and ranchers, the anti-coal rules eliminating thousands of jobs and driving up household energy costs, or the Dodd-Frank rules denying our small businesses access to capital, federal agencies continue to produce reams of new regulations that hurt our job creators and cripple our economy.”

The letter was also signed by Jeff Flake (R-AZ), Mike Lee (R-UT), Ben Sasse (R-NE), Deb Fischer (R-NE), John Barrasso, M.D. (R-WY), Roy Blunt (R-MO), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Jerry Moran (R-KS), James M. Inhofe (R-OK), John Hoeven (R-ND), John Thune (R-SD), Roger F. Wicker (R-MS), Michael B. Enzi (R-WY), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Ted Cruz (R-TX), David Perdue (R-GA), Pat Roberts (R-KS), Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), and Dan Sullivan (R-AK).