The American free enterprise system has been the greatest engine for prosperity in world history and has the potential to deliver a promising economic future for our country and around the globe. However, manufacturing in the United States faces significant challenges in an increasingly competitive global economy. The cost, complexity, and sheer number of domestic regulations is greater than ever. Sensible government regulations can provide important benefits, such as protection of the environment, health, and safety. However, when regulations unnecessarily distort the free market or pick winners and losers, they invariably cause unintended harm. Unneeded or poorly designed regulations waste limited resources, undermine sustainable development, and erode the public’s confidence in our government.
Accordingly, regulations must be carefully designed to provide net benefits to the public based on best available scientific and technical information evaluated through a transparent and accountable rulemaking process, with due consideration given to the cumulative regulatory burden on affected industries. The public has a right to know the costs and benefits of regulations and the quality of scientific and economic analyses used to support them.
AWC supports a smarter, more cost-effective regulatory process based on the following principles:
- Do More Good Than Harm: Regulators should ensure that the benefits of regulations justify the costs and seek the least costly approach to meet statutory obligations to encourage (not stifle) industry progress.
- Sound Science: Regulatory decisions should be based on the best available scientific and technical information, including an objective evaluation of costs, benefits, and risks reduced.
- Transparency: Agencies should disclose early to the public the data, models, and other key information used in high-impact rulemakings and provide an adequate opportunity for meaningful public input.
- Accountability: Congress should make these principles law for all regulatory agencies and hold agencies accountable for their compliance.
The U.S. House of Representatives has recently passed two bills, the Regulatory Integrity Act of 2016 and Require Evaluation before Implementing Executive Wishlists (REVIEW) Act, both of which AWC supports. The bills would accomplish the following:
- Regulatory Integrity Act of 2016 (H.R. 5226) directs each agency to make publicly available on its website or in the rulemaking docket on Regulations.gov a list of each pending regulatory action, the date the agency began to develop or consider the action, its status, an estimate of the date it will be final, and, in effect, a brief description of such action, and each public communication about the action issued by the agency.
- REVIEW Act (H.R. 3438) would require a federal agency to postpone the effective date of a high-impact rule, defined as any rule that may impose an annual cost on the economy of at least $1 billion, pending judicial review.
Although the Senate has not yet passed companion legislation, AWC and its members will continue to work with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, other agencies, the administration, Congress, states, and other stakeholders to achieve reasonable regulations that protect the environment and business.