Luetkemeyer's House-Passed Transparency Bill Introduced in U.S. Senate

Press Release

Following House passage of U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer's (MO-03) Providing Accountability Through Transparency Act, companion legislation was recently introduced in the United States Senate.

U.S. Senator James Lankford (R-OK), Chairman of the Regulatory Affairs and Federal Management Subcommittee introduced S. 577, the Providing Accountability Through Transparency Act, as both a stand-alone bill and as a provision in a broader regulatory reform package -- the Small Business Regulatory Flexibility Improvements Act.

"I am incredibly pleased my colleagues in the Senate also understand the need for greater transparency and reduced regulation from the federal government," Luetkemeyer said. "I want to thank Senator Lankford for taking the lead on this legislation as we take one step closer to getting this common-sense legislation signed into law."

The Providing Accountability Through Transparency Act would require government agencies to provide a short, plain language summary for every proposed regulation and make it publicly available online to ensure all Americans have access and understanding of the regulations that will affect them.

"Small businesses are responsible for nearly two-thirds of job growth in America, so it is important that Washington fully analyzes regulatory impacts on small businesses before a rule is finalized," Lankford said. "This bill is desperately needed because federal agencies frequently use loopholes in the process to avoid the full economic analysis of a proposed regulation on small businesses. The Small Business Regulatory Flexibility Improvements Act will ensure that the needs and priorities of small business are fully taken into account early in the rulemaking process."

The National Federation of Independent Business, the nation's leading small business advocacy organization, has stated that this legislation will "place strong protections to ensure that federal agencies fully consider the impact of proposed regulations on small businesses…forcing government regulators to include the indirect impact of their regulations in their assessments of a regulation's impact on small businesses."

The Providing Accountability Through Transparency Act passed the House on January 11, 2017 as a provision of H.R. 5, the Regulatory Accountability Act of 2017.

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