Regulatory Accountability Act of 2011

Floor Speech

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Mr. COSTA. I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 3010, the Regulatory Accountability Act of 2011.

As a cosponsor of this legislation, I understand that this is not about eliminating existing regulations; it's about making sure that regulations do not eliminate the ability of businesses to thrive to create jobs in places like the San Joaquin Valley that I represent, especially during these difficult economic times.

Many major regulations can cost upwards of $100 million dollars to the industries affected by the rule. But they also impact consumer costs as well. While business people in my district are carefully watching their bottom line, ill-advised regulations can hamper the ability to create jobs and get our economy going. So this legislation is also about jobs.

This legislation ensures that regulations are fully vetted before they are put in place. Despite the best intentions, we often see bureaucrats proposing rules without any practical knowledge of how they will work in the real world. H.R. 3010 guarantees that the business communities, farmers in my district can know, when regulations are being proposed, that they can have a seat at the table to explain how it would affect their work and be implemented.

This legislation, therefore, is also about transparency and accountability. Agencies would be required to provide information to the public about the potential economic impacts of the proposed regulations.

As the President said this September in his jobs speech, we should have no more regulation than the health and safety and the security of the American people require. Every rule should meet that commonsense test.

This legislation helps us ensure the executive branch regulations will meet that commonsense test. By modernizing our regulatory process, we can guarantee that regulations are enacted that truly are in the best interest of the public, the business, and the American people.

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Mr. COSTA. I don't think that I can give you a specific on a health regulation. I think what we're really talking about here is the impact of risk assessment versus risk management to ensure that we provide the best protection for health and safety when we implement regulations.

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Mr. COSTA. The current proposed rules, I mean some work better than others. Some are implemented better than others.

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Mr. COSTA. I think the current point that you made earlier about the proposed issue with regards to certain commodities show that the current regulatory system is working.

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Mr. COSTA. No. I want to ensure that we meet good standards and good tests, and this legislation, I think, does that.

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