Providing for Further Consideration of H.R. 5303, Water Resources Development Act of 2016; Providing for Consideration of H.R. 6094, Regulatory Relief for Small Businesses, Schools, and Non-Profits

Floor Speech

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Ms. FOXX. I thank my colleague from Georgia for his leadership on this rule.

Mr. Speaker, all too often, the executive branch enacts policies that sound wonderful but impose unintended consequences and burdens that make the lives of hardworking Americans more difficult. The issue underlying H.R. 6094 is another tragic example of that pattern.

The Department of Labor acted in May to revise overtime regulations covering millions of American workers. This regulation will require companies to reclassify a significant portion of their workforce, eliminating flexibility in work times, bonus compensation, and opportunities to advance. It will also impose significant compliance costs that will only serve to further bury job creators under red tape.

While members of both political parties want to see all Americans earn more, we cannot ignore the financial consequences of this rule. By dramatically increasing the number of employees who do not qualify for an exemption under the regulation, the Department is significantly increasing the cost of delivering services and is making it more difficult to maintain existing staffing levels.

In plain English, this regulation could cost hardworking Americans hours at work or even their jobs. Entire sectors could be less profitable with a predictable result for the employees who are doing that work. These impacts do not fall solely on frequently and unfairly demonized big business. They affect nonprofits and schools as well as local and State governments. This will raise the cost of operation for nearly every organization and company in the country.

I have heard from small-business owners, nonprofits, and universities across North Carolina that are deeply concerned about this rule. For example, an independent supermarket owner said that this rule would ``effectively put him out of business. Most of our managers make less than $40,000 a year. When you make only one penny on the dollar net profits, this would force us to raise prices and make us uncompetitive against Walmart and other national chains.''

For many employees, the biggest impact this legislation will have on them is the loss of prized flexibility and advancement opportunities.

No longer will they be able to work flexible hours to cover children's doctors' appointments or other family needs. They will be forced to clock in and out, lose aspects of their positions that provide positive morale, and be reclassified into positions that do not provide the same satisfaction.

It is fair to say that our Nation's overtime rules need to be modernized, but the Department of Labor's extreme and partisan approach will lead to damaging consequences that the American people simply cannot afford.

That is why I cosponsored H.R. 6094, the Regulatory Relief for Small Businesses, Schools, and Nonprofits Act, which would provide a 6-month delay in the implementation of this rule in order to allow the small businesses, nonprofit organizations, State and local governments, and corporations confronting it with desperately needed time to prepare and make changes to accommodate the needs of their employees.

The rule before us today will provide for the consideration of this important legislation, and I commend both of them to my colleagues for their support.

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