Directing Committees to Review Regulations from Federal Agencies

Floor Speech

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Mr. WALBERG. Madam Speaker, last November the people of Michigan, workers that long defined manufacturing, sent a message to Washington that business as usual in this town is not working.

Currently, the unemployment rate in my home State is at 11.7 percent and even higher in some counties in my Seventh Congressional District.

Over the past 2 years, we have witnessed burdensome laws being imposed on businesses and still feel the threat of costly regulation that prevents companies from growing and hiring. Small businesses are the engine of job creation in this country. Even the current administration believes ``that they bear a disproportionate share of Federal regulatory burden.''

The Office of Advocacy of the Small Business Administration reports the total cost of Federal regulation has increased to $1.75 trillion. The cost per employee for businesses with fewer than 20 workers now averages $10,585. A Heritage Foundation study found last year alone the Federal Government issued 43 major regulations, with costs estimated in tens of billions of dollars.

One of the threats many employers face is working with the current Department of Labors' Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Everyone recognizes the need for commonsense rules that promote workplace safety.

However, onerous rules and regulations should not be a roadblock to job creation and economic growth. Currently, regulations by OSHA cost small businesses, which are defined as businesses with fewer than 500 employees, between $650 and $781 per employee. There are serious questions about whether OSHA's "punishment before prevention" approach to workforce safety is really in the best interests of the workers.

Last month, OSHA withdrew two costly proposed regulations. OSHA's noise standard proposal would have mandated companies spend thousands or millions of dollars for quieter machinery when simple adequate solutions are already in place. A week later, OSHA temporarily repealed its musculoskeletal disorders reporting requirement after claiming it did not receive enough insight from small businesses to proceed. This would have overwhelmed our small business owners in paperwork and potentially opened the door for increased fines. And while it was repealed, I cannot stress the unease many businesses feel about knowing the fact that this is only a temporary withdrawal.

There have also been expressed concerns about the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division recently establishing a new arrangement with the American Bar Association. This agreement, known as the Bridge to Justice Program, sets the stage for the potential of costly litigation of a great many companies by trial lawyers who are out to line their own pockets. This arrangement goes into effect when the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division receives a complaint that it will not investigate. It sends the claimant referral to the American Bar Association, who will help provide private attorneys for them to pursue their claim. Will this new referral arrangement between the Wage and Hour Department and the American Bar Association truly help workers, or is it intended to punish the employers? This is a critical issue, especially for small businesses.

In our subcommittee, it is my goal to find answers to many questions facing our workforce and employers; questions like: Are the rules providing the necessary protection to workers or merely creating costly animosity between government and free enterprise? How can we more fully understand and protect the interests of workers and employers alike? In other words, are the regulations that govern our workforce sensible or arbitrary?

Madam Speaker, Congress needs to step up its oversight of the Department to ensure their proposals do not hinder a business's ability to grow, hire new workers, or ensure the cooperation of its employees to advance workforce safety.

It is my objective as the Subcommittee Chairman of Workforce Protections to examine regulations as they relate to the workplace. The committee will look at any policy or proposal, regardless of whether it is a Democrat or Republican idea, that may lead to fewer jobs and opportunities for the American workforce. We plan to hold hearings to determine how to best remove the burden of government regulation on our businesses while holding fast to our commitment to workplace safety.

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