Unfunded Mandates Information and Transparency Act of 2013

Floor Speech

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Mr. ISSA. Mr. Chairman, let me start off on a positive note. The positive note is the regular order in which we bring this important legislation. We have held 11 full committee hearings, 30 subcommittee hearings, produced three full staff reports.

Between the work of Chairman Jordan, Chairman Lankford and Congresswoman Foxx on this legislation, there have been countless thousands of hours of hard work to figure the right way to say it to make sure it is narrow and consistent with multiple Presidents' policies of both parties.

This legislation is filled with bipartisan support on each of the bills. This is, in fact, not a Republican or a Democratic idea.

Mr. Chairman, that ends the positive part. I just listened to my ranking member in opposition, and I was shocked--shocked--that he would talk in terms of rulemaking shouldn't have the interference of the private sector. Customers should not look at their supplier being involved in the production of the regulation. Locking out people who have to manufacture the goods, produce the labels, comply with the law in the process is exactly what is wrong in government today.

Mr. Chairman, the American people know full well that a regulation is a law; a rule is a law. The idea that laws are produced in private with often special interest groups on one side only at the table and then put out as a take it or leave it, fight it if you can, is the absurdity of the regulatory state.

Mr. Chairman, this commonsense reform is perhaps too little, rather than too much, because, Mr. Chairman, the lawmaking that is going on in the executive branch, including those so-called independent agencies, is independent of our responsibility, as Members of Congress.

We are supposed to make the laws, and we are supposed to make them in the clear light of day, with all sides having an opportunity to be heard.

Rulemaking for too long has been, in fact, done in secret, shown up without any input, and then those very manufacturers and producers and growers--the regulated--have the option of trying to come here and asking us to strike down or slow down the speed of some ill-conceived regulation.

So this important legislation--something that President Obama supported, something President Clinton supported, something that people in the executive branch understand needs to happen--needs to pass here today. I strongly urge the passage of this bill, this bipartisan legislation.

I thank Chairman Lankford, and I thank Congresswoman Foxx.

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