Providing for Consideration of H.R. 527, Small Business Regulatory Flexibility Improvements Act of 2015, And Providing for Consideration of H.R. 50, Unfunded Mandates Information and Transparency Act of 2015

Floor Speech

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Mr. COLLINS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate that, and I thank
my good friend from North Carolina, who, as has already been stated on
the floor, is powering through today, standing strong for the values
that I think really would not be expressed any differently except to
say, Mr. Speaker, that there is critical national interest here.

There is probably today, on the floor, as we talk about these bills--
and yes, it is sort of a Groundhog Day, and I will get to that in a
moment, because it seems like every time we, from the Republican side
of the aisle, want to talk about jobs and kitchen tables and making
better improvements for life and getting rid of regulatory burdens that
would help or putting controls on government, we are accused of wanting
to spoil the environment, kill trees, make flowers not bloom, I mean,
whatever it may be, but the issue, that is Groundhog Day.

So if people want a true Groundhog Day analogy, here is the Groundhog
Day analogy. The analogy is, when we want to put constraints on
government from interfering and getting in the way of its proper role
of helping business and helping our country do what it is supposed to
do, or we are wanting to control, through government, this process and
do so in a way that is detrimental to those moms and dads who get up
every day and families and single moms and grandparents and aunts and
uncles, all these folks who just simply say, we are not really as
overly concerned about what you are doing in Washington, D.C., as I am
concerned about what you are doing in Hometown, USA, where I get up
every morning.

It has been said many times, Mr. Speaker, already this afternoon, and
the issue is, we are putting more burden and red tape on America.

No. What this bill does--and these two bills that I speak in favor of
in this rule, these two bills that we are doing, H.R. 50 and H.R. 527--
is actually controlling government. Instead of letting it get in the
way and put unnecessary or quicker burdens on those again, we are
simply saying, Whoa. There is a proper place. There is a proper place
for regulation. There is a proper place for a limited government role
that our Founders made.

However, when that role steps over and begins to not only burden
business but instead the man or woman who wants to get up in the
morning and chase a dream of starting a new business, as I once did,
when we started a scrapbook store, you know, just to get a little bit
of money, we were able to do so.

But others who want to go get a loan, they have to go through the
bureaucratic red tape that is now keeping them from starting the small
business jobs that employ people on a day-to-day level. We are simply
saying, Government, it is time to take a breath. It is time to step
back and see the impact that you are having.

Granted, some regulation is good. I will give that to my Democratic
colleagues. But overregulation and burdensome regulation tears down our
economy.

So if that is the Groundhog Day argument for this week we want to
have, I will have it every day of the week. The Members and people who
watch this floor can see you have a party that wants to restrict
business and jobs and government in such a way that it throttles the
economy or a party which is putting forth solutions and will put
forward as many times as we have to to remind the American people that
it is people and small business and jobs, the everyday Americans who
create the jobs in this country, not government.

A business owner that I just recently spoke to had 10 employees, and
he said he was getting ready to hire another employee. I said, Well,
great. That is great. 10 percent growth. One more employee.

He said, But you have got to understand. I am having to hire
somebody, and all they are going to be doing is filling out government
paperwork.

In other words, Mr. Speaker, this is not someone who can go out and
sell their widget or perform their service. This is someone who will sit in
an office and simply make sure that they are complying with the Big
Brother overreach of government. That is not job creation. That is
burdensome on business.

Let's get them where they can create jobs and go out and sell their
product, do their services.

We have a bank in my area. You are talking about unfunded mandates,
regulatory rulemaking. A bank in my area, on their regular regulatory
inspection, they were waiting for the bank examiners to come, the folks
to come in and do their audit.

The problem they had was this: when the government showed up, they
had more people coming to inspect their books than they had employed in
their main office. And the government agency complained that they did
not have enough room for them to do their job.

I am sorry, Mr. Speaker. It is not up to small business to make sure
government can do its job. It is up to government to provide the
atmosphere so small business can do its job, and that is what we are
here about today.

So when we look at this, I urge my colleagues, don't get sidetracked
on other issues. Look at it for what it is. It is government getting
the constraint, not the American people. It is protecting the American
people from not good legislation, good litigation. It is the stuff that
we need to work on.

So, Mr. Speaker, I state these are good bills. Let's state it
clearly. Groundhog Day is exactly what it is: for government, or let's
let the people live.

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