Rep. Lankford Applauds House Passage of H.R. 4078, the Red Tape Reduction and Small Business Job Creation Act

Washington, D.C. — Representative James Lankford (R-OK) issued the following statement after the House passed H.R. 4078, the Red Tape Reduction and Small Business Job Creation Act, in a vote of 245-172. This important legislation is a compilation of seven regulatory relief bills, including H.R. 373, the Unfunded Mandates Information and Transparency Act (an update to a 1995 law known as UMRA) introduced by Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-VA).  H.R. 4078 offers solutions to simplify the complex federal regulatory environment by improving congressional oversight of unfunded mandates and over-regulation.

“I am proud of the House action today to provide a way to cut through excessive red tape and fix our out-of-date regulatory oversight process,” said Rep. Lankford.  “I am especially pleased with the inclusion of H.R. 373 in the bill.  The Unfunded Mandates Information and Transparency Act was the first bill heard in the Subcommittee I chair. Rep. Foxx spearheaded this important legislation in recent years in Congress, and I applaud her dedication to fixing this problem within the federal government.”

“Every year Washington imposes thousands of rules on the private sector and local governments. Hidden in those rules are costly mandates that make it harder for small businesses to hire,” Representative Foxx stated.  “At the very least, policymakers and unelected regulators should know the cost of their dictates. The Unfunded Mandates Information & Transparency Act will help restore honesty and transparency to federal mandates and ensure Washington bureaucrats are held accountable for seeking public input and considering the negative consequences, in dollars and in jobs, prospective mandates will impose on the economy. Five years of work went into advancing this legislation. And as millions of Americans remain unemployed, it is my hope the Senate acts immediately to lessen the load unfunded mandates place on job creators."

Reps. Lankford and Foxx utilized testimony from local officials and regulatory agency administrators and local officials during three separate hearings in the House Oversight’s Subcommittee on Technology, Information Policy, Intergovernmental Relations and Procurement Reform.  The list of witnesses included: Cass Sunstein (Administrator, Office of Information & Regulatory Affairs Office of Management), Patrice Douglas (then-Mayor of Edmond, OK), and Denise Fantone (Director of the Strategic Issues Team at the Government Accountability Office).

“Oklahomans are tired of waking up each day to read what the federal government did to them, rather than for them,” continued Lankford. We need a smart and thorough examination of all unfunded mandates and regulatory procedures to promote a more efficient and effective federal government. Giving taxpayers and lawmakers additional information on the impact of laws and regulations will hopefully result in congressional and administrative restraint.

“Americans want real, long-term solutions to unemployment and economic recession, and the answer is not more red tape from Washington. I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues to help American business overcome the federal government’s rapidly growing mount of regulations,” concluded Lankford.

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Contact: Kelly Ferguson 202.225.2132