U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-5th, announced bipartisan legislation last week aimed at shedding more light on possible unfunded mandates that local governments and private-sector employers may incur as a result of new rules set by federal regulatory bodies.

The bill has been referred to committee.

A similar version passed the U.S. House last year but did not make it through the U.S. Senate.

“Every year, Washington imposes thousands of rules on local governments and small businesses,” Foxx said. “Hidden in those rules are costly mandates that stretch state and city budgets and make it harder for businesses to hire.”

“This legislation will help restore transparency and hold Washington bureaucrats accountable for the true cost — in dollars and in jobs — that federal dictates pose to the economy,” Foxx said.

The bill would close loopholes in a 1995 law that was supposed to shield local governments from the possible sticker shock of new regulations.

In Winston-Salem, City Manager Lee Garrity said the city “supports transparency in federal mandates that clearly show the implementation costs for local governments.”

“While in many cases the city also supports the policy and objectives of the mandate, we are always concerned about fairness and the cost impacts for citizens and businesses,” Garrity said.

Foxx worked with U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, on the bill, known as H.R. 50, the Unfunded Mandates Information and Transparency Act.

While he was a member of the Texas legislature, Cuellar helped pass legislation designed to prevent the state government from passing unfunded mandates onto local governments there. As a House member, Cuellar had something similar in mind.

“This bill would require the federal government to measure and consider the total cost of the regulations they impose. Rep. Foxx and I will work in a bipartisan manner to stop unfunded mandates to local government,” Cuellar said.

Foxx aides said the bill would set clearer requirements under which federal agencies would disclose the cost of mandates:

• Those affected would be able to comment on proposed mandates.
• Federal agencies would provide members of Congress and the public with better tools to figure out the real cost of regulations.
• The bill would require an “accountability mechanism” that ensures federal agencies abide by the bill as well as the 1995 law, known as the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.

Dudley Watts, the Forsyth County manager, echoed what Garrity said: “The legislation seems to promise a greater awareness of how federal legislation impacts the communities.”

“The bureaucracy to implement a program in communities — that usually involves a state intermediary — creates a chasm between the federal government and cities and counties where unintended consequences flourish. Efforts to identify these and work through them on the front end is a good move,” Watts said.

Forsyth County forms part of the 5th Congressional District in Northwest North Carolina. The district comprises all or part of several other counties: Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Stokes, Surry, Watauga, Wilkes and Yadkin counties as well as two precincts in Catawba County.

The bill co-sponsored by Foxx and Cuellar has also received backing from a coalition of seven organizations representing state and local governments: the National Governors Association, National Conference of State Legislatures, Council of State governments, National Association of Counties, National League of Cities, U.S. Conference of Mayors, and the International City/County Management Association.

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