U.S. House passes Jason Smith Bill to SCRUB outdated Regulations

Washington, DC – Today, legislation authored by Congressman Jason Smith (MO-08) passed the U.S. House on a bipartisan vote of 245-174. The Smith bill, known as H.R. 1155, the Searching for and Cutting Regulations that are Unnecessarily Burdensome (SCRUB) Act would eliminate and remove outdated federal regulations now estimated to impose nearly a $1.86 trillion burden on Americans.

Upon passage, U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan commented, “A thorough review of federal regulations holding back opportunity in this country is long overdue. I congratulate Representative Smith on passage of this bill and for serving as a leader on regulatory reform. His work to bring greater accountability to government is of great service to the business owners, farmers and families who are facing a maze of costly and complex Washington regulations. This legislation provides an important check on a lame duck White House intent on pushing through more rules, regulations and executive orders inconsistent with the will of the American people.”

After the vote, Representative Smith said the following, “175,268 pages of federal regulations are stifling economic growth and opportunity in this country. The SCRUB Act sets up a process to finally review and get off the books and out of the way many of these outdated, burdensome, duplicative and unnecessary regulations.” Smith continued, “The American people have had enough of this White House circumventing Congress to try to push through its failed policy attempts with new regulatory and rule making. A bureaucrat in Washington should not be telling a farmer in the bootheel of Missouri or a small business owner in Poplar Bluff how to run their operation. With the SCRUB Act we place that power back into the hands of the people who are actually affected on a daily basis by the regulations coming out of Washington.”

Committee on Oversight & Government Reform Chairman Jason Chaffetz said, “Today’s House passage of the SCRUB Act is an important step toward reducing unnecessary regulation. Regulations can be necessary to ensure health and safety. But excessive and outdated regulations only serve to divert limited resources to efforts that waste time and money. This bill provides the opportunity for tremendous savings for government agencies and the public at large. I applaud the good work of Congressman Smith in drafting this legislation.”

H.R. 1155, the SCRUB Act establishes a commission set by the President, U.S. Senate & U.S. House Leaders to review, remove and eliminate regulations that are unnecessary, outdated or conflict with state or local regulations.  According to a recent estimate, the federal regulatory burden adds up to a cost of approximately $15,000 annually per U.S. household. Specifically, the legislation ensures a system of checks and balances in the review process and prioritizes review of regulations that are major rules, are more than 15 years old, impose paperwork burdens that can be reduced substantially without significantly diminishing effectiveness, or impose disproportionately high costs on small businesses. Additionally, the Commission will prioritize removing federal regulations that are either duplicative or conflict with State regulations or can be strengthened while reducing costs.

Key Federal Regulatory Highlights:

• Federal regulations now impose an estimated burden of $1.86 trillion.  That is roughly $15,000 per U.S. household and higher than combined individual and corporate federal income taxes.
• The Code of Federal Regulations now contains 175,268 pages of regulations in 235 volumes.
• Under the Obama Administration over 24,000 Federal Rules & Regulations have been finalized.
• In 2009, H.R. 2454, the American Clean Energy & Security Act, better known as ‘Cap & Trade’ failed to advance on the Senate Floor under the leadership of then Leader Harry Reid & Speaker Nancy Pelosi. On August 3, 2015 the President & EPA announced new regulations known as the “Clean Power Plan” aimed at circumventing Congress to achieve the goals of Cap & Trade.
• On January 5, 2016 the President announced new Executive Actions on guns to achieve new policy measures without Congressional approval.

Congressman Smith has been leading the charge to keep expensive and unnecessary rules from bankrupting families, farms, and businesses since he was in the Missouri State House.

"In the time I have known Jason as a public servant he has always demanded more accountability and transparency from government, he did it in Jefferson City and I am not surprised to see him leading the same type of effort now in Washington, DC," said Missouri Speaker of the House Todd Richardson. Adding, "I am proud of the work Congressman Smith has taken up and his leadership on the SCRUB Act to curtail the overbearing reach that so many small business owners, farmers, families, and taxpayers are feeling here in Southeast Missouri and the rest of our state."

H.R. 1155 was supported by the National Association of Manufacturers, Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council, National Taxpayers Unions, Americans for Tax Reform and others.