Goodlatte, Marino, and Issa Applaud Committee Passage of Bill to Stop Midnight Regulations

Washington, D.C.— House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), Regulatory Reform, Commercial and Antitrust Law Subcommittee Chairman Tom Marino (R-Pa.), and Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet Subcommittee Chairman, and sponsor of the bill Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) praised the House Judiciary Committee’s passage of the Midnight Rules Relief Act (H.R. 5982) by a vote of 15-5. Chairman Bob Goodlatte, Subcommittee Chairman Tom Marino, and Subcommittee Chairman Darrell Issa issued the following joint statement upon the approval of the bill.

“The Obama administration’s regulatory agenda has already cost hardworking Americans and small businesses billions of dollars over the last eight years. Now, the president expects Americans to cover billions more as he rushes-in dozens of last minute politically-motived regulations just before his time in office runs out.”“Putting costly, partisan regulations in the fast lane for approval without transparency and proper time for public scrutiny does a disservice to the American people. Congress must ensure that this president, and future presidents, are held accountable and that the people’s representatives in Congress have the opportunity to overturn these last-minute actions before they unnecessarily burden American workers and small businesses.”

Background: The Midnight Rules Relief Act creates a rapid-response method for Congress to overturn an outgoing presidential administration’s attempts to impose major regulations without the transparency and scrutiny expected in normal regulatory implementation. The bill specifically amends the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to allow Congress to overturn multiple midnight rules while simultaneously empowering Congress to more quickly stop midnight rules which are truly problematic—such as those that defy the message sent by the voters or those that have been poorly designed in the haste of the midnight rule period. Click here to learn more about the bill. ###