House Judiciary Committee Approves SCRUB Act to Eliminate Outdated Regulations

Washington, D.C. – The House Judiciary Committee approved the Searching for and Cutting Regulations that are Unnecessarily Burdensome (SCRUB) Act of 2015 (H.R. 1155) by a vote of 17-12. Congressman Jason Smith (R-Mo.) is the chief sponsor of the bill. The bill seeks to establish a blue-ribbon review committee to provide Congress with recommendations for the elimination of obsolete or unnecessary regulations that are costly to the American people. The goal of the SCRUB Act is to achieve a fifteen percent reduction in the overall cost of current federal regulation, with minimal reduction in federal regulatory effectiveness. According to a recent estimate, the federal regulatory burden has reached $1.86 trillion, which adds up to approximately $15,000 annually per U.S. household. The same study concluded that Americans worked an estimated 77 days per year to cover the cost of federal regulations that are a burden on families and businesses large and small. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) and Congressman Jason Smith (R-Mo.) praised today’s Committee vote. Chairman Goodlatte: “The regulatory burdens being imposed by the federal government are constantly being passed along to the American people. The SCRUB Act is a solution to eliminate regulation that has done its job and no longer serves a legitimate purpose. It is my hope that reform of the regulatory system of the United States will reduce the amount of money that every taxpayer must sacrifice over to the federal government every year, and that employers can hire additional workers and expand operations, rather than be forced to comply with outdated regulations that should not even still be on the books.” Congressman Smith: “Excessive regulations impose a very real weight on job creators and families. Americans deserve better. The SCRUB Act’s efficient and effective reforms will lessen regulatory burdens on small businesses and give them the freedom to innovate and grow.”