Nearly All Regulations Survive Obama 'Reforms'
By Sean Higgins
Investor's Business Daily
Posted 08/23/2011 06:28 PM ET
http://www.investors.com/NewsAndAnalysis/Article/582466/201108231828/Regulatory-Reforms-Dont-Actually-Kill-Many-Regulations.htm
The Obama administration announced regulatory reform proposals Tuesday that it claims would eliminate red tape and save taxpayers an estimated $4 billion over five years. What these reforms don't do much of is actually eliminate regulations.
An IBD review of the proposed reforms by the Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor and Treasury found scant proposals of doing away with regulations. In nearly all cases they called for streamlining or other efforts to make them more efficient.
These efforts come amid an overall rapid expansion of federal regulatory agencies under President Obama. Their budgets have grown 16% since 2008, or about $54 billion, according to a recent report by George Washington University and Washington University in St. Louis.
The president's executive order has built into it the words 'job creation,’" said Cass Sunstein, director of the Office of Information and... View Enlarged Image
Cass Sunstein, White House administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, stressed in an Op-Ed that the reforms are not a fundamental overhaul: They "complement but do not displace" rules to protect public safety and the environment.
Tuesday's reform proposals by the HHS include updating communications technology, streamlining record keeping, revising health insurance portability rules, speeding grant application processes and giving states more flexibility on federal mandates.
No Scrap Heap For Rules
But few regulations will be scrapped. A rare HHS example is the end of "actuarial reporting for hospital pension costs."
Similarly, Labor proposes standardizing, revising, amending and even "harmonizing" rules and regulations. But no sign of scrapping any could be found.
Treasury's key changes involve eliminating paperwork and making electronic payments. Officials didn't respond to requests for comment.
The White House announced the reform effort last month with the stated goal of making a "smarter and leaner government."
The administration is responding to criticism that it has greatly expanded the regulatory burden on business, chilling already sluggish economic and job growth.
Sunstein portrayed the changes as a boost to small businesses. "The president's executive order has built into it the words 'job creation,'" he said in a Tuesday conference call with reporters.
The proposals drew poor reviews from business groups and Republicans, though.
"This look back will not have a material impact on the real regulatory burdens facing business," said Bill Kovacs, Chamber of Commerce vice president of environment, technology and regulatory affairs, on the group's website.
House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., called the reforms "underwhelming" in a statement.
Critics point to the National Labor Relations Board as proof of the White House's regulatory zeal. The NLRB sparked a furor among business groups in April when it issued an unprecedented complaint vs. Boeing (BA), claiming its new South Carolina factory amounted to an unfair practice vs. a Washington state union.
The NLRB has also been mulling rules to hasten union elections, giving businesses less time to counter organizing efforts, among several other changes long sought by Big Labor.
The administration argues that the NLRB is an independent agency. But Obama appointed two of the four board members and elevated a third to chairwoman.
An IBD report last week noted that the Obama administration has imposed 75 major rules in its first 26 months. The Federal Register, the official record of rules and regulations, reports 4,200 regulations are in the pipeline. That excludes massive rules to come from the financial reform law and ObamaCare.
Under Obama, employment at federal regulatory agencies has swelled 13% to over 281,000. Private jobs have shrunk by 5.6%.
The essential American soul is hard, isolate, stoic, and a killer. It has never yet melted. ~ D.H. Lawrence
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