Issa Asks Business Which Rules They Don’t Like

by Stuart Shapiro

Congressman Darrell Issa, the New Chair of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, sent a letter to businesses asking which regulations they would like the new Congress to eliminate.  In doing so he cites the burden of regulation on business:

In the letters, Mr. Issa said that federal agencies promulgated 43 “major” regulations in the last fiscal year, which he said would impose a cost on business of $28 billion. He described that as the largest increase in federal regulation in a single year.

There are two problems with this argument.  The first is, I have no idea where he gets his numbers.  The one official report (see Table 1-3) on the subject says that costs range between $4 billion and 10 billion.  The second is that he completely ignores the benefits of these regulations, which are estimated to be between $8 billion and $29 billion.  Maybe he should ask the beneficiaries of these regulations which ones they would like to make stronger.

This has me rethinking my whole parenting strategy.  Tonight I will ask my kids which rules we should change.  I’m guessing dessert before dinner and a later bedtime will top the list.

By: Stuart Shapiro

Stuart is a professor and the Director of the Public Policy
program at the Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers
University. He teaches economics and cost-benefit analysis and studies
regulation in the United States at both the federal and state levels.
Prior to coming to Rutgers, Stuart worked for five years at the Office
of Management and Budget in Washington under Presidents Clinton and
George W. Bush.