I

104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 58

To require analysis and estimates of the likely impact of Federal legislation

and regulations upon businesses, the private sector, and State and local

governments, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JANUARY 4, 1995

Mr. BAKER of Louisiana (for himself and Mr. HAYES) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Government Reform and

Oversight, and in addition to the Committee on Rules, for a period to

be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee

concerned

A BILL

To require analysis and estimates of the likely impact of

Federal legislation and regulations upon businesses, the

private sector, and State and local governments, and

for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Small Business and

5 Private Economic Sector Impact Act’’.
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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

2 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—

3 (1) Federal regulation is projected to cost

4 $542,000,000,000 by the year 2000;

5 (2) the 1990 United States merchandise trade

6 deficit was $65,400,000,000;

7 (3) excessive Federal regulation and mandates

8 increase the cost of doing business and thus hinder

9 economic growth and employment opportunities; and

10 (4) State and local governments are forced to

11 absorb the cost of unfunded Federal mandates.

12 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to—

13 (1) ensure that the American people are fully

14 apprised of the impact of Federal legislative and

15 regulatory activity on economic growth and employ16 ment;

17 (2) require both the Congress and the executive

18 branch to acknowledge and to take responsibility for

19 the fiscal and economic effects of legislative and reg20 ulatory actions and activities;

21 (3) to provide a means to ensure congressional

22 or executive branch action is focused on enhancing

23 economic growth and providing increasing job oppor24 tunities for Americans; and
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1 (4) to protect against congressional or executive

2 branch action which hinders economic growth or

3 eliminates jobs for the American people.

4 SEC. 3. ECONOMIC AND EMPLOYMENT IMPACT STATE5 MENTS.

6 (a) PREPARATION.—The Comptroller General of the

7 United States shall prepare an economic and employment

8 impact statement, as described in subsection (b), to ac9 company each bill, resolution, or conference report re10 ported by any committee of the House of Representatives

11 or the Senate or considered on the floor of either House.

12 (b) CONTENTS.—Except as provided in subsection

13 (c), the economic and employment impact statement re14 quired by subsection (a) shall—

15 (1) state the extent to which enactment of the

16 bill, resolution, or conference report would result in

17 increased costs to the private sector, individuals, or

18 State and local governments; and

19 (2) include, at a minimum, a detailed assess20 ment of the annual impact of the bill, resolution, or

21 conference report (projected annually over a 5-year

22 period from its effective date, and, to the extent fea23 sible, expressed in each case in monetary terms)

24 on—

25 (A) costs to United States consumers;
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1 (B) costs to United States business;

2 (C) national employment;

3 (D) the ability of United States industries

4 to compete internationally;

5 (E) affected State and local governments,

6 fiscal and otherwise;

7 (F) outlays and revenues by the Federal

8 Government as compared to outlays and reve9 nues for the same activity in the current fiscal

10 year (as reported by the Congressional Budget

11 Office); and

12 (G) impact on Gross Domestic Product.

13 (c) EXCEPTION.—The economic and employment im14 pact statement required by subsection (a) may consist of

15 a brief summary assessment in lieu of the detailed assess16 ment set forth in subsection (b) if preliminary analysis in17 dicates that the aggregate effect of the bill, resolution, or

18 conference report as measured by the criteria set forth in

19 subparagraphs (A) through (G) of subsection (b) is less

20 than $100,000,000 or 10,000 jobs in national employ21 ment.

22 (d) STATEMENT WITH ALL LEGISLATION.—The eco23 nomic and employment impact statement required by this

24 section shall accompany each bill, resolution, or conference

25 report before such bill, resolution, or conference report
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1 may be reported or otherwise considered on the floor of

2 either House.

3 SEC. 4. POINT OF ORDER IN HOUSE OR SENATE.

4 (a) RULE.—It shall not be in order in either the

5 House of Representatives or the Senate to consider on the

6 floor any bill, resolution, or conference report, whether or

7 not reported by any committee of the House of Represent8 atives or the Senate, unless that bill, resolution, or con9 ference report includes the economic and employment im10 pact statement required by section 3.

11 (b) WAIVER.—A point of order made under this sec12 tion may be waived in the Senate by a three-fifths affirma13 tive vote of Senators, duly chosen and sworn, and in the

14 House of Representatives by a three-fifths affirmative vote

15 of Members, duly chosen and sworn.

16 SEC. 5. EXECUTIVE REGULATIONS.

17 Each regulation and proposed regulation promul18 gated by a Federal department or executive agency shall

19 be accompanied by an economic and employment impact

20 statement prepared, in accordance with subsection (b) of

21 section 3, by the department or agency promulgating the

22 regulation or proposed regulation. The economic and em23 ployment impact statement shall be published in the Fed24 eral Register together with such regulation or proposed

25 regulation.
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1 SEC. 6. PROVISION FOR NATIONAL SECURITY EMERGENCY

2 WAIVER.

3 (a) CONGRESSIONAL ECONOMIC IMPACT STATE4 MENTS.—The Congress may waive the requirements of

5 section 3 at any time in which a declaration of war is in

6 effect, or in response to a national security emergency at

7 the request of the President.

8 (b) EXECUTIVE REGULATIONS.—The President may

9 waive the requirements of section 5 at any time in which

10 a declaration of war is in effect, or in response to a na11 tional security emergency as determined by the President

12 in consultation with Congress.

13 SEC. 7. REPEAL OF SENATE RULE.

14 Paragraph 11 of rule XXVI of the Standing Rules

15 of the Senate is repealed.

16 SEC. 8. EFFECTIVE DATE.

17 This Act shall take effect 30 days after the date of

18 enactment of the Act.

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