EPA recognized this, but only after it issued the final rule did it refer the rule to its Science Advisory Board for review. Congress recently used its authority under the Congressional Review Act to disapprove the ergonomics regulation. This is the first time this authority has been used to overturn a regulation. One can argue that the Congressional Review Act is uniquely suited to addressing poorly reasoned rules when there has been a change in administration, since during any other circumstance, a President is more likely to veto the Resolution of Disapproval for a regulation promulgated by his own appointee. We applaud this Committee for considering whether other midnight regulations should be overturned.
Regulations are a hidden tax, where the cost of the program is imposed through mandates.
The agencies proposing these mandates, and imposing this indirect tax should ensure that the program s or regulation s benefits as well as its costs and effects are understood, measured, and discussed. Regulations pushed through at the end of an administration s term, when Congressional oversight is unavailable, can result in potentially costly mandates that may do little to solve an identified problem.