A point of order bars either the House or Senate from further acting on a proposed measure unless a majority agrees to move forward with the initiative. Abraham's Mandates Information Act of 1997 obviously is meant to change that. This step would put members of Congress on record as supporting or opposing mandates that add costs to the private sector. According to proponents of the act, the provision is a big step in favor of real congressional accountability. Abraham hopes to educate the public and his colleagues about the economic costs of federal mandates, as well as which parties end up paying for these actions.
Small businesses feel the impact of mandates more than big businesses.
Also affected are workers. Studies have shown that almost 90 percent of government-mandated benefits and taxes are passed on to employees in the form of lower wages. Consumers also end up on the receiving end of mandates as they are forced to pay higher prices. As a result, Congress has eliminated hundreds of million of dollars in potential new mandate costs. Supporters of Abraham's Mandate Information Act of 1997 hope to achieve the same results for the private sector that UMRA has had in helping the public sector avert unplanned and unnecessary costs.