Legislation aimed at eliminating costly regs introduced in Senate

GOP lawmakers want to scrub out costly regulations.

Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), a longtime advocate for regulatory reform, has introduced the Searching for and Cutting Regulations That Are Unnecessarily Burdensome Act of 2014, better known as the SCRUB Act. 

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Jason Smith (R-Mo.), advanced to the House floor following a 17-10 vote in the Judiciary Committee in June. 

The legislation would establish a bipartisan BRAC-style commission to review existing federal regulations and identify rules that should be repealed. 

The commission’s goal would be to reduce cumulative costs from regulations by 15 percent and prioritize rules that have been in effect for more than 15 years. 

“One of the biggest problems we face as a nation is the massive accumulation of federal regulations. Administrative rules now impose an estimated burden of $1.86 trillion on the nation’s economy — roughly $15,000 per household,” Hatch said in a news release. 

“Every president since Jimmy Carter has endorsed the idea of reviewing old regulations to get rid of those that are excessively burdensome, outdated or ineffective. But too many unjustified regulations continue to hold back job creation and economic growth.” 

The bill would force Congress to vote on any rule repeals recommended by the commission. In addition to the House Judiciary Committee, the bill also passed the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee earlier this year.