The RAA and REINS Act could impact federal agencies' ability to impose regulations affecting food safety, among other issues that affect Americans. (Photo: Oregon Department of Agriculture/Flickr/cc)
Moms' Group Sounds Alarm Over Worst GOP Bill "You've Never Heard Of"
"From car safety to clean air and water, Congress is threatening these lifesaving standards."
The environmental group Clean Air Moms Action released a new ad campaign Monday urging voters to fight back against two pending Republican anti-regulation laws.
The ad is being run in five states where Democratic incumbent senators will be up for re-election in highly-anticipated races in 2018. It features car safety advocate Janette Fennell, who shares a personal story of how an automobile regulation could have saved her life if it had been in place when she needed it--the kind of regulation that could be at risk if Congress passes the Regulatory Accountability Act (RAA) and the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act.
Watch:
The RAA and REINS Act were both passed by the House earlier this year, and the Senate may vote after Congress returns from its August recess.
The RAA would impose strict new rules on federal agencies trying to introduce new regulations aimed at everything from food safety to clean air and water. Agencies would be required to hold "adversarial hearings" as they consider potential regulations, allowing corporations that would be affected to weigh in on the proposed rules, and to impose the cheapest regulations possible for corporations.
The REINS Act would require Congressional approval for any regulation that would cost affected corporations more than $100 million per year.
Both measures were passed under the pretense of protecting corporations from rampant, costly deregulation, but critics including Clean Air Moms Action say it would make it harder for federal agencies to protect Americans. The political organizing group Indivisible calls the RAA "the worst bill you've never heard of" and warns that Republicans have been trying to quietly push the bill through Congress "under the guise of a 'harmless' procedural change."
Of the REINS Act, the Center for American Progress wrote earlier this year that the proposed law "subordinates the agency rulemaking process--which is governed by expertise, transparency, and stakeholder outreach--to the whims of a wildly unpopular Congress and the well-heeled lobbyists roaming its halls."
Urgent. It's never been this bad.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission from the outset was simple. To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It’s never been this bad out there. And it’s never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed and doing some of its best and most important work, the threats we face are intensifying. Right now, with just three days to go in our Spring Campaign, we're falling short of our make-or-break goal. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Can you make a gift right now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? There is no backup plan or rainy day fund. There is only you. —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
The environmental group Clean Air Moms Action released a new ad campaign Monday urging voters to fight back against two pending Republican anti-regulation laws.
The ad is being run in five states where Democratic incumbent senators will be up for re-election in highly-anticipated races in 2018. It features car safety advocate Janette Fennell, who shares a personal story of how an automobile regulation could have saved her life if it had been in place when she needed it--the kind of regulation that could be at risk if Congress passes the Regulatory Accountability Act (RAA) and the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act.
Watch:
The RAA and REINS Act were both passed by the House earlier this year, and the Senate may vote after Congress returns from its August recess.
The RAA would impose strict new rules on federal agencies trying to introduce new regulations aimed at everything from food safety to clean air and water. Agencies would be required to hold "adversarial hearings" as they consider potential regulations, allowing corporations that would be affected to weigh in on the proposed rules, and to impose the cheapest regulations possible for corporations.
The REINS Act would require Congressional approval for any regulation that would cost affected corporations more than $100 million per year.
Both measures were passed under the pretense of protecting corporations from rampant, costly deregulation, but critics including Clean Air Moms Action say it would make it harder for federal agencies to protect Americans. The political organizing group Indivisible calls the RAA "the worst bill you've never heard of" and warns that Republicans have been trying to quietly push the bill through Congress "under the guise of a 'harmless' procedural change."
Of the REINS Act, the Center for American Progress wrote earlier this year that the proposed law "subordinates the agency rulemaking process--which is governed by expertise, transparency, and stakeholder outreach--to the whims of a wildly unpopular Congress and the well-heeled lobbyists roaming its halls."
The environmental group Clean Air Moms Action released a new ad campaign Monday urging voters to fight back against two pending Republican anti-regulation laws.
The ad is being run in five states where Democratic incumbent senators will be up for re-election in highly-anticipated races in 2018. It features car safety advocate Janette Fennell, who shares a personal story of how an automobile regulation could have saved her life if it had been in place when she needed it--the kind of regulation that could be at risk if Congress passes the Regulatory Accountability Act (RAA) and the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act.
Watch:
The RAA and REINS Act were both passed by the House earlier this year, and the Senate may vote after Congress returns from its August recess.
The RAA would impose strict new rules on federal agencies trying to introduce new regulations aimed at everything from food safety to clean air and water. Agencies would be required to hold "adversarial hearings" as they consider potential regulations, allowing corporations that would be affected to weigh in on the proposed rules, and to impose the cheapest regulations possible for corporations.
The REINS Act would require Congressional approval for any regulation that would cost affected corporations more than $100 million per year.
Both measures were passed under the pretense of protecting corporations from rampant, costly deregulation, but critics including Clean Air Moms Action say it would make it harder for federal agencies to protect Americans. The political organizing group Indivisible calls the RAA "the worst bill you've never heard of" and warns that Republicans have been trying to quietly push the bill through Congress "under the guise of a 'harmless' procedural change."
Of the REINS Act, the Center for American Progress wrote earlier this year that the proposed law "subordinates the agency rulemaking process--which is governed by expertise, transparency, and stakeholder outreach--to the whims of a wildly unpopular Congress and the well-heeled lobbyists roaming its halls."