E-Newsletter

This week, the EPA Regulatory Relief Act (H.R. 2250) is slated to come to the House floor for a vote. The threat of unreasonable and excessive regulations not only has an impact on jobs in the Ninth District, but nationwide. These regulations have real consequences. In order to protect valuable jobs and give businesses the certainty they need to create new jobs, we must fix unreasonable regulations. I hope my colleagues in the House will join me in supporting my bill and other legislation that provides a much-needed dose of regulatory relief for America’s job creators.

In anticipation of House approval this week of H.R. 2250, I had the honor of delivering the Weekly Republican Address to the nation on the need for regulatory relief and the protection of American jobs. I have included the text and links as my column this week. You may access the Weekly Republican Address video by clicking HERE and the audio by clicking HERE. The text of the Weekly Republican Address follows:

“Hello, I’m Morgan Griffith, and I represent the people of Virginia’s Ninth Congressional District.  It’s an honor to address you on their behalf.

“For years, excessive regulations have been a source of frustration for businesses trying to stay afloat.  Now, with our economy struggling and red tape still piling up, these nuisances have become full-blown government barriers to job creation.  According to a recent national survey, nearly seven in ten Americans believe new regulations will result in job losses or higher prices on goods and services.  They’re right, on both counts. 

“That’s why the Republican majority in the House is focused on lifting the burden of excessive regulations.

“Of course, we all recognize the need for reasonable regulations to protect the public.  There are good regulations, for instance, that ensure public safety and protect our environment.  But there are also unnecessary and unreasonable regulations that hurt jobs in some of our nation’s most critical industries. Here are just two examples:

“The government recently finalized rules that would impose costly burdens on the producers of cement, which is the backbone of just about every construction project.  If these rules were to take effect, roughly 20 percent of the country’s cement plants would shut down.  Thousands of jobs would be sent overseas permanently, just like that.   In Ragland, Alabama, a small town where nearly one in five are considered poor, these new rules led to the suspension of a $350 million cement project.  It was on track to create more than 1,500 construction jobs. 

“Washington is also trying to hand down rules that would affect boilers used by thousands of major employers, including hospitals, factories, and even colleges.  These regulations would impose billions of dollars in new costs, make many goods and services more expensive, and put more than 200,000 jobs at risk.  I was startled to learn that because of these rules, Celanese, a Dallas-based chemical company, may significantly scale back or close a plant that employs hundreds of people in my district.

“Understand that the investments required by these rules are irreversible.  For those businesses that cannot make these investments, and decide to stop producing their product at a particular location, the job losses are also irreversible.  The good news here is, excessive regulations are reversible and fixable. 

“Todd Elliott testified on behalf of Celanese at a recent hearing on Capitol Hill. ‘It is very important for the Congress to understand that we compete in a global marketplace,’ Todd said. ‘If our costs become too high, we lose competitiveness and jobs.  We encourage you to pursue cost-effective regulations and help create … the jobs our nation so badly needs.’

“Republicans are listening to the American job creators.  The House is working on a series of bills this fall aimed at cutting red tape and stopping the excessive regulations that hamper job creation.   Next week, we’ll take up bipartisan bills that address the concerns employers have about both the cement and boiler rules.

“The bill I’ve sponsored, H.R. 2250, recognizes the need for reasonable boiler regulations and doesn’t try to haphazardly cancel these rules.  Instead, we are saying the government should go back to the drawing board and come up with a more reasonable approach that protects the public without imposing unnecessary costs on employers and workers. 

“These bills would save thousands of American jobs, and they are bipartisan.  Members of both parties support these ideas right now.  President Obama, who has said he’s willing to consider stopping excessive regulations, should call on the Democrat-led Senate to follow the House in passing these jobs bills.  Let’s take this opportunity to widen our common ground and do whatever we can to get government out of the way so our economy can return to creating jobs.

“Thank you so much for listening.”

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As always, if you have concerns or comments or wish to inquire about legislative issues, feel free to contact my offices. You can call my Abingdon office at 276-525-1405 or my Christiansburg office at 540-381-5671. To reach my office via email, please visit my website at www.morgangriffith.house.gov.