Bob Goodlatte

Mr. GOODLATTE

Mr. GOODLATTE. I now yield to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Castor).

Mr. GOODLATTE. I now yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gene Green).

Mr. GOODLATTE. I now yield to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Bost).

Mr. GOODLATTE. I now yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Loudermilk).

Mr. GOODLATTE. I now yield to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the Democratic whip.

Mr. GOODLATTE. I now yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. Cardenas).

Mr. GOODLATTE. I now yield to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Abraham). Mr. ABRAHAM: Section 8: ``The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises, to pay the debts and provide for the common defence and general welfare of the United States; but all duties, imposts and excises shall be uniform throughout the United States; . . .''

Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, this morning, for the fourth time in the history of the House of Representatives, we will read aloud on the floor of the House the full text of the U.S. Constitution. It is our hope that this reading will help demonstrate to the American people that the House of Representatives is dedicated to the Constitution and the system it establishes for limited government and the protection of individual liberty. We also hope that it will inspire many more Americans to read the Constitution themselves. The text we will read today reflects the changes to the document made by the 27 amendments to it. Those portions superseded by amendment will not be read. In order to ensure fairness to all those interested in participating, we have asked Members to line up to be recognized on a first-come, first-served basis. I will recognize Members based on this guidance. Each Member will approach the podium and read the passage laid out for him or her. In order to ensure relative parity and fairness, I may recognize Members out of order in order to ensure bipartisanship and balance. Additionally, because of his long-term leadership on civil rights issues, I will recognize the gentleman from Georgia, Representative John Lewis, to read the Thirteenth Amendment. I want to thank the Members of both parties for their participation in this historic event. I will begin by reading the preamble to the Constitution: ``We the People of the United States, in order to form a more perfect Union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.'' I now yield to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hultgren).

Mr. GOODLATTE. I now yield to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Newhouse).

Mr. GOODLATTE. I now yield to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Gallagher).

Mr. GOODLATTE. I now yield to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Sean Patrick Maloney).

Mr. GOODLATTE. I now yield to the gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs. Murphy).

Mr. GOODLATTE. I now yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Williams).

Mr. GOODLATTE. I now yield to the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Bacon).

Mr. GOODLATTE. I now yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Thompson).

Mr. GOODLATTE

Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. On the floor of this House in 2011, the President of the United States promised the American people ``to reduce barriers to growth and investment . . . when we find rules that put an unnecessary burden on businesses, we will fix them.'' But, Mr. Speaker, those were just President Obama's words. His actions were starkly different. Throughout the entire 8 years of the Obama administration, a flood of new, major regulations has been burying America's job creators and households at record levels; and to make matters worse, when Congress declined to legislate the President's misguided policies for him, he increasingly resorted to unilateral regulatory actions to legislate by executive fiat. It is time to say, ``Never again.'' The REINS Act, in one fell swoop, puts a stop to abuses like President Obama's and assures that Congress--the body to which the Constitution assigns the power to legislate--has the necessary tools to block the most overreaching regulations and mandates on the American people. This motion to recommit seeks only to distract from the urgent need to reform our regulatory system and reduce unnecessary burdens on the public. When health care reform regulations are adopted, they should be adopted with the approval of this body. I urge all of my colleagues to support this bill, reject this motion to recommit, and show America that Congress can act for the good of job creators and all Americans who desperately want and need jobs. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GOODLATTE

Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself the balance of my time only to urge my colleagues to support this important amendment and not lose the opportunity to benefit from deregulatory reforms that will grow our economy and save America's economy hundreds of millions of dollars. I urge my colleagues to support the amendment. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Chair, I thank the gentleman from Indiana for offering this amendment, and I rise in support of it. The cumulative burden of Federal regulation will surely be reduced by the REINS Act, but that burden has two elements: the burden being added by new regulations and the burden already there. This amendment adds a useful provision to the REINS Act to address the elimination of unnecessary burdens already in the Code of Federal Regulations. It does so, moreover, in a manner that parallels President-elect Trump's promise to pursue a policy of one-in/two-out when it comes to new regulatory actions by his administration. Mr. Chair, I support the amendment.

Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I offer this manager's amendment to assure that, just as the REINS Act strengthens Congress' check on rules that impose major new costs on the economy, it does not unduly delay the effectiveness of major new deregulatory actions, those that alleviate regulatory burdens of $100 million or more. When first introduced in the 112th Congress, the REINS Act incorporated the definition of major rule in the underlying Congressional Review Act--generally, a rule that has ``an annual effect on the economy of $100,000,000 or more.'' This was done in the interest of consistency with prior terminology, and it swept in both actions that imposed costs and actions that lifted costs. But, especially after the regulatory onslaught we have witnessed during the Obama administration, it is time to revise that definition. We should assure that the REINS Act focuses Congress' highest attention on the rules that hurt the economy the most: those that impose $100 million or more in costs per year. We should likewise make sure that the REINS Act does not impose additional hurdles in the way of the most important and desperately needed deregulatory actions: those that free the economy of $100 million or more in annual regulatory burdens. A deregulatory action with that level of economic effect is one that Congress should be encouraging, not slowing down. This refinement of the REINS Act's major rule definition is also needed to assure consistency with the major Administrative Procedure Act reform legislation the House is due to consider next week, the Regulatory Accountability Act of 2017. That measure already modernizes the major rule standard for APA purposes to $100 million or more in annual costs imposed on the economy. The REINS Act should mirror it. I urge my colleagues to support this manager's amendment. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself the balance of my time. During this debate, my friends on the other side of the aisle have raised quite a few false alarms: If this bill passes, all important regulation will stop, they say. But that is not true. All regulation that is worthy of Congress' approval will continue; If this bill passes, expert decisionmaking will stop because Congress will have the final say on new, major regulations, not Washington bureaucrats. That is not true. Congress will have the benefit of the best evidence and arguments expert agencies can offer in support of their new regulations. Congress is capable of determining whether that evidence and those arguments are good or not and deciding what finally will become law. That is the job our Founding Fathers entrusted to us in the Constitution. We should not shirk from it. I will tell you, though, what will stop if this bill becomes law: the endless avalanche of new, major regulations that impose massive, unjustified costs that crush jobs, crush wages, and crush the spirit of America's families and small-business owners. Think about what that will mean to real Americans who have suffered the real burdens of overreaching regulations. Support the American people and listen to the major organizations across the country, which I include in the Record, who support H.R. 26, the REINS Act. Support the American people. Support the REINS Act. Support for H.R. 26, the REINS Act American Center for Law and Justice, American Commitment, American Energy Alliance, American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers, Americans for Limited Government, Americans for Prosperity--Key Vote, Americans for Tax Reform, Associated Builders and Contractors, Associated General Contractors, Club for Growth--Key Vote, Competitive Enterprise Institute, Credit Union National Association, Family Business Coalition, FreedomWorks--Key Vote. Heating Air-conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI), Heritage Action--Key Vote, Let Freedom Ring, National Association of Electrical Distributors (NAED), National Association of Home Builders, National Center for Policy Analysis, National Roofing Contractors Association, National Taxpayers Union--Key Vote, R Street, SBE Council, Campaign For Liberty.

Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Yoho).

Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Garrett).

Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Kelly).