We are bringing you this special edition of NARI on the Hill to announce that H.R. 527, the Regulatory Flexibility Improvements Act of 2011, has just passed the House of Representatives.
NARI in coalition with a number of other organizations, was in support of this Bill's passage to help protect your businesses from unnecessary regulatory burdens. You may read the letter of support here.
The Bill's intent is to improve the regulatory process by strengthening agency analysis of a rule's impact on small businesses.
H.R. 527 gives the SBA Office of Advocacy additional authorities and requires the office to
establish standards for conducting a "regulatory flexibility analysis" during a rulemaking
process by agencies such as the EPA. It improves transparency and ensures that agencies thoughtfully consider the impact of regulations on small businesses.
The legislation will also improve the accuracy of benefit-cost analysis by requiring agencies to
consider the indirect impact of regulations on small business.
This Bill also is in line with with President
Obama's Executive Order 13563, which requires agencies to conduct a retrospective analysis of
existing rules to identify and modify rules in need of reform.
We will, of course keep you posted on the process of this initiative through the Senate as well. Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME) is working with her colleagues on a very similar piece of legislation, Bill S. 1030, the Freedom from Excessive Executive Demands and Onerous Mandates Act of 2011 (also known as the FREEDOM Act.)
This House passage is a win, and we should celebrate it!
All the best,
David Merrick, MCR, UDCP
President, Merrick Design and Build Inc
Chairman, NARI Government Affairs Committee
e-mail: gac@nari.org