Stand up to bully D.C. bureaucrats
It sure would be refreshing to see some organized, bona-fide push-back against the relentless tide of regulation, particularly at the federal level, from the top elected officials in Montana and other states.
Instead, federal agencies just keep churning out red tape that clearly strangles economic activity, and it seems as if there is very little if any effective resistance by politicians even if they are fully aware of the problems that overreaching regulations cause.
We have every reason to believe Rep. Steve Daines when he tells us that the most common complaints he hears while traveling in Montana are related to the costs and complexity of the regulatory state. But Congress has shown itself to be pretty lame at reining in bureaucracies.
Think about it: When was the last time you’ve read a news story about regulations being repealed?
As a recent speaker from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce put it, the bureaucracies “really run the show, and Congress has taken a back seat.”
William Kovacs, vice president for the chamber’s Environment, Technology and Regulatory Affairs Division, pointed out that over the last 14 years, 30 regulations have been implemented that cost over $1 billion annually, and the Environmental Protection Agency has implemented 17 of the 30.
In his remarks, Kovacs concentrated almost entirely on the EPA for its enforcement of the Clean Air Act, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for its enforcement of the Endangered Species Act. Keep in mind that both of those laws are not voluminous in themselves; what matters is the reams of rules they have spawned.
Take the EPA’s prolific rulemaking efforts related to carbon emissions from coal-fired plants. Clearly, the Obama administration’s desire to reduce emissions 30 percent by 2030 will have adverse economic impacts for Montana, which has the largest coal reserves of any state.
Yet, what do we get from Gov. Steve Bullock? Talk about how the state can comply with the regulations. In other words, do what the Obama administration wants, rather than forming alliances with other states and politicians who are adamantly opposed to the carbon emission standards.
But we get it. Bullock is doing what parts of his Democratic constituencies want. Fine. But what about some heavy duty push-back against other costly regulations? Surely the governor cannot agree with everything Washington, D.C., imposes on Montana.
Some people have the notion that all regulations exist for some good reason. But we assert that simply is not the case. As Kovacs put it, bureaucracies often operate on “auto pilot” and continue to generate new rules just because that’s what they do. That’s not good governance, and our elected leaders should be doing a lot more to stop it.
Editorials represent the majority opinion of the Daily Inter Lake’s editorial board.