Congressman Meuser’s Bill to Streamline Regulatory Review for Small Businesses Passes Committee

Washington, D.C. - This week, Congressman Dan Meuser (PA-09) released a statement after the House Small Business Committee marked up and passed his legislation, H.R. 9085, the Regulatory Review Improvement Act of 2024. This legislation requires federal agencies to regularly review regulations on the books and consider their impact on small businesses when determining if they should remain in place.

Under current law, agencies must review their rules every 10 years, but they can delay these reviews for up to five years without providing an explanation. This legislation aims to reform that process by limiting the delay to just one year and requiring a clear justification for any postponement.

Additionally, the legislation requires agencies to conduct both a qualitative and quantitative analysis of their regulations-looking at the actual costs, compliance burdens, and paperwork hours required since the rule was implemented. This is crucial for understanding the real-world impact these regulations have had on small businesses and communities. The bill also requires agencies to determine whether regulations should remain on the books.

Since the Biden-Harris administration took office three and a half years ago, regulations they issued have added $1.68 trillion in costs and 324.7 million hours in annual paperwork for Americans. Small businesses simply do not have the ability to hire enough lawyers and accountants to navigate this complex and often burdensome web of federal regulations; that burden falls squarely on them. H.R. 9085 seeks to reduce that burden by ensuring federal agencies are actively reviewing and streamlining regulations.

Meuser said, "We must hold federal agencies accountable for the regulations they impose. Burdensome rules can't be allowed to accumulate year after year without proper review. Excessive regulations hit small businesses the hardest. It's our responsibility to keep the federal bureaucracy in check and ensure they are not perpetually burdening small businesses with regulations.

The Regulatory Review Improvement Act will curb delays in reviews and enforce real accountability, helping to reduce unnecessary burdens, promote efficiency, and streamline the regulatory environment-not stifle innovation and growth. I am pleased to announce that this legislation has successfully passed through the House Small Business Committee. It will now move to the full House for further consideration, and I strongly encourage my colleagues to support this practical legislation."

Text of the legislation can be found here.

H.R. 9085, the Regulatory Review Improvement Act of 2024 was reported favorably by the Small Business Committee by a vote of 13-11. The legislation now awaits further consideration by the full House of Representatives.

Congressman Meuser spoke in favor of his legislation during the Small Business Committee Markup. That video can be found here.

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