WASHINGTON — Heating, Air-conditioning and Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) sent letters of support to Sens. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, and Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D., for introducing the Regulatory Accountability Act (RAA), which would rein in the excessive rulemaking authority of federal agencies.
HARDI joined over 600 federal and state based groups on a coalition letter supporting this legislation earlier this year. The letter, available here, points out these encouraging facts about the legislation: 

• RAA provides much-needed modernization of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), whose rulemaking provisions have remained virtually unchanged since it was enacted in 1946.
• RAA builds on established principles of fair regulatory process and review that have been embodied in bipartisan executive orders dating to at least the Clinton administration.
• The RAA stands for good governance and getting rules right by bringing transparency, accountability, and integrity to the rulemaking process at federal agencies.
• With the passage of RAA, Congress would be restoring the checks granted to it by the Constitution over a federal regulatory bureaucracy that is opaque, unaccountable, and at times overreaching in its exercise of authority. 

“The Regulatory Accountability Act is a great example of Congress working how it’s supposed to,” said Jon Melchi, HARDI vice president of government and external affairs. “With such an overwhelming amount of support from so many organizations and associations across the country, we are seeing a fantastic display of bipartisanship on a piece of legislation that will benefit all American businesses. HARDI is proud to support this legislation and looks forward to this continued bipartisanship during this time of polarizing politics.”

The House companion legislation (HR 5) already passed on Jan. 11 of this year. HARDI will keep you informed as we push for Senate action on this common-sense measure curbing the ability for agencies to levy harmful regulations on small businesses.

For more information, visit http://hardinet.org/.

Publication date: 5/8/2017

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