Trent Lott: “I do want to speak in behalf of the Hutchison amendment and commend her efforts to develop this amendment. I know that…”

“I do want to speak in behalf of the Hutchison amendment and commend her efforts to develop this amendment. I know that she has been working tirelessly to develop the right language, and I know that some changes have been made. I think this amendment goes to the heart of what this bill is all about. When I look at words that describe what she is trying to accomplish, it is words like ``fairness,'' ``understanding of what the rules are,'' ``not being penalized by a change in the rules,'' or the ``effects of retroactive rules.'' I have seen in my own State many instances where businessmen and women, large and small, and even farmers complied with the rules that they understood were on the books, and then they had those rules retroactively changed and were told, ``You are going to be penalized, you did not comply with the law'' when, as a matter of fact, they did. They complied with the existing rules. What we are asking of the small businessman and woman of America, in some instances, is it to be mind readers of how Washington bureaucrats will interpret a rule or how a rule will be interpreted in the future. What we are trying to do here today is to stop retroactive rulemaking, and get a clarification on what occurs when a rule is changed. Americans need to know what the rules are. The amendment, in my opinion, will prevent unfair administrative enforcement action.”