On the recordJanuary 5, 2017
I thank the gentleman. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the gentleman's amendment. Protecting the health and safety of our citizens is one of the core responsibilities of our government and Congress, and we trust much of its authority to Federal agencies to implement this obligation. This amendment simply preserves current law with respect to regulations that are designed to prevent the contamination of drinking water by lead. As the Obama administration has observed, in the context of a veto threat to a substantively identical version of this bill in the last Congress, the REINS Act would delay and, in most cases, thwart the implementation of statutory mandates and the execution of duly enacted laws, create business uncertainty, undermine much-needed protections of the American public, and cause unnecessary confusion. Unfortunately, as I noted in my opening statement, the REINS Act would delay and, worse yet, possibly stop major rules from going into effect that are needed to protect the public's health, safety, and well-being, including those that require us to keep lead from drinking water. Safety regulations are typically the product of a transparent and accountable process that includes extensive investigation, analysis, and input from the public and private sectors. It is no answer to say that H.R. 26 contains a limited emergency exception. That provision is insufficient.…
