On the recordJanuary 5, 2017
The faceless, nameless, deadly bureaucrats out here who mean the public harm, those are our relatives. Those are our mothers, our fathers, who work for the Federal Government. They are the civil servants that serve us. They are not nameless and faceless people of bad will and bad intent. They are good people who go to work every day and try to protect us and protect our children. All we are asking for with this amendment is for there to be a carve- out to protect the most vulnerable among us, our children. This legislation is based on the faulty premise that the cost of regulations outweigh the benefits. What is the cost of a benefit when it comes to the health, safety, and well-being of a child? The people who promulgate these rules mean to protect these children, and this amendment goes to that ability of the regulators to do that. Sometimes regulation is good. Even though a couple of jobs might go away because of the regulation, isn't it worth the health, safety, and well-being of our children that a couple of jobs could not reach fruition? Everything is not a cost- benefit analysis. Sometimes there is some humanity in the mix that we have to consider. I urge my colleagues to think about it one more time and be in favor of the very reasonable Jackson Lee amendment. I yield back the balance of my time.
