Political Quotes

“Mr. President I also rise in support of the amendment. As I think has already been articulated, the small businesses, and the private sector more generally, of this country are heavily inundated with burdens imposed by government and direct kinds of taxes and costs. They are actually, I think, burdened by regulations that impose mandates on them. So I believe the amendment is well in order and should be supported. Mr. President, I rise in support of S. 1, which, of course, addresses the problem of unfunded Federal mandates. S. 1 would significantly limit the Federal Government's ability to require State or local governments to undertake affirmative activities or comply with Federal standards unless the Federal Government was also prepared to reimburse the costs of such activities or compliance. As with direct Federal expenditures, the financial burdens of such mandates fall squarely upon the middle-class taxpayer. I strongly commend Senator Kempthorne for continuing leadership on this issue and for his sponsorship of S. 1. Perhaps nothing better reflects contemporary trends in government than the enormous growth in the level of unfunded Federal mandates over the past two decades.”