We simply must rein in our spending and get our financial house in order.

The soaring debt of more than $14 trillion and growing poses a grave threat to our Nation's future prosperity.

I actually am going to pick up exactly on the point that Senator Murray was raising with you...

Recognizing safety as the No. 1 priority, ensuring a safe civil aviation system is also critically important to the overall economy.

It is unacceptable that we came at all close to a government shutdown.

today I am reintroducing the Heavy Duty Hybrid Vehicle Research, Development, and Demonstration Act, along with my colleagues Senator Feinstein and Senator Kohl. This bill will accelerate research of plug-in hybrid technologies for heavy…

I rise to introduce the SAFE Port Reauthorization Act of 2011. This bill extends important programs that help to protect our nation's critical shipping lanes and seaports from attack and sabotage. The SAFE Port Reauthorization Act of 2011…

I have introduced my own bill to address this problem. It is called the CURB Act, which stands for Clearing Unnecessary Regulatory Burdens.

I look forward to hearing his views on how the regulatory burdens on our economy, especially on our smaller businesses, can be lightened or simplified.

We recognize that OIRA is not in the business of determining the Administration's positions on regulatory reform bills or any other piece of legislation.

We appreciate that Senator Collins and Senator Vitter have introduced legislation to add a first-time waiver protection into law.

One has only to look at the growth of the Federal Register over the past few decades to see the growth of regulation.

Job growth in the Federal regulatory agencies has far outpaced job growth not only in the rest of the Federal Government but, much more significant, in the private sector.

Senator Collins and I have been working on this, as well, in our e-rulemaking bill.

Again, I hope we can work together in the tradition of this Committee.

It is absolutely critical that we reform the regulatory system with the goal of reducing the regulatory burden.

Well, I want to thank you for taking a look at many of the regulations that have been issued and applying a more common sense approach, so that we can achieve benefits without so overburdening our businesses that they cannot create jobs…

I am optimistic that we can build a bipartisan consensus to achieve this goal.

More than 14 million Americans are still without jobs, half a million more than just 4 months ago.

It is also my understanding that OMB did not count rules that were adopted 10 years ago.

Now, I doubt that any small business that was subjected to this new regulation would consider it a benefit to have to hire new employees specifically to comply with the regulation.

If you did a poll of the American people, I doubt that you would find very many who have ever heard of OIRA, and yet the office that you head is extraordinarily important in reviewing all regulations that go through the Federal process.

I think we do need more attention on the front end.

OK, let us agree with regard to guilt that your people created it and my people perfected it.

What I have found is that cost-benefit analysis can be subjected to very strange interpretations on what is the benefit.