Tim Walberg: “The nonpartisan Government Accountability Office concluded the EPA overstepped and issued a report saying the EPA…”

“The nonpartisan Government Accountability Office concluded the EPA overstepped and issued a report saying the EPA violated the law and undertook ``covert propaganda'' and grassroots lobbying during the process. My bill simply seeks to preserve the spirit and purpose of the regulatory process by simply telling agencies that they need to keep to the facts and not solicit support when they ought to be soliciting constructive comments. H.R. 1004 simply requires an agency to; one, identify itself as the source of information; two, clearly state whether the agency is accepting public comments or considering alternatives; and, three, and most importantly, speak about the regulations in a neutral, unbiased tone. People need to have the confidence that the Federal agencies, regardless of whether it is a Republican or Democrat administration, are open to their insights an constructive criticism. H.R. 1004 will restore the integrity to our regulatory process by ensuring agencies are honestly asking for feedback, constructive criticism, and dialogue about how to improve upon the agency's existing thoughts, not advocating for a predetermined outcome. Mr. Chairman, this is a bipartisan issue. This bill passed the House last Congress with bipartisan support. In fact, a similar version was offered by my colleague, Representative Peterson from Minnesota, as an amendment to H.R. 5 earlier this year. That amendment was approved with strong bipartisan support.…”