Jason Smith: “The sue-and-settle practice cuts stakeholders and the public out of the regulatory process. It undermines the Article I…”

“The sue-and-settle practice cuts stakeholders and the public out of the regulatory process. It undermines the Article I authority we hold here in Congress. By restricting the payment of legal fees, we take away the incentive for these environmental advocacy groups to sue the Federal Government, and we protect public input in the rulemaking process. Mr. Chairman, I urge a ``yes'' vote on my amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time. Ms. McCOLLUM. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. This amendment is unnecessary and duplicative. The Equal Access to Justice Act already provides a framework for legal fees related to cases in which the Federal Government is a party. I find myself standing here as a Democrat, a person who has been resisting almost everything that President Trump has been trying to do in the environmental arena and other arenas that affect healthcare and so much more, but I find myself defending the Trump administration's right in which they are a party to participate in the Equal Access to Justice Act, just as I did for President Obama's administration. Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to stop, take a minute, think about what this amendment is really doing, and agree with me that we should oppose this amendment. We should not stop the Federal Government when it is involved in cases and is a party from participating in the Equal Access to Justice Act. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time. The Acting CHAIR.…”