Rob Portman

I think what a lot of these bills do is it adds checks and balances.

I would tell you that if you look at what, again, courts are already, again, applying the arbitrary and capricious standard to very complex, scientific, technical analysis.

I do feel strongly that having that judicial review would have a significant impact on how the agencies went about their work.

Don't you think a better accounting of the actual costs would help to actually, again, translate that good language into something that is meaningful?

Why do unelected bureaucrats get to write the rules? Why are the bureaucrats writing the rules? Why are you not writing the rules?

We need regulatory reform. We need regulatory freedom.

I would urge the Members of this Committee and my colleagues to take a close look at the CURB Act.

I think the words in that Executive Order are very encouraging

I believe this PAYGO process would actually force more conversations about alternatives to necessary regulations.

It does not make sense to me to penalize a small business the first time it accidently fails to comply with paperwork requirements so long as no harm comes from that failure.

Do you think another Executive Order is appropriate then?

This is one of the areas, regulatory review, where we all believe, I think, Democrat and Republican alike, that there is room to help get the economy moving again and create more jobs.

I think it is only logical that to the extent you have concerns, which I understand, and you mentioned political and legal concerns, I think it is the legal concerns that would constrain you.

I certainly found that when I was at OMB, an end run around what would normally be the deliberative process and the give and take that you get in a notice and comment rulemaking process.

My understanding is President Obama revoked that Executive Order, and I do not understand why.

I think we need to codify that.

The Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction tells us that we have spent as American taxpayers $1.5 billion between 2002 and last year on counterdrug activities in Afghanistan alone, $1.5 billion.

Sustained U.S. engagement in my view will be required, particularly during this period of great transition.

At the same time, we have a huge fiscal challenge here in Washington.

Although Ohio is not a State that has a lot of hydro--it's about 1 percent of our electricity currently...

Please discuss possible opportunities to achieve cost and weight reduction on the rotorcraft structure through the application of commercial best practices and advanced aluminum material and design solutions.

Is the Army leveraging commercial best practices and new aluminum alloys and joining techniques within reset activities to enhance performance and affordability?

Secretary Westphal, how many months average spent in depots receiving reset work and at what cost per rotorcraft?

How long does the average helicopter serve before it needs to be reset?

Secretary Westphal, what are the average flight hours between reset for the Apache, Kiowa, and Blackhawk platforms?