From the American Association for Justice: The U.S. House of Representatives passed a sweeping bill that would make it nearly impossible for federal agencies to issue new standards that protect the public. The bill would effectively weaken a wide range of existing laws that Americans count on, from the Clean Water Act to the Food Safety Modernization Act to the Dodd-Frank financial reform law. No wonder it’s a favorite of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Today, it takes federal agencies years to issue each new or updated rule, delays that harm the public. But the bill, the Orwellian-named “Regulatory Accountability Act,” would make that process look like a cakewalk. As the American Association for Justice (AAJ) said in a letter to Members of Congress, the bill “imposes so many new procedural and analytical requirements to the rulemaking process that it is likely that government agencies will no longer be able to regulate at all.” And it would create new ways for big businesses to challenge and even upend new rules through court challenges. The bill would effectively re-write laws designed to protect the public – such as the Clean Air Act, meant to assure healthy air – to suit corporate interests. Regulators would have to make rules not based on science and protecting the public’s interest, but based on choosing the regulatory option that is “least costly” to industry. The bill passed the House 250 to 175. The Senate has not previously considered the measure, but may do so in this Congress. The White House threatened to veto the bill, saying it would “impede the ability of agencies to provide the public with basic protections, and create needless confusion and delay that would prove disruptive for businesses, as well as for State, tribal, and local governments.”
The lawyers at Liever, Hyman & Potter, P.C., are concerned for the safety of citizens in Berks County and Schuylkill County and serve accident victims and their families in Reading, PA, Pottsville, PA, and throughout Eastern and Central, Pennsylvania. Call the experienced attorneys at Liever, Hyman & Potter if you or a family member was injured. Consultation is free. We can obtain the records for you if we investigate the case.
By Michael W. McGuckin, Esquire; Attorney for the Reading, Pennsylvania Personal Injury Law Firm of Liever, Hyman & Potter, P. C., which limits their practice to medical malpractice, car, truck, motorcycle accidents, wrongful death cases, premises liability, nursing home neglect, and work injuries. Serving Berks, Schuylkill and surrounding counties for over 50 years.