Earlier this week, Congress advanced two bills I proposed which would eliminate outdated government regulations and increase the number of investors permitted to hold shares in a company or a community bank before the organization is required to register with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). These bills will help growing businesses access the capital they need to expand and create jobs while maintaining important protections for investors.
Sometimes, it is necessary to dispose of outdated government regulations that are keeping America’s businesses from growing. Unfortunately, the majority party in the House has taken it too far by continuously targeting environmental protections under the guise of eliminating government regulation. This week, the House voted to roll back environmental protections enshrined in the Clean Air Act and National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants. These important protections keep our air clean from toxic pollutants. I oppose such legislation because I am committed to preserving environmental protections so that generations to come will have clean air to breathe and clean water to drink.
As we seek creative solutions to our nation’s dangerous jobs crisis, we should look at eliminating outdated government regulations to improve the business climate without harming our environment, eliminating health protections, or reducing our ability to invest in the education and infrastructure we know are critical to long-term prosperity. Some regulations should be done away with - but eliminating environmental protection is not the way to improve the business climate, and I will continue to vote against Republicans’ assault on the environment.