Senators: Oppose bills that threaten public health

Dear Senators Casey and Toomey,   PennPIRG writes to urge you to oppose all legislation that would undermine the nation’s most basic public health and safety protections.  In particular, we are writing about three bills: The Regulatory Accountability Act (RAA S.1606), the Regulatory Flexibility Improvements Act (RFIA S. 1938) and the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS S.299). All three bills pose a dangerous threat to the health and safety of the American people.  

Dear Senators Casey and Toomey,

PennPIRG writes to urge you to oppose all legislation that would undermine the nation’s most basic public health and safety protections.  In particular, we are writing about three bills: The Regulatory Accountability Act (RAA S.1606), the Regulatory Flexibility Improvements Act (RFIA S. 1938) and the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS S.299). All three bills pose a dangerous threat to the health and safety of the American people.

The Regulatory Accountability Act (RAA S.1606) would add layers of new bureaucratic processes before even simple public health rules could be enforced.  It would empower special interests to use the courts to delay protections that have been years in the making.   After a 10 year fight, Congress authorized and the Consumer Product Safety Commission developed new safe crib standards.  America’s most vulnerable population – infants – finally received protection against collapsing cribs that injured and killed far too many.  RAA would make have made it easier for special interests to contest the new crib standards in court, delaying further these critical protections.

The Regulatory Flexibility Improvements Act (RFIA, S.1938) may purport to aid small business, but by delaying and confusing the rulemaking process, it will more likely add to the uncertainty that supporters say they want to avoid.   More importantly, even a straightforward proposal such as the new website to provide parents with information on potentially hazardous toys and other children’s products, would fall victim to unnecessary delays and analysis preventing the public from access to critical information.    

Finally, the REINS Act (REINS S.299) would block enforcement of existing health and safety laws by creating new hurdles and impossibly short timelines for approval of critical implementation rules.  Last year, 1 million pounds of E Coli contaminated meat was pulled from store shelves in California by food safety inspectors.  Congress, with bipartisan support, responded to this episode and numerous food recalls by modernizing food safety practices and reassured Americans of the safety of our food supply.  Under this bill, the updated rules would be blocked and the safety of our food supply would again fall victim to the vagaries of food processors who have time and again put profit above public health.

All three bills favor special interests over the public interest.  They threaten some of our nation’s most basic safeguards and they will unravel nearly three decades of health and safety.  The enactment of any one of these bills would put agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on a never-ending treadmill of bureaucratic analysis when responding to new public health threats such as food-borne illnesses due to unsafe industry practices and inspection of imported meats from countries where safety laws are weak or nonexistent.

Blocking, weakening or delaying critical standards and safeguards will result in more deaths in vulnerable age-groups, such as children and the elderly. We will see a greater prevalence of asthma, cancer and respiratory diseases as clean air and clean water standards are threatened. Increasing litigation and tying up critical public safety standards helps only the narrow special interests.

Our nation has made significant progress toward ensuring a safe and healthy marketplace for consumers.  PennPIRG urges you to continue in that proud tradition, vote against all three bills and protect the health and safety of the American people.

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