According to the Competitive Enterprise Institute, nobody really knows how many federal agencies there are. The cost of complying with federal regulations has steadily increased in recent years and now stands at a whopping $15,000 for every household costing families more than they pay in taxes. Congress enacted just 114 laws last year, but federal agencies issued 3,410 regulations at a compliance cost of $1.9 trillion. This is a most egregious and harmful wandering from the tenet of separation of powers and antithetical to our liberty.
According to the Competitive Enterprise Institute, nobody really knows how many federal agencies there are. The cost of complying with federal regulations has steadily increased in recent years and now stands at a whopping $15,000 for every household costing families more than they pay in taxes. Congress enacted just 114 laws last year, but federal agencies issued 3,410 regulations at a compliance cost of $1.9 trillion. This is a most egregious and harmful wandering from the tenet of separation of powers and antithetical to our liberty.
Our founders never intended the federal administrative state to have so much power. In fact, I dare say they never envisioned a federal administrative state. It now regulates nearly every aspect of our lives; the type of light bulbs and toilets we use, safety features of our toasters and mattresses, who we can hire or fire, what pronouns are acceptable in the federal workplace, and so on. The Constitution, besides giving form and structure to our new government, was to protect equal rights for all Americans and insure the natural God-given rights of the individual.
The very first words of the Constitution in Article 1. Section 1 read: “All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives.”
This mean all laws are to be made by Congress. In direct violation of Article 1, Sect 1, the vast majority of federal rules and regulations are not debated and passed by our elected representatives with the consent of “We The People,” but by special interests and the numerous administrative agencies. This is why in the words of Rep. Nancy Pelosi, they “had to pass the law (Obamacare) to find out what was in it,” and we found it loaded with regulations and taxes.
This may have begun as far back as 1946 with the Federal Administrative Procedure Act which gave federal agencies the power to write countless new laws and regulations. Federal bureaucrats are neither elected nor accountable to anyone. Originally these agencies were charged with implementing the laws passed by Congress. Over time our elected representatives, overly influenced by lobbyists, learned they could get away with passing broad, vague laws and then turn them over to executive agencies, which not only make the rules and sit in judgment but have also been given administrative power of enforcement and impose fines for non-compliance.
When we as constituents complain to our elected officials they can honestly say they did not create those laws and wash their hands of any accountability. The bureaucrats cannot be voted out. Congress is supposedly in gridlock, but the federal government keeps growing in power and stature with no checks and balances or consent by citizens. This is unconstitutional and a dereliction of duty of the part of our elected officials.
As citizens of a free republic it is our duty to preserve it. If you would like to take a free online course on the U. S. Constitution go to: www.freeconstitutioncourse.com.
Mikie Kerr lives in Waikoloa and writes a monthly column for West Hawaii Today.