Government by edict
When was the last time you elected a regulator?
The First State is like most of the others, as regulators write most of the rules of conduct nowadays.
But there is a chance the state of Delaware could relieve some of those burdens should they somehow pass a bill that’s been introduced for this session of the General Assembly.
HB5, sponsored by Rep. Jeff Spiegelman and co-sponsored by a slew of other Republicans (and one Democrat) would do the following:
This Act requires that an enacted state agency regulation will automatically expire unless explicitly reauthorized by the General Assembly to continue. This Act creates the Joint Committee on Oversight of Agency Regulations (“Committee”) to engage in review and oversight of regulations adopted by State agencies and recommend to the General Assembly whether or not the regulations should be allowed to expire.
Like laws in states such as Colorado and Utah, this Act does all of the following:
(1) Requires that all regulations adopted by an agency during the 12-month period preceding each October 31 expire at 5:00 p.m. on the following June 30 unless the General Assembly enacts a law to remove the expiration of the regulation.
(2) Establishes criteria for the Committee’s review of State agency regulations.
(3) Establishes a process for the Committee’s review and oversight of State agency regulations, including the requirement of a staff report, public hearings, and Committee recommendations to the General Assembly.
(4) If the Committee recommends a regulation not be allowed to expire, requires the Committee to draft and introduce a bill that removes the expiration of each regulation the Committee recommends not be allowed to expire.
(5) The Committee Chair, Vice Chair, and members receive the same additional compensation as the Joint Legislative Oversight and Sunset Committee.
I can’t say I disagree with the intent of this bill, but - if it should even get a hearing, let alone a vote - unless I am reading this wrong, it seems rather weak. It’s also subject to change, like Colorado’s sunset law did in 2022.
It’s not unknown for the General Assembly to write laws that sunset, but regulators seldom do. And that’s the problem.
A limited government has a specific set of tasks to do and goes no further, maximizing personal liberty. On the other hand, a government like ours demands control over as much as it can get its greedy fingers on. The issue with sunsetting regulations and laws from the perspective of government isn’t generally that the problem they were created to solve has gone away. No, it’s not in their interest to find the solution - that leads to job insecurity, and maintaining one’s employment is Job One for a bureaucrat.
(For example, the program that was created to electrify rural Americans in 1936 eventually morphed with mission creep to include telephone service and, more recently, broadband. So, it’s still around despite the fact its original goal was accomplished decades ago.)
Similarly, with a program like this - even if it somehow passed - there would be multiple ways to get around it. There could just be an omnibus declaration that all regulations would be extended, meaning the law would be toothless. And even if that didn’t occur, it’s a sure bet that the Democrats would make everyone who might be out of a cushy government job with the expiration of a regulation into a victim, never mind the private sector jobs wiped out by the regulation - after all, no one sees those victims.
If I were to predict the fate of this bill, I’m betting it gets stuck in a desk drawer and forgotten. Historically the Democrats have ignored GOP bills and this one will likely not be an exception.
It’s not the perfect solution to what ails us, but it’s better than nothing and the time spent renewing regulations takes away from the time spent dreaming up new, oppressive laws.
Until next time, remember you can Buy Me a Coffee since I have a page there.