Republicans Eye EPA and OSHA

by Randel Johnson

Administration, I used to spend months trying to work out the smallest sorts of compromises with the career people at the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. They would fight me every step of the way. Five years in the Republican minority on Capitol Hill was more of the same.

It would be hard to overstate the changes since the '94 election. The Republican freshmen brought in a pervasive distrust of government which, combined with the philosophical bent of returning House members, has resulted in an agenda some would term radical--but others would describe as finally allowing some debate on the issues. Conservative principles concerning the regulatory role of government are no longer cavalierly dismissed as irrelevant. Rather, they drive the agenda.

Here are some of the guiding principles from Agenda 104 of the House Committee on Economic and Educational Opportunities, chaired by Rep. William F. Goodling (R-Pa.):

"Businesses produce jobs and businesses operate most efficiently free of government regulation. Workplace protections, however well-intentioned, mean little to a worker without a job. Costs associated with regulation are ultimately reflected in less job growth or lower wages and benefits."

The cost of regulation and its impact on job growth used to be routinely ignored. When it was brought up, it tended to be pooh-poohed as an exaggeration. "Oh, there goes business again, looking for an excuse to kill workers and save money."

We're flipping that around. We are conscious of the benefits of regulations, but at least we're trying to get a handle on the costs and the down sides.

Other principles from Agenda 104:

"Some regulation is necessary, but because of its negative impact on job growth and its blunt national character, federal legislation should be reserved for and narrowly tailored to address only those national problems that are serious, those which have been truly demonstrated to exist and those which can be solved only through federal intervention."

"Overly complex legislation drafted in an attempt to address all conceivable circumstances is counterproductive to the interests of both employees and employers. The primary focus of the enforcement bureaucracy should be on educating business on how to comply. Heavy penalties should be reserved for the worst offenders. In a world of limited enforcement resources, incentives for voluntary compliance must be considered."

On February 24, the House passed H.R. 450, which would freeze all Environmental Protection Agency and OSHA regulations issued between November 20, 1994, and December 31, 1995. There were certain exceptions for "imminent danger," but basically it would be across the board.

Another bill called the Risk Assessment Cost Benefits Act (H.R. 1022) passed the House on March 1. It would require all legislation with an impact on the economy of $25 million or more to be justified through cost-benefit analysis and risk assessment.

We are currently pursuing comprehensive reform of OSHA through H.R. 1834, the Safety and Health Improvement and Regulatory Reform of 1995, which will generally reorient the agency from that of punitive enforcement to one offering employers a helping hand in compliance. Hearings have been held and I expect House floor consideration in early 1996.

Needless to say, none of this legislation would have seen the light of day--or even had one hearing--under the tightly controlled legislative agenda of prior Congresses and prior majorities.

Tremendous pressure exists to reach a balanced budget in seven years, and it's going to be done. The House passed an EPA budget of $4.9 billion for FY96. The administration proposed $7.4 billion, so that's close to a $2.5 billion hit. The Senate is coming in at around $5.7 billion--even there, you see a difference of almost $2 billion.

On the labor side, OSHA was reduced from last year's budget of $313 million down to $264 million. In the House we reduced the enforcement budget by 32 percent but increased the compliance-assistance budget by 19 percent. The Senate reduced OSHA's enforcement budget and its compliance assistance by 5 percent each. You can see that the Senate and House have different viewpoints.

I have been amazed at how OSHA, with its relatively limited resources compared to the number of work sites that have to be inspected, can upset so many people. Small businesses are up in arms over OSHA, and the stories they tell are moving to our members.

A lot of this legislation has a long way to go, but the Republican victory has already dramatically changed the attitude of the agencies. Many subtle changes are evident at the agencies in response to the new agenda on the Hill. Expect some more.

Randel Johnson is the workplace-policy coordinator for the U.S. House of Representatives' Committee on Economic and Educational Opportunities. This article was adapted from the keynote speech he gave at the 1995 NAA Health and Safety Conference.