Richardville regulatory efficiency bill sent to House
LANSING-The Senate today approved a series of bills that will make Michigan more competitive and user friendly, said state Sen. Randy Richardville, one of the sponsors of the legislation.
Richardville participated in a news conference at the state Capitol to promote the bills designed to ease regulatory burdens and bureaucratic barriers to growth.
“Inefficiencies in our regulatory system create unnecessary problems for state businesses and cause barriers to economic growth,” said Richardville, R-Monroe. “The Legislature must act to make Michigan more business friendly and promote job growth for state residents.”
Senate Bill 438, sponsored by Richardville, would require the Department of Natural Resources, Department of Environmental Quality, and Department of Agriculture to use a stratified random sampling process when deciding which businesses to inspect.
“This legislation sends a positive message to job providers that they will be treated fairly in the inspection process,” Richardville said. “It will help prevent departments from inspecting the same facilities repeatedly out of convenience and protect businesses from being targeted for speaking out against government action.”
Other bills in the package would:
- Prohibit rules that are more stringent than federal requirements unless specifically authorized by the Legislature;
- Require agencies to periodically review all of their rules;
- Require the DEQ to benchmark and evaluate programs to ensure that they are effectively meeting goals; and
- Create a Business Ombudsman’s Office to assist companies that are experiencing difficulties with the state’s regulatory process.
“Onerous state regulations are contributing to Michigan’s declining economy,” said Doug Roberts, Jr., director of environmental and energy policy for the Michigan Chamber of Commerce. “This legislation will help make Michigan’s regulatory structure more competitive in the race for jobs.”
Randy Gross, director of environmental and regulatory policy for the Michigan Manufacturers Association, praised the package.
“We are excited to see some of the key regulatory reforms that are needed being addressed here,” said Gross. “It is important to eliminate barriers that make Michigan uncompetitive, and this is the first step in the process.”
Mike Batterbee, director of government relations for the Small Business Association of Michigan, said the bills are good for Michigan.
“Unnecessary regulation has a disproportionate effect on small businesses and is costly to taxpayers,” said Batterbee. “This legislation should help companies pursue growth in Michigan.”
The legislation been sent to the state House for further consideration.
Editor’s note: A photograph of Sen. Richardville at the news conference is available on the Senate Majority Photowire.
Posted: Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Print friendly version
Email this page
