Capitol Hill

This spring, NRCA helped achieve the repeal of problematic federal regulations in its ongoing efforts to reduce regulatory burdens on roofing contractors.

In late 2016, the Obama administration issued two regulations NRCA had strongly opposed. Given the timing of their promulgation at the end of the Obama administration, the regulations were subject to review under the Congressional Review Act (CRA), a seldom-used law that gives Congress the authority to disapprove and ultimately nullify recently issued federal regulations.

Under the CRA, Congress can repeal any major regulation if, within 60 legislative days of issuance, the House and Senate approve a joint resolution of disapproval of the regulation and the president signs the resolution into law. Importantly, such resolutions need only a simple majority to pass the Senate (unlike most legislation that requires 60 votes under Senate rules). Because Republicans now hold 52 seats in the Senate, CRA resolutions can be approved without bipartisan support.

With Republicans now in control of Congress and the White House, NRCA and allied groups swung into action to repeal two regulations that would be burdensome to roofing contractors and many other businesses.

Record keeping

In December 2016, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a regulation to extend the statute of limitations on citations for certain record-keeping violations from six months to five years. The regulation was issued despite a U.S. appeals court decision that ruled the agency does not have the authority to cite employers beyond the six-month statute of limitations set forth in the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. In his concurring opinion on the ruling, Judge Merrick Garland said OSHA's rationale for the five-year statute of limitations was "not reasonable."

NRCA had filed comments with OSHA noting the inconsistency with the statute and pointing out merely citing employers for inadvertent paperwork violations is not an effective way to improve workplace safety. Despite the opposition of NRCA and other business groups, as well as the adverse court ruling, the agency nevertheless went forward with its regulation.

In February, Rep. Bradley Byrne (R-Ala.) introduced H.J. Res. 83, a resolution of disapproval of the OSHA regulation. In March, the House approved the resolution by a vote of 231-191; the Senate followed suit by a vote of 50-48; and President Trump signed it into law April 3.

NRCA believes repeal of the regulation was necessary to send a message to agency officials that the best approach to improving workplace safety is working cooperatively to employ state-of-the-art risk management principles rather than punishing employers for inadvertent paperwork violations.

Blacklisting

In February, NRCA supported a resolution of disapproval to repeal the Department of Labor's Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces regulation, also known as the "blacklisting rule." This regulation would have required companies bidding on certain federal contracts to disclose violations of federal labor laws for consideration in the procurement process.

NRCA opposed the regulation because members believe it would increase costs and risks for employers while doing little, if anything, to make workplaces safer or increase worker pay. In addition, NRCA believes the regulation went beyond the agency's statutory authority and, like the OSHA regulation, was unlawful.

NRCA supported H.J. Res. 37, a resolution of disapproval to repeal the blacklisting regulation, introduced by Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.). In February, the House approved the resolution by a vote of 236-187; the Senate followed suit by a 49-48 vote; and President Trump signed it into law March 27.

Solid victories

Under the terms of the CRA, both regulations are considered as though they had never gone into effect. It is important to note once a regulation is repealed under the CRA, an agency is forbidden from issuing any regulation in "substantially the same form" in the future.

NRCA is pleased to have played a role in getting Congress to repeal these unlawful, burdensome regulations. NRCA looks forward to working with federal agencies to achieve policy goals while maintaining the flexibility entrepreneurs need to grow their businesses and create high-paying jobs for workers.

Duane L. Musser is NRCA's vice president of government relations.