Ohio GOP legislature subverting democracy (again)

OTOH - Maybe Pelosi and Reid should consider this. The GOP controlled legislature is trying to ram through a bill that will charge the executive branch and agencies $50 for every rule change they propose. In addition, it will require that every rules change will only be approved after an extensive review of every rule change to determine its economic impact, as well as studies to show how much work every rule change will cost businesses.

Gloves Come Off -- General Assembly Targets Strickland Administrative Rule-Making Power

As a Democratic governor saddled with a Republican-dominated General Assembly, Ted Strickland (D-Lisbon) will rely heavily on adminstrative agency action to implement his policy agenda. Administrative agencies act largely through rule-making. Such rules implement the broad policy dictates of legislation, and by defining the details they shape policy. Just consider the importance of Clinton-era rule-making in advancing his environmental agenda, and of Bush-era rule-making in killing it.

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HB 685 is a classic power-grab. Administrative agencies will now be required to pay a $50 fee (required to come out of each agency's own appropriation) for each new or revised rule. Rules cannot be accumulated under one fee, so a package of 50 rules will cost $2,500. (The fee does not apply to rules that merely track federal regulation, revealing the anti-regulatory ideological animus of the change.)

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The real damage, however, is not the fee but an expanded scope of review and broad new power on the part of JCARR to delay implementation. Under HB 685, agencies are required to analyze any economic impact the proposed rule is likely to have upon Ohio businesses in the rule summary and fiscal analysis (RSFA), including which businesses are affected, how much it will cost to comply with the rule, the additional time businesses will spend on compliance, measuring the regulatory burden on business, and "any other information" needed to "fully explain" the impact on Ohio business. If 6 members of JCARR (i.e., the Republicans) decide that the RSFA is "incomplete or inaccurate," they can return the rules to the agency or simply postpone consideration for 60 days. After the 60 days have passed, the rules are treated as if they were the original version of the rules, apparently meaning that they can be postponed again and again. In other words, unlimited delay and obstruction.


http://ohio2006elections.blogspot.com/2006/12/gloves-come-off-general-assembly.html

I think Bob Taft would veto it...

It could just go too far to charge the government to do its job. This behavior is repugnant to Article I and II of the constitution. The RI case that bared the use of ArtISecIV of the constitution in order to deal with state-level abuse of legislative power was wrongly decided and should be overturned. Then again, we should claim that this is a due process violation. We need the constitution to protect us from these disguting and disgraceful abominations known as Ohio GOP Neo-communists and their unconstitutional laws.

Supposedly, the bill exempts rules and administrations that are funded by or part of the federal government. Apparently, they've put a lot of thought and research into this. Geez I wish Dems were this organized.

It's very frustrating in light of Ohio Dem leaders failure to get our two candidates elected to the Ohio Supreme Court.

why would Taft veto it? He needs to stay in his party's favor to secure some sort of future for himself. Wouldn't there be some severe retribution if he did?

And, he can get back at the House and Senate GOP's who dissed him bad for the last four years...

And beside, I think Taft is enough of a patrician that he would never go along with something that would weaken the governors power...

In Michigan, our state House just flipped this year. Now only the state Senate to go...

He should make a rule that they get charged one hundred dollars a day for any vedicle parked anywhere in the state of Ohio.
That oughta' take care of it.