'We Have Actually Been Derelict In Our Duty': Andy Biggs Lambasts Congress Over Regulatory Crimes

4 months ago

At a House Judiciary Committee hearing last week, Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) questioned witnesses about regulatory crimes.

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Transcript

00:00 Mr. Chairman. Thank you. The gentlelady yields back. So I recognize myself for my

00:04 questions. So the the the first thing I want to just say is I appreciate the

00:13 testimony. When I first got in I thought to Congress I thought we

00:19 really need to do this because I in my law practice people said why'd you go

00:24 into politics? I said because most of my clients had been abused by just the

00:29 regulation. So let's see here. I'm gonna ask all of you this question before

00:35 and I want you to think about because I appreciate all of you have

00:38 produced in your documents and in your testimony some reform movement that you

00:45 think we should do. I want each one of you to give us the lowest hanging fruit

00:49 because that's always the easiest for Congress to do. You know as I as I like

00:54 to say I'm willing to do it was the least I can do. I'm always happy to do

00:58 least the least I can do. So that's kind of Congress's attitude on this. We

01:02 want to do that so I'm gonna ask each of you to do that but in in speaking to

01:08 that I also want us to focus on really what Congress can do because we have

01:15 actually been derelict in our duty in my opinion and that's the problem and we

01:21 need now to be active and I know that and you don't need don't say the

01:26 mens rea thing because we all agree on the mens rea thing okay so that we all I

01:29 need something else besides the mens rea issue okay. So Ms. Tylek you had I think

01:35 about 20 different reforms that you put in yours so if you can just give me your

01:40 top one your number one that'd be good. I don't know if it's the lowest hanging

01:46 fruit but I do think ending the exception in the 13th Amendment is a

01:49 critical step for our country and in the 250th year anniversary that's coming I

01:53 would say that. Okay that you're right that may not be the lowest hanging fruit.

01:58 Okay make phone calls free in federal prisons permanently you already did it

02:01 in the CARES Act we can just make it permanent policy. Okay that's that may be

02:05 the lowest hanging fruit but I'll take a look at your other proposal there. Thank

02:08 thank you Ms. Tylek. Mr. Tolman. Thank you Mr. Chairman I would I would very

02:16 strongly urge you've always obviously talked about mens rea everybody

02:18 understands that that passage alone would be the that would be the the

02:23 largest band-aid until you could deregulate and and and so I would then

02:28 say deregulation and and and if you if you do have you know President Trump put

02:35 in place if you're gonna pass regulation you've got to get rid of two and

02:39 whatever you think about it that was really good governance and and and the

02:44 Congress forcing the agencies to do that would would probably be the most most

02:50 important thing they could do immediately. Thank you Mr. McClough. Dr.

02:54 McClough. I agree with Mr. Tolman the changing the incentives of regulatory

02:59 agencies to review their own regulations the old ones to identify duplication or

03:03 contradiction and you could accomplish that through a regulatory budget such as

03:07 the one in two out or other means as well I think that's the lowest hanging

03:10 fruit make agencies review their own rules and get rid of ones that aren't

03:13 effective. Thank you. Thank you doctor. Mr. Purtell. I would associate myself with

03:18 those so I'll take a slightly different tact I think there are a couple of bills

03:21 before Congress right now that might really be interesting that do things to

03:25 ameliorate for folks who are already incarcerated or reentering back into

03:29 society some of the burdens that we've talked about here today the first would

03:33 be the federal prison Oversight Act which came out of the Oversight

03:36 Committee I think maybe unanimously but overwhelmingly for sure bipartisan

03:42 support I think there's also a bill called the safer supervision act which

03:46 would help before this committee which would help incentivize moving folks who

03:52 are compliant who've served their term and are compliant with their terms of

03:55 their release into into society more quickly so we can focus on the more

03:59 dangerous folks still within the system and the other would be the Clean Slate

04:03 Act which we mentioned we were talking about the collateral the host of

04:06 collateral consequences that we have that for lower level offenders who have

04:11 committed nonviolent crimes that you would seal their record after they

04:14 commit their after they complete their sentence and complete their supervision

04:20 without committing new crimes you would you'd seal their record so that it'd be

04:24 easier for them to get house to get licensure to to get a job and things

04:29 like that reenter back into community once again removing them out of the

04:32 criminal justice system so that we can refocus our criminal justice system on

04:36 the most on the most dangerous and and really I'd love to see something done

04:40 with clearance rates which are which are really quite low. Thank you and I'll

04:46 just say that a couple things that I I have thought of I appreciate you your

04:51 suggestion that some of these things need to move to civil penalties and I

04:54 couldn't help but think of the ranking members discussion of the the explosion

04:58 at in in Texas City is that where it was in Texas City and and the there was no

05:06 reason quite frankly in my mind for the feds to get involved you could have

05:10 prosecuted the execs who had overt violations of safety regs at for

05:15 manslaughter at least and you could also have facilitated civil rewards which is

05:21 actually really what you needed when people are maimed or killed is in my

05:26 opinion so that's one thing the other one is maybe and I I'm really reticent

05:36 to believe that bureaucratic institutions are going to give up their

05:42 their power base I really don't think that's where they want to go so maybe

05:46 Congress needs to every time take a real good look at the rule-making process

05:51 because that's how these these things occurred number two is maybe Congress

05:55 like we do with constitutionality you have to put something on a bill that's

05:59 constitutional you have to go in and say maybe whether you intend or don't intend

06:04 for there to be some kind of criminal punishment involved with it as well just

06:08 another thing for Congress to do anyway I appreciate all the all the testimony

06:12 lot to lot to come out of this I think this is I I I think it's actually a very

06:17 complex issue that has a some simple solutions and in part before you that we

06:23 need to take those first steps and so I appreciate all your testimony today

06:26 thank you with that we are adjourned

'We Have Actually Been Derelict In Our Duty': Andy Biggs Lambasts Congress Over Regulatory Crimes

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