COMMENTARY — Miners miffed by Washington’s rejection of regulatory reform

“President Clinton and a majority of Senate Democrats have effectively killed chances for this country to save lives, save money and create new jobs for American workers by rejecting regulatory reform,” says Richard Lawson, president of the Washington, D.C.-based National Mining Association.

He was responding to the third failure of the U.S. Senate to invoke closure on regulatory reform legislation (Bill S.343). After an intensive debate, Senate majority leader Robert Dole announced that he was pulling S.343 from futher debate. Lawson says S.343 “promised every American businessman, miner, farmer and family increased health and environmental protection by concentrating America’s limited resources on the most serious threats. That’s called setting priorities.”

Before it was pulled, significant progress had been made on the bill. One amendment that was adopted would have restored a provision which sought to resolve the question of dual jurisdiction.

This amendment, adopted by a unanimous vote of 80, addressed areas that relate to the Clean Air, Clean Water and Surface Mining Acts, under which the federal government has delegated permitting and enforcement functions to the state.

In his statement, Lawson went on to say: “We are particularly disappointed that the White House chose to resort to alarmism to distort the facts on regulatory reform in an effort to preserve the federal bureaucracy. It is quite apparent that the majority of the Senate Democrats and the White House are intent on preserving the current system of federal regulations, which is costing every American family almost US$6,000 per year. That amounts to nothing more than a hidden tax and a job killer.

“During the last election, Americans sent a loud signal to Washington that they wanted change. This bill represents the kind of change Americans expect, for it would have held bureaucrats accountable for the decisions they make. Apparently the White House and a majority of Senate Democrats did not hear that call for change.”

— From a recent issue of “Mining Week,” published by the National Mining Association