Cory Gardner
Legislation introduced by U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO) would require any increase in debt limit approved by Congress to be offset by reductions in regulatory burden.
Gardner and U.S. Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) introduced the bill after Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin asked Congress to raise the federal debt ceiling earlier this month. The outstanding debt of the United States hit its statutory limit on March 16. The Treasury Department, Mnuchin said, would take extraordinary measures to avoid the federal government defaulting on its debt obligations.
“After eight years of unchecked spending, it’s time to institute real reforms that will help get our fiscal house in order,” Gardner said. “As we once again consider raising the federal debt ceiling, we must find ways to eliminate burdensome regulations that hinder economic growth and further impair our nation’s solvency. American small businesses and entrepreneurs know what it takes to create jobs and grow the economy, and it is up to Congress to get Washington out of the way and allow them to succeed.”
The Reducing Excessive Government (REG) Act would require the treasury secretary to estimate the amount of new debt incurred in the event of a temporary suspension of the debt limit. If the debt limit were raised by a set amount rather than suspended, a proportional reduction of at least 15 percent would apply to the set amount.
“Any time Congress decides to raise the debt ceiling, substantive policy changes need to be made that would affect the long-term trajectory of the country,” Lee said. “This bill would require a serious evaluation of our regulatory policy any time the debt ceiling is raised. It would give Congress the power and regular opportunity to lift regulatory burdens on the public that hurt innovation and growth.”
Under the REG Act, federal agencies would also be required to report to Congress on regulations that cost the U.S. economy more than $100 million.
The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that public debt will reach $14.8 trillion by the end of the current fiscal year, but other estimates exceed that figure.