Collins statement on Trump Executive Orders

Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga.), Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee, commended President Donald Trump for signing two executive orders to improve transparency and fairness surrounding federal regulatory guidance.  Federal agencies routinely write official guidance to explain how federal statutes and regulations are interpreted and enforced. Agencies, however, often do not make this guidance public. While this guidance is not legally binding, agencies often threaten enforcement actions based on views expressed solely in guidance. Agencies use guidance hidden from the public to threaten individuals and businesses into abiding by agency views in order to avoid fines or jail time.  “Bureaucratic regulations often blindside American citizens because agencies refuse to make their guidance public. The resulting government fees often hurt small businesses, farmers and families. The executive orders President Trump signed today will help hard-working Americans by requiring agencies to make their interpretations of statutes public before taking any enforcement measures,” said Collins. “When bureaucracy operates in the shadows, it handicaps people trying to do their jobs. President Trump’s action helps rein in that bureaucracy.”  President Trump’s executive orders, “Bringing Guidance out of the Darkness” and “Transparency and Fairness,” will make all agency guidance available to the public before agencies can enforce it. This will allow small businesses and individuals to respond to the guidance before the federal government imposes fines or punishments on them.