The big picture: Six years of red tape rising under Obama

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Runaway regulations from the executive branch, aided by vast delegations of power issued by Congress–these are the trends that burden Americans, outlined in the 9th annual “Red Tape Rising” report by The Heritage Foundation.

Highlights of the report by Heritage scholars James Gattuso and Diane Katz include:

  • The number and cost of government regulations kept climbing in 2014. 27 new major rules in 2014 pushed Obama’s six-year total to 184, “with scores of other rules in the pipeline.” These 184 alone have an annual cost of at least $80-billion
  • “President Barack Obama has repeatedly demonstrated his willingness to act by regulatory fiat instead of executing laws as passed by Congress.”
  • But “A great deal of the excessive regulation in the past six years is the result of Congress’ granting broad powers to agencies through passage of vast and vaguely worded legislation.”
  • The result? “Intensifying Washington’s control over the economy and Americans’ lives.”

The full report: Red Tape Rising: Six Years of Escalating Regulation Under Obama