Bill would “give teeth” to executive order for easing of unnecessary regulations.

Saying some federal regulations “occasionally border on the ridiculous,” Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS) has introduced a bill to reduce the burden on businesses.

The legislation would “give teeth” to President Obama’s recent executive order directing agencies of the federal government to review regulations to ensure they don’t harm the economy.

“Let’s really look at the size and scope of our government and return it to its role as a partner in America’s success rather than an impediment to it,” Sen. Roberts said.

The Regulatory Responsibility for our Economy Act strengthens and codifies the president’s executive order from January 18, 2011, to ensure it is carried out “to review, modify, streamline, expand or repeal those significant regulatory actions, that are duplicative, unnecessary, burdensome or would have significant economic impacts on Americans.”

Sen. Roberts expressed concern about loopholes in the executive order that would exempt regulations in the new health care law, and financial regulatory reform laws. Also at issue, according to Sen. Roberts, are media reports that some agencies claim they are not subject to the president’s regulatory review because they already meet all of the commitments in the executive order.

The legislation is intended to close this loophole by ensuring sub-agencies comply with the review. It also seeks to ensure that regulations put forth by the administration consider the economic burden on American businesses, ensure stakeholder input and promote innovation. And it closes other existing loopholes that Sen. Roberts said the administration has been using to bypass stakeholder input on regulations.

Sen. Roberts has cited examples of his concerns with federal regulations, including: “As of January 3, 2011, less than six months after the Dodd-Frank Act was signed into law, regulators have issued over 1,000 pages of regulatory proposals and over 360 pages of final rules. Many more pages of regulations, upwards of 5,000, are expected.”

Sen. Roberts is ranking member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture and is a member of the Finance Committee, the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, the Rules Committee and the Ethics Committee.