“Never before have we seen a regulatory agenda as broad and as costly. “

The headline is a quote from a column written by Congressman Fred Upton (R-MI) and published by National Review.  The column focuses on the issue of new federal regulations and the threat they pose to the nation’s economy.

Congressman Upton puts the rate of recent regulatory changes into a historic context.

“According to data available from the Office of Management and Budget, President Obama has issued 50 percent more “economically significant regulations” (those with an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more) per year than President Clinton and 44 percent more than George W. Bush.

“Unfortunately, when it comes to regulations, it’s not just that there are more of them: The Obama administration’s regulatory actions are also more expensive. The average annual cost of major regulations under the Bush administration was $4.9 billion. Under Obama, the average cost has ballooned to $12.5 billion — that’s a cost increase of more than 150 percent to American businesses and consumers.”

Everyone should read the entire column to understand to gain an understand of how these regulations impact our country’s commerce.  The whole article can be read here.