Curtail the Overreach of Government: Repeal Regulations and Law Reform

In recognition of the ever-growing burden placed upon individuals and markets by the expanding power of government, this policy mandates that for every one new law enacted by Congress or regulatory agency, ten existing laws or corresponding agency rules must be repealed. This framework serves to curtail the overreach of government, ensuring the protection of individual freedom, voluntary exchange, and limited state intervention.

Purpose

A government that constantly expands its authority through new laws and regulations stifles human initiative, market innovation, and voluntary cooperation. Such encroachments reduce the individual’s ability to act freely, increasing reliance on the state. This policy is rooted in the principle that fewer laws and regulations result in greater individual liberty, more robust markets, and a society built on voluntary cooperation. Therefore, to maintain the integrity of free markets and personal liberty, a reduction in legislation must precede any new laws or rules.

Provisions of the Policy

Repeal Requirement:

For every new law or agency rule proposed, the enacting body must identify and fully repeal at least **ten existing laws or regulatory measures.
The 1:10 ratio of new law to repealed laws must be upheld. Laws must be repealed for laws, and agency rules must be repealed for rules. These cannot be interchanged, ensuring that the burden of legislation is reduced in specific domains, not shifted or compounded.
Non-Redundant Repeals: To prevent exploitation of this policy, the laws and rules selected for repeal must be at least 5 years old (1,825 days) and must have been actively enforced or relevant during that period. This prevents the creation of arbitrary or redundant laws intended merely to satisfy the repeal requirement.
Transparency and Disclosure: The laws and rules selected for repeal must be publicly disclosed for a minimum of 42 days (6 weeks), ensuring full transparency and public scrutiny. This process guarantees that the selected repeals genuinely reduce governmental overreach, while avoiding superficial or symbolic changes.
The proposed law or rule must explicitly state that the identified laws or rules to be repealed will automatically be abolished upon the passage of the new law or rule.
No Exclusion Provision: Proposed laws or rules cannot include any clause or provision that exempts or excludes this policy from being applied. Any such attempt would automatically invalidate the proposed legislation or regulation.
Agency Regulations:

All federal agencies and branches must adhere to the same standard. When proposing any new regulation, they must identify ten existing regulations within their domain for repeal. Failure to do so will result in the automatic nullification of the proposed regulation.
The proposing agency must prove that the repeal of existing regulations will reduce both economic and administrative burdens on individuals and businesses, upholding the policy’s core objective of reducing state interference.
Independent Oversight Committees:
Multiple elected boards of independent, non-governmental citizens shall be convened to review proposed laws and regulations, with each board assigned to individual cases, much like juries in separate trials. The selection process for committee members will follow a model similar to jury selection, ensuring neutrality and independence. Each board will evaluate whether the laws and regulations selected for repeal meet the non-redundancy criteria and ensure the repeal effectively reduces government control without merely redistributing regulatory burdens. These boards will operate simultaneously to ensure efficient and comprehensive review of all legislative proposals.
Prohibition on Lobbying to Amend or Overturn Policy

In order to preserve the intent and effect of this policy, any efforts by domestic or foreign entities to lobby, influence, or advocate for amendments, changes, or repeal of this policy are strictly prohibited.

Enforcement and Penalties

Prohibited Activities:

Lobbying for Amendments: Any attempts by individuals, corporations, non-governmental organizations, or foreign entities to lobby or influence the repeal, amendment, or suspension of this policy are explicitly forbidden.
Penalties for Violation:

Monetary Penalties: Any entity found in violation will be subject to fines starting at q minimum of ten times the value, extending up to 500 times the value of any involved transactions.
Disqualification: Violating entities will face permanent disqualification from receiving government contracts, grants, or any form of public funding.
Elected Officials: Any elected official who participates in, enables, or encourages lobbying efforts to undermine this policy will face immediate termination from office, loss of pensions, and be subject to federal felony charges, with a mandatory prison sentence of no less than 5 years, without parole.
Public Disclosur: Any entity or individual found in violation will face mandatory public disclosure of their actions, ensuring transparency and accountability to the public.
Emergency and Essential Laws

Emergency Exemption Clause: In cases of congress declared national emergencies (e.g., natural disasters, wars, pandemics), a temporary suspension of the 1:10 repeal requirement may be permitted. However, the exemption is subject to the following conditions:
The suspension must be time-limited and capped at a maximum of 3 months (90 days). After this period, the repeal requirement will be reinstated.
Any law or regulation passed under this emergency provision must include a sunset clause, ensuring the law expires and never exceed 3 months (90 days) capped period. Thus explicitly preventing and prohibiting any attempts to establish a loophole provision that results in a persistent expansion of state power.
Sunset Provisions for New Laws

To prevent the reaccumulation of outdated or unnecessary laws, all new laws passed under this policy must include sunset provisions, whereby the law automatically expires after a set period unless reauthorized. This ensures continuous evaluation of a law’s necessity and effectiveness, guarding against unchecked government growth.

Voluntary Exchange and Property Rights Protections

Laws and regulations selected for repeal should primarily target those that infringe on voluntary exchange or violate property rights. The emphasis must remain on reducing or eliminating rules that restrict the individual’s right to freely exchange goods, services, or property, thereby promoting genuine market competition and preserving individual liberty.

Personal Liability for Government Officials: Government officials who attempt to pass new laws or regulations without complying with the repeal requirement or transparency provisions will face personal legal liability, including fines and disqualification from holding public office.

Philosophical Reinforcement

A society grounded in individual liberty must prioritize the reduction of state power, for it is the expansion of government that encroaches upon human action, limits the freedom to exchange, and imposes arbitrary controls on the market. The state should exist to protect rights, not to control and regulate every aspect of life. A self-regulating market—unhindered by bureaucratic oversight—will yield greater prosperity, innovation, and personal freedom than any top-down government intervention ever could.

This policy, through its strict repeal requirements and its prohibition on lobbying to alter its course, ensures that the state is returned to its proper, minimal role. It reduces the regulatory shackles imposed on individuals and businesses, restoring the autonomy of free markets, where voluntary cooperation and individual initiative are the drivers of prosperity and human flourishing.

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Government is like a factory whose job is to create laws. This inevitably leads to larger government, more agencies, more spending. Unless laws are repealed on a regular basis as suggested, government will only grow when it should be minimized. Adding expiration dates to all NEW laws would help accelerate the reduction of the size and scope of government because legislators would be required to review older laws regularly to see if they are needed otherwise they would expire. This increases accountability and reduces the impetus to pass new laws.

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