From @CassSunstein - Congress Can Agree on This: Cut Federal Paperwork (HT:AP)

Congress Can Agree on This: Cut Federal Paperwork

Republicans and Democrats have a common enemy called “sludge.”

Cass Sunstein

November 13, 2018, 9:00 AM CST Updated on November 13, 2018, 1:28 PM CST

"As it now stands, the law requires OIRA to scrutinize every information collection from the federal government — to 'minimize' its burden and 'maximize [its] practical utility of and public benefit.' That’s good.

But what happens if the office fails to do that? Under the Paperwork Reduction Act, the answer is: Nothing at all. Here’s a better answer: Americans should be given a right to go to court to challenge a mandatory information collection as excessive and unjustified — in the technical jargon of administrative law, as 'arbitrary or capricious.'

When a federal agency issues a regulation, people who are adversely affected usually have the right to make that challenge in court. At least when a paperwork burden exceeds a certain threshold, people should be allowed to require the government to justify it — or to get it struck down in court."

HT:AP