Study: Manufacturers face 297,696 regulatory restrictions

President Donald Trump campaigned on a promise to roll back regulations that affect small businesses. Earlier this week, he signed an executive order setting a “1 in, 2 out” rule that would remove two existing regulations for every new one instituted.

The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), a manufacturing trade association that has been largely supportive of the President’s Cabinet picks, recently conducted a study to determine how many regulations directly affect their industry. The final tally?

“Manufacturers face 297,696 restrictions on their operations from federal regulations,” the study authors wrote. Additionally, “Eighty-seven percent of manufacturers surveyed say that if compliance costs were reduced permanently and significantly, they would invest the savings on hiring, increased salaries and wages, more R&D or capital replacement.”

Furthermore, 94% of manufacturers surveyed said the regulatory burden had increased in the last five years, with 72% saying “significantly higher.”

NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons said manufacturers “believe in smart regulations that keep our communities and workplaces safe, but too often, these rules go too far or are too complex. Manufacturers want to invest more and hire more in the United States, but too often the cost of doing business — and even just functioning on a daily basis — makes that difficult.”

Drew Greenblatt, chairman of NAM’s Small and Medium Manufacturers Group, criticized the Obama administration for hindering small- and mid-sized firms’ success.

“Time and money that could be spent on job creation are instead wasted on complying with out-of-touch federal rules,” he said. “We believe in smart regulations — and simply want to see balance and common sense return to rule-making.”