Necessary Bill: Chemical spill legislation should be reconsidered | Martinsburg Journal
Conservatives are absolutely right in pointing out that our nation is the most over-regulated place on the planet. That said, they are wrong to use that as justification for opposing a necessary new regulation.
U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., has introduced a bill that would require states to inspect chemical storage facilities near water supplies. Manchin wants such inspections at least once every three years.
His bill is a reaction to the massive chemical spill that disrupted water service to about 300,000 West Virginians last month.
Senate leaders say Manchin's bill probably will pass. But it is a different story in the House of Representatives. There, Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, "has said there are enough regulations on the books," according to The Associated Press.
There certainly are. A few thousand of them ought to be rescinded.
But the West Virginia chemical spill is persuasive evidence that Manchin's bill is needed.
Boehner is right, generally speaking. But on the Manchin bill, he is wrong and should reconsider.
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