{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.mccaskill.senate.gov/media-center/news-releases/for-missouri-entrepreneurs-mccaskill-aims-for-the-act-of-the-disappearing-regulation", "For Missouri Entrepreneurs, McCaskill Aims for ‘The Act of The Disappearing Regulation’", "2016-12-13", "2016", "2016-12", "Democrat", "House", "MO", "Claire McCaskill", "M001170", "www.mccaskill.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "For Missouri Entrepreneurs, McCaskill Aims for \u2018The Act of The Disappearing Regulation\u2019 \n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t Senator tells Department of Agriculture to create \u2018commonsense\u2019 exemption to rule requiring animal-handlers\u2014including magicians with rabbits\u2014to have a license from the federal government and government-approved plan \n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tTuesday, December 13, 2016\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tWASHINGTON \u2013 Working to pull a rabbit out of a hat for Missouri entrepreneurs and small business owners facing unnecessary federal bureaucracy, U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill\u2019s    \u201cAct of the Disappearing Regulation,\u201d takes aim at a requirement that animal handlers\u2014including magicians who keep a limited number of rabbits\u2014must have a federal government license and a government-approved emergency plan, to do so.\r\nWatch a short video on The Act of the Disappearing Regulation.\r\nMcCaskill is telling the Department of Agriculture to create a \u201ccommonsense\u201d exemption to this rule, highlighting the absurdity of a government requirement that a magician must have a license and federally-approved emergency plan for a rabbit that is part of a magic show.\r\n\u201cI relish the opportunity to arm-wrestle bureaucrats who dropped their common sense on their way into the office,\u201d McCaskill said. \u201cThis is a classic example of bureaucrats in Washington identifying a potential problem, but using a sledgehammer instead of a scalpel to address it. I can think of no earthly reason why a magician should be subject to a burdensome registration regulation from the government for his lone rabbit, and I\u2019ll be holding their feet to the fire to get this simple, long-overdue change across the finish line.\u201d\r\nThe 2014 Farm Bill\u2014which McCaskill helped pass into law after inaction from U.S. House Republicans\u2014provided an exemption for these magicians which would no longer require them to develop and submit a comprehensive disaster plan to cover the care of a rabbit under the Animal Welfare Act. Yet after a more than two-year delay, the Agriculture Department has yet to finalize this exemption.\r\nIn a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, McCaskill wrote: \u201cThe idea that any magician who keeps a limited number of rabbits or other common animals at home needs federal government license to do so flies in the face of common sense and can serve only to alienate well-meaning citizens from the many important roles and functions of the federal government,\u201d wrote \u00a0Therefore I urge you to finalize a rule to clearly exempt these operations that have no business being regulated by the Department.\u201d\r\nMcCaskill has repeatedly gone to bat for Missouri businesses\u2014working to prevent burdensome regulations and cut red tape. Last year\u2019s long-term highway bill included provisions of the Federal Permitting Improvement Act, which McCaskill sponsored with Republican Senator Rob Portman of Ohio, that streamlines and speeds up the federal permitting process for the largest and most complex projects, which were laden with an uncoordinated federal review process.\r\nShe has also worked to eliminate a redundant pesticide approvals process for Missouri\u2019s farmers and ranchers, opposed the EPA\u2019s Waters of the U.S. rule saying it \u201cgoes too far,\u201d prevented burdensome regulations on St. Louis-based manufacturer Unico Systems, led a successful fight against unnecessary EPA regulations that would have negatively impacted Ste. Genevieve-based manufacturer Holcim, and won a victory for supermarkets, grocery stores, and similar retail locations by securing a one-year delay in new menu labeling requirements from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.\r\nFull text of the letter HERE.\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\u00a0\r\nMcCaskill\u2019s Work to Curb Unreasonable Regulation\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nMcCaskill has consistently fought to curb unnecessary or unreasonable federal rules and regulations:\r\n\r\nPassed into law Federal Permitting Improvement Act, that streamlines and speeds up the federal permitting process for the largest and most complex projects, which were laden with an uncoordinated federal review process.\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nIntroduced bipartisan legislation for state and local governments struggling to meet federal ozone standards that would provide a \u201cpragmatic and reasonable\u201d option for regulators to meet the goals and avoid being saddled with a potentially economically damaging \u201cnonattainment\u201d status.\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nWon a victory for supermarkets, grocery stores, and similar retail locations by securing a one-year delay in new menu labeling requirements from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nLed a successful fight against unnecessary EPA regulations that would have negatively impacted Ste. Genevieve-based manufacturer Holcim\r\n\r\n\r\nSponsored a bipartisan amendment with Senator Blunt that would exempt farmers transporting crops, livestock, and equipment within 150 miles of their farm from regulations aimed at non-farm commercial vehicles and give individual states the freedom to establish safety rules\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nVisit mccaskill.senate.gov/jobs to learn more about McCaskill\u2019s fight to boost job opportunities for Missouri.\r\n###\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tPrint\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tEmail\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t  \n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tTweet", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.mccaskill.senate.gov/media-center/news-releases/for-missouri-entrepreneurs-mccaskill-aims-for-the-act-of-the-disappearing-regulation"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 3.3693849109113216, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}