76-01-A6

- Main Page \ Reagan Radio Commentaries \ 1976

<< Previous Broadcast

Next Broadcast >>

Getting Back at the Bureaucrats A

Transcript Anyone who has been plagued by bureaucratic nonsense, forms to fill out, regulations to comply with even though they make little sense, has to be a fan of a Mayor in Texas. I'll be right back. The Mayor of Midland Texas, Ernest Angelo will see that Midland never suffers the problems of New York City. As a matter of fact New York would never have suffered the problems of New York City if it had, had a few Ernie Angelos in City Hall these past 20 years. As a former Governor I can testify as to the ridiculous demands inflicted on state and local government by the paper pushers of the Potomac. And I know any of you listening who are in business or who farm can reel off personal horror stories of the hours of spent filling out government required paperwork and bowing to the demands of senseless regulations. Well give a listen, you'll enjoy the Mayor of Midlands revenge. Mayor Angelo struggled through a bureaucratic jungle of red tape in the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to obtain for his city some Federal funds that were due. It took him 8 long, frustrating months of paperwork, questionnaires in duplicate, triplicate and quad-druplicate before he broke through into daylight. Then one day the regional office of H.U.D. (that's bureaucratese for the Housing and Urban Development Agency) requested a reserved parking space at the Midland municipal airport. Mayor Angelo was delighted to comply with the request—if H.U.D. would do a little complying. He sent a letter to the Dallas regional office of H.U.D. with copies to the President, Secretary Carla Hills and a few others in Washington. His letter requested 3 executed and 14 confirmed copies of their application. It further said, "Submit the make and model of the proposed vehicle to be parked in the space together with certified assurance that everyone connected with the manufacture, servicing and operations of same was paid according to a wage scale in compliance with the requirements of the Davis-Bacon Act. "Submit a genealogical table for everyone who will operate said vehicle so that we can ascertain that there will be a precisely exact equal percentage of whites, blacks and other minorities as well as women and the elderly. Submit certified assurances that all operators of said vehicle and any filling station personnel that service same will be equipped with steel-toed boots, safety goggles, and crash helmets, and that the vehicle will be equipped with at least safety belts and an airbag in compliance with the Occupational Safety and Health Act. "Submit environmental impact statements"—well you get the idea.—His letter went on for quite a few additional paragraphs citing all the red tape requirements (so dear to the hearts of those who toil and spin on the banks of the Potomac). That would have to be complied with before favorable consideration could be given to their request for a parking space. Then Mayor Angelo added a postscript. He told them they could have their parking space without complying with all the aforementioned red tape. I hope he made his point because the General Accounting Office in Washington estimates the yearly cost of regulations at $60 Billion. The Federal Trade Commission puts it at $80 Billion—all waste due to regulatory overkill. Probably the correct figure is nearer the $130 Billion. The Council of Economic Advisors estimate is prorated out at $2000 per family. Maybe we'll talk some more about this tomorrow. This is Ronald Reagan. Thanks for listening.		Details Batch Number 76-01-A6 Production Date 09/01/1976 Book/Page RPtV-64, RS:SMM-53 Audio No Youtube? No
		Added Notes Ernest Angelo, Jr., a longtime Republican party loyalist, was the mayor of Midland,Texas, from 1972—1980. He was a personal friend of Reagan’s and served as a delegate to the Republican National Convention in 1983 and as a presidential elector in 2000. New York City's banks refused to lend the city additional money. The city faced banktuptcy. The Davis-Bacon Act requires that workers on federal and state construction contracts worth $2,000 or more be paid the “prevailing wage," which includes a specified hourly fringe benefit amount.