The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association thanked the U.S. House of Representatives for passing a bill today that would close loopholes in previous legislation and protect small businesses from undue regulatory burdens. The bill, H.R. 527, the Small Business Regulatory Flexibility Improvements Act of 2015, passed by a vote of 260-163. “We would like to thank Rep. Steve Chabot for his leadership on the Committee on Small Business on this issue and applaud the House’s passage of this legislation,” said Todd Spencer, Executive Vice President.  “Good government and sound policy demand that agencies fully understand the impacts of proposed regulations, especially on small businesses,” Spencer continued. “However, for far too long, loopholes have allowed regulations to take a shortcut around a true accounting of regulatory costs and benefits.  Trucking, which is dominated by small businesses, is probably the greatest example of why this legislation is needed.” In the 1980s, Congress passed the Regulatory Flexibility Act to require agencies to ensure that small businesses are not unduly impacted by regulatory burdens.   H.R. 527 amends the Regulatory Flexibility Act to expand the number of rules covered and to require agencies to perform additional analysis of regulations that affect small businesses. It also would provide new authorities to the Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy to intervene and provide support for agency rulemaking. Finally, H.R. 527 would require the Government Accountability Office to report on the implementation of the legislation and would broaden the definition of a “rule” for rulemaking purposes to include agency guidance documents and policy statements.  The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association is the only national trade association representing the interests of all professional truck drivers and small-business trucking companies. OOIDA was established in 1973 in the greater Kansas City, Mo. area and has grown to nearly 150,000 active members nationwide.