Politics

Rand Paul: Congress should be restricted from writing bills about multiple subjects

Alex Pappas Political Reporter
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Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky has introduced three pieces of legislation that he argues would increase transparency in government — including one that would restrict lawmakers from addressing more than one subject in bills they draft.

The Republican lawmaker’s One Subject at a Time Act would “end the practice of including more than one subject in a single bill by requiring that each bill enacted by Congress be limited to only one subject.”

“Too often in Congress, legislation is shoved through without hearings, amendments or debate,” Paul said in a statement about the legislation. “Elected officials are rarely given an adequate amount of time to read the bills in full, and unlike Rep. Nancy Pelosi, I believe we must read the bills before passing them into law.”

“If we are to answer to the American people,” Paul said, “it is imperative we pay close attention to how legislation is written and the subject matter it pertains to. These three bills will do just that.”

The legislation aims to simplify the legislative process: “If the title of an Act or joint resolution addresses two or more unrelated subjects, then the entire Act or joint resolution is void,” the bill states.

The bill also states that “An appropriations bill shall not contain any general legislation.”

Paul also introduced the Write the Laws Act, which changes what Paul calls the “unconstitutional delegation of legislative power” and the Read the Bills Act, which among other things, requires the clerk of the House of Representatives and the Secretary of the Senate to read each bill and resolution in full before voted on by legislators.

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Alex Pappas