We all know what the wrecking balls of a second Obama term will
be: widespread unemployment, stagnant economic growth, enormous
debt. But the consequences don’t stop there.
Believing in activist government means your work is never
finished. You pass a new law that you think combats injustice and
inefficiency. Then human nature kicks in and, with great
disapprobation, you discover that injustice and inefficiency still
exist. So you pass another law, then another. And with no Mitt
Romney there to stop you, the Circle of Regulatory Life
continues.
With Barack Obama back in power, all the laws and rules from his
first term will stand. But regulations aren’t just text; they have
very real (and often unintended) consequences.
How will the president’s societal tinkering affect our lives
over the next four years? From the shocking to the quirky to the
bizarre, here are some of the things you might have missed:
More expensive cars
The president’s new
rule on vehicle emissions standards requires automakers to increase
their fleet averages to 35.5 miles per gallon by 2016 and a
whopping 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025. The National Automobile
Dealers Association calculates that this will drive up the price of
the average car or light truck by $3,000. Seven million potential
consumers will pass on buying a vehicle thanks to the added
cost.
Fewer stethoscopes
One of the deadliest heads on the Obamacare hydra is the medical
devices tax, which takes effect next year. The tax amounts to 2.3%
on the sale of every device, the equivalent of a 15% tax on
profits. It’s a sledgehammer to some of America’s most innovative
companies, and the companies are responding accordingly, laying off
workers and moving plants overseas. Research and development of new
devices, many of them life-saving, are expected to take a hit. A
recent report by Pricewaterhousecoopers found that investments in
the medical device and equipment sector are at their lowest level
since 2004.
Less access to special needs education
This one might sound like demagoguery, but bear with me. Obamacare,
for the first time, imposes a limit on Health Care Flexible
Spending Accounts (FSAs) in the amount of $2,500. FSAs allow for
pre-tax deductions into a separate account which the owner can
spend on health care throughout the year. FSAs are popular with
parents of special-needs children because the money can be used on
tuition for private schools that accommodate the disabled. But
$2,500 is nowhere near enough to pay that bill. It’s an effective
tax increase on some of the country’s most vulnerable children.
So long, free checking accounts
Back in 2010 when Chris Dodd and Barney Frank were working out how
to save the poor from villainous bank tycoons, one of the most
popular ideas was a limit on debit card transaction fees. This was
eventually codified in the Dodd-Frank law’s Durbin Amendment. Banks
had to make up the money from the fee restrictions somehow and free
checking accounts ended up on the chopping block. In 2009, 96% of
big banks offered free checking. By 2011, only 35% of them did.
More children in apartment complexes
If
you’re ever looking for a good laugh (or cry), head on over to the
Justice Department’s Civil
Rights Division website. Helmed by Eric Holder’s
hyper-litigious Savior of the Universe Thomas Perez, the CRD is
constantly crowing about their latest legal triumph over a
schoolyard bully or transgender-unfriendly bathroom.
One of their finest moments came when they settled a lawsuit
against the owner of a small apartment complex in South Carolina.
The landlord took out ads on Yahoo! and the Yellow Pages website
touting an age-21-and-up policy. That was all Perez needed to
allege discrimination and bring the full power of the federal
government to bear against a sixteen-unit apartment building. For
the crime of trying to create a mature living atmosphere, the owner
was fined $25,000. With Obama sticking around, expect Perez to
maintain vigilance against landlords trying to exercise their
property rights.
More pregnant prison guards
Another gem from the Civil Rights Division came in 2009 when an
Oklahoma sheriff was caught requiring pregnant confinement officers
to do deskwork until they had the baby. The DOJ caught wind of this
and lawyers were seen parachuting into Bryan County the next day.
The complaint was quickly settled; the pregnant women back guarding
the jail.
More horses at restaurants
Federal law accommodates the use of guide dogs by the blind, but
not the use of horses. This oversight was remedied by a new Justice
Department regulation that requires shops and restaurants to admit
miniature horses. The micro-mustangs must be accompanied by a blind
or disabled person. They also must be housebroken, which many
business owners claim is impossible, presenting their soiled floors
as proof. But no matter. This is about equality, dammit.
Easier miniature golf games
The worst holes on mini-golf courses are always the ones with the
steep slopes. Fortunately the Justice Department is on the case…not
to make the game easier, but to accommodate the disabled. As of
2010, at least half of all mini-golf holes must be “48 inches
minimum by 60 inches minimum with slopes not steeper than 1:48 at
the start of play.” Another non-problem solved.
Drier urinals
When you flush a urinal, you’re putting America one step closer to
a water crisis. That’s according to the Energy Conservation Program
for Consumer Products Other Than Automobiles (or ECPCPOTA for
short), which is recommending new efficiency standards for urinals,
along with faucets, showerheads, and water closets.
No more Roll Your Own tobacco
One of the smoking trends to arise in recent years was Roll Your
Own (RYO) tobacco. Customers would purchase the tobacco and insert
it into cigarettes sold in a machine in the same store. But thanks
to a provision snuck into this year’s transportation bill, RYO
tobacco is now taxed at the same steep rate as cigarettes. This
makes it impossible for most RYO stores to survive. “[The law is]
designed to put these people out of business,” Phil Acordino,
president of RYO Machines,
told the Huffington Post.
This might be an unfair addition to this list since there’s no
evidence Mitt Romney would have sided with smokers either. But it
shows just how cavalier the president is about destroying an entire
industry with regulation.
It’s going to be a long four years. You know, a smoke would
probably help right now. Especially one at a horse-free
restaurant.
