madam speaker , i yield myself such time as i may consume . 
madam speaker , today we will debate four important bills that make modest reforms to the occupational safety and health act . 
these measures ensure that small business owners who make good faith efforts to comply with health and safety laws are dealt with fairly and equitably by the occupational safety and health administration . 
nearly every employer recognizes that improving workplace safety is good for business , and it is good for workers . 
employers are subject to fierce competition both at home and abroad and must compete in the face of high taxes , skyrocketing health costs , escalating litigation , and burdensome government regulations . 
these osha reform bills are designed to improve worker safety and enhance the competitiveness of small businesses that are the real engine of job growth in our country . 
the u.s. economy continues to grow , and more and more employers are continuing to hire workers each month . 
last week , the labor department reported that more than 3.7 million new jobs have been created since may of 2003 , marking 25 consecutive months of sustained job creation . 
but we need to make sure that onerous government regulations do not hamstring small businesses ' ability to continue to hire new workers and compete in our economy . 
that is why these bills are so important . 
madam speaker , since republicans assumed leadership of congress 10 years ago , we have undertaken considerable efforts to make bureaucracy more responsive and more accountable to workers and taxpayers . 
let me give just a few examples : we stopped unwarranted and invasive osha regulations proposed by the clinton administration that would have held employers liable for the safety of their employees who work from home . 
we stopped one of the most over-reaching attempts at regulation in our nation 's history by repealing an irresponsible and unworkable ergonomics regulation that would have cost employers billions of dollars and killed millions of jobs . 
we have dealt with the problem of costly unfunded mandates by ensuring that congress does not pass expensive legislation and then place it onto the backs of state and local governments . 
this decade of progress on regulatory reform should give every american confidence that congress is making positive steps every year to improve government accountability . 
and today we want to take one more step , one more positive step to help improve workplace safety , i think a goal we all share . 
osha , under the bush administration , has made significant efforts to supplement traditional enforcement programs with cooperative partnerships between the agency and employers . 
i am pleased to report these voluntary programs have proven successful in reducing workplace injuries and illnesses . 
in fact , if we look at this chart , workplace injuries and fatalities have declined significantly during the bush administration . 
and as this chart shows , workplace injuries and illnesses have declined significantly under the bush administration to their lowest point in history , to a rate of just five injuries or illnesses per 100 workers . 
moreover , workplace fatalities have made similar declines . 
there has been a 5.8 percent reduction in workplace fatalities since the bush administration took office , and that is significant progress . 
why has such progress been made ? 
because under this administration , osha and employers have started to work together more cooperatively and more proactively to solve workplace safety problems before injuries and fatalities occur . 
a gao report released last year said voluntary partnerships between osha and employers `` have considerably reduced the rates of injury and illness '' and have fostered `` better working relationships with osha , improved productivity , and decreased workers ' compensation costs. '' we strongly support osha targeting the bad actors that defy the law and compromise the safety of their workers , but we also need to recognize that most employers are good actors who work hard to address job safety concerns . 
no employer wants to deal with unnecessary osha-related litigation and escalating attorneys ' fees that would result from that enforcement . 
most employers want to comply with the law , and the offer of assistance from osha is enough to provide the incentive they need to make this investment . 
employers will use these resources because safety pays . 
the reform measures we will consider today are proposals that , while fairly modest in substance , are important to small business owners who struggle every day to comply with the complex osha laws and provide a safe working environment for their workers while facing an increasingly competitive worldwide economy . 
employers who make good faith efforts to comply with osha standards deserve to be treated fairly and have their day in court , and these commonsense bills will help ensure that they receive that opportunity . 
the first bill on tap today , the occupational safety and health small business day in court act gives the occupational safety and health review commission additional flexibility to make exceptions to the arbitrary 15-day deadline for employers to file responses to osha citations when a small business misses the deadline by a mistake or for good reason . 
this bill essentially codifies administrative action taken by the labor department last year and ensures appropriate disputes are resolved based on merit rather than legal technicalities . 
it passed the house with strong bipartisan support last year , and it deserves every member 's support . 
madam speaker , i reserve the balance of my time . 
