mr. speaker , in america , the road to opportunity is a fast-moving highway .  any american with creativity and simply a desire to work hard can achieve their dreams .  anyone can succeed .  anyone can start a business .  our road to opportunity has been an open road .  but unfortunately , our government , sometimes with very noble intentions , is putting up red lights , stoplights and dead ends on the road to opportunity .  the heavy burden of needless governmental regulation is slowing down hard-driving americans , americans whose diligence and hard work is needed to secure our nation 's economic future .  let us consider a few numbers for a moment .  the regulatory burden on united states businesses is more than $ 850 billion each and every year .  the small business administration says that complying with all of the government 's rules and regulations costs small businesses a staggering $ 7 , 000 per employee .  american taxpayers spend an estimated $ 250 billion a year every year just trying to comply with the american federal income tax code .  this crippling over-regulation can destroy the entrepreneurial spirit .  it is a hidden tax on our businesses and on our citizens .  simply put , the cost of doing business in america is quickly rising .  and make no mistake , our foreign competitors are capitalizing on it .  our trade deficit is now an unbelievable $ 670 billion and growing .  it is time for america to reopen the road to opportunity , and it is imperative that this congress and this nation enact a competitiveness agenda .  it is unacceptable that the cost of frivolous litigation now exceeds $ 230 billion a year .  that interpolates to $ 2 , 000 for every american household .  our citizens , business owners and entrepreneurs face enough hurdles as it is .  our government does not need to raise new ones .  we need to focus on eliminating some of the ones we have .  we must and will make america more competitive in the global marketplace .  i know by working together we can do the right thing for the american people , for american business and for america 's future .  let us remove the red lights , remove the stop signs and the dead ends and reopen the road to opportunity .  i urge my colleagues to support this resolution .  