CONGRESS RULES

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, March 17, 1993                   TAG: 9303170393
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A6   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short
CONGRESS RULES
IT COMES as good news that a congressional panel, the Joint Committee on the Organization of Congress, is studying the practice by which Congress members exempt themselves from laws that they pass.
This abuse is neither as obvious nor as outrageous as it may appear. An executive branch that could harass or threaten Congress members with its power to prosecute or arrest, would be a branch ill-conforming with the Constitution's wise separation of powers.
Nonetheless, the exemptions have gone too far. They've hurt the reputation of the institution (OK, so there wasn't much to hurt). They've also invited the justifiable criticism that lawmakers don't appreciate the impact of all the rules they impose.
Among the laws from which Congress has exempted itself: the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972, Equal Pay Act, Occupational Safety and Health Act, Freedom of Information Act, Americans with Disabilities Act. Etc.
It wouldn't hurt if congressmen had to feel firsthand the frustration of Americans who have to adhere to some of these regulations.

by Archana Subramaniam by CNB