By Brandon Moseley
Wednesday, both Sens. Tommy Tuberville (R-Alabama) and Richard Shelby (R-Alabama) were among the Senators to file a formal challenge against President Joseph R. Biden’s (D) vaccine mandate under the Congressional Review Act.
“An individual’s decision to take – or not to take – the vaccine is their personal choice,” Sen. Tuberville said. “President Biden’s authoritarian vaccine mandate has already created workforce shortages and wreaked havoc on our supply chains.”
The challenge by Republican Senators was led by Sen. Mike Braun (R-Indiana) who is the Ranking Member of the HELP Subcommittee on Employment and Workplace Safety.
“Today, Senate Republicans will formally challenge the overreach of federal power that is President Biden’s vaccine-or-test mandate for private businesses, and I urge the Senate to vote in favor of this disapproval resolution when it comes to the Floor for a filibuster-proof, simple-majority vote as soon as early December,” Sen. Braun said. “Republicans are united against President Biden’s vaccine-or-test mandate for businesses, but this federal overreach is not a partisan issue, and the consequences of this mandate are affecting Americans in all 50 states.”
Congressman Fred Keller (R-Pennsylvania) and other Republican Representatives introduced the same bill in the House. Keller is the ranking member of the subcommittee on Workforce Protections in the U.S. House of Representatives.
“I'm proud to join with my colleagues in this effort,” said Congressman Gary Palmer (R-AL06). “President Biden's vaccine mandate is one of the most egregious government overreaches we've ever seen.”
“President Biden's vaccine mandates are a blatant overreach of the federal government,” said Congressman Barry Moore (R-AL02). “Has President Biden turned his back on individual liberties? This is a decision that the American people must make with their doctor, not Joe Biden.”
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, in an opinion issued Friday evening, reaffirmed its Nov. 6 decision to press pause on the implementation of the OSHA rule.
The three-judge panel made clear that the lawsuits seeking to overturn the mandates “are likely to succeed on the merits,” and criticized the requirements as “a one-size-fits-all sledgehammer that makes hardly any attempt to account for differences in workplaces (and workers).”
To implement this mandate, OSHA issued an Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS). Employers that fail to comply with the federal order will be fined $13, 653 for each offense and willful violations will result in a $136,532 penalty.
Republicans argue that this rule places unrealistic compliance burdens on employers. Thirty days after publication, all requirements other than testing for employees must be in place. In addition, 60 days after publication, all testing requirements must be in place.
Republicans are attempting to use the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to overturn certain federal agency regulations and actions through a joint resolution of disapproval. If a CRA joint resolution of disapproval is approved by both houses of Congress and signed by the President, or if Congress successfully overrides a presidential veto, the rule at issue is invalidated.
Since President Biden gave the order, it is unlikely that he will sign to overturn his order – which he could do with an executive order anyway – and it is unlikely that the Republicans can get enough Democratic votes to override a presidential veto.
An estimated 80 million workers are affected by Biden’s vaccine mandates.
(Original reporting by CNBC’s Spencer Kimball contributed to this report.)
