Republicans Launch Effort to Block New DOL Overtime Pay Rule

GOP lawmakers introduced a measure to block the US Department of Labor’s overtime rule, siding with business opposition that says the regulation will increase costs for employers.

Rep. Tim Walberg (Mich.) and Sen. Mike Braun (Ind.) introduced a resolution under the Congressional Review Act on Wednesday to block the rule from taking effect. The DOL’s rule would expand overtime pay eligibility to roughly 4 million workers by raising the exemption threshold annual salary to $58,656, and updating that rate every three years.

The regulation, which goes into effect July 1 in a phased implementation, has been targeted by major business groups and faces legal challenges in Texas district courts. Plaintiffs including the state of Texas argue that the DOL has exceeded its authority under the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Administrative Procedure Act, and that the rule would add burdensome costs on businesses and take away jobs.

“Small businesses, nonprofits, and colleges across America will now be looking at bottom lines, and then make the tough decisions to lay off valuable staff or force salaried workers into hourly positions,” Walberg said in a statement announcing the resolution. “The downstream impacts from this rule will include more inflation and pain for those already suffering from unsound economic policy.”

Republicans, with the help of some Democrats, have successfully pushed several CRA resolutions to undo the Biden administration’s regulatory agenda through the House and Senate.

The latest effort to block the overtime rule may face a uphill battle clearing Congress, however, given it’s an election year and increased access to time-and-a-half wages is popular among voters.

The CRA allows lawmakers to overturn agency rulemaking through a resolution that clears both chambers of Congress by simple majorities. To take effect, it also must be signed by the president, who has been a staunch defender of his administration’s rules since taking office.

President Joe Biden vetoed a CRA measure last year that would have blocked a DOL rule on environmental, social, and governance considerations in investing. More recently, he blocked a bipartisan resolution to undo a National Labor Relations Board rule revising its joint employer standard.