Senate Bill Would Combine Commerce and Labor Departments
On May 26, 2011, Senator Burr (R) introduced S. 1116, a bill that would consolidate the Department of Labor and the Department of Commerce into a single, new agency called the Department of Commerce and the Workforce (DOCW).
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According to Senator Burr’s press release, S. 1116 would combine duplicative functions and improve the quality of U.S. economic policies by ensuring a consistent, coordinated approach. The bill would preserve the independent functions of both agencies and would not make changes to specific policy and, in addition to combining Commerce and Labor programs and offices with substantially similar missions, the bill would combine the support and administrative offices of the two agencies and would take the recommendations from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to eliminate ineffective or duplicative programs.
The bill would also place the Small Business Administration within the Commerce Department and transfer the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration from Commerce to the Interior Department.
Senator Burr’s press release available here