Based on data from the Government Accountability Office, an unprecedented 43 major new regulations were imposed by Washington. And based on reports from government regulators themselves, the total cost of these rules topped $26.5 billion, far more than any other year for which records are available. These costs will affect Americans in many ways, raising the price of the cars they buy and the food they eat, while destroying an untold number of jobs. With the enactment of new health care laws, financial regulations, and plans for rule-making in other areas, the regulatory burden on Americans is set to increase even further in the coming year. (Read the full report here)

With the enormous amount of new regulations meted out by the Obama administration, soon local communities will no longer need locally elected representatives. As the trend continues to regulate absolutely, the only thing left for local governments to do will be to enforce those new and mostly unconstitutional regulations and collect the fees and fines. Local representation will all but become obsolete as the Feds gain more control over state and county governance. As it stands today, 80 percent of local county budgets are dictated by State and Federal mandates. For the most part, local elections are a sham, overly expensive and unnecessary.