The US House Appropriations Committee last week approved a bill that strips the Department of Labor of its funding in the 2016 budget for its worker misclassification program, according to the National Association of Home Builders blog.

The committee passed the Labor, Health and Human Services funding bill on a 30-21 vote. The bill provides a total of $11.7 billion for the DOL, which is $206 million below the fiscal year 2015 enacted budget and $1.4 billion below the president’s request.

“… through the inclusion of several important policy provisions, we have taken steps to rein in the excessive overreach of the Department of Labor and the National Labor Relations Board,” LHHS Subcommittee Chairman Tom Cole said.

“While the action on its face may portend a more business friendly DOL, it is far too early for companies to pop the champagne and open the IC floodgates,” said Bryan Peña, VP of contingent workforce strategies and research at Staffing Industry Analysts. “There are still plenty of opportunities for businesses to get into trouble for improperly engaging IC’s. State enforcement, IRS audits and class action lawsuits continue to be on the rise. As it has been said before, the sad fact remains that our 20th-century employment laws are failing our 21st-century economy.”