Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives unveiled a 2012 appropriations bill that would cut 11.5 percent from the FDA’s budget.

The proposal comes after several GOP attacks on the FDA, including a February inquiry by Rep. Joe Pitts (R.-Pa.) into why the FDA’s medical device approval process takes longer than the European regulatory process.

Last week medical device advocate Rep. Erik Paulsen (R-Minn.) announced intentions to revamp FDA policies that he says reduce medical technology jobs across the country.

The cut amounts to about $285 million dollars, reports The Hill’s Healthwatch blog.

If successful, the gestures could undermine the federal watchdog agency’s call for stricter 510(k) regulations and even put a wrinkle in the re-authorization of the Medical Device User Fee Act set for 2012.

House hearings on the FDA and medical devices were supposed to take place in April, but were postponed indefinitely.