Obama Nominates Howard Shelanski to Lead Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs

On April 25, President Obama nominated Howard Shelanski as administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA). If confirmed, Shelanski would replace Cass Sunstein, who resigned from the position last August, leaving behind a record of lengthy delays.

read in full

Industry Interests Testify in Support of Bill Targeting Public’s Right to Hold Government Accountable

The House Subcommittee on Regulatory Reform, Commercial and Antitrust Law, held a hearing Wednesday on proposed legislation that would limit the rights of citizens to enforce legal deadlines and hold government agencies accountable when they fail to perform the tasks assigned to them by Congress. Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA) and Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) introduced identical versions of the bill, entitled the Sunshine for Regulatory Decrees and Settlements Act, in the House and Senate back in May. 

read in full

Improving Rules on Implementing the Freedom of Information Act

Up-to-date Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) rules that support transparency are important for ensuring agencies are properly implementing the law. Last week, the Center for Effective Government submitted comments to the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) on its proposed FOIA implementation regulations and encouraged the agency to expand online disclosures, improve communication with requesters, clarify fees and fee waivers, and improve the process of submitting and processing administrative appeals.

read in full

Court Says FDA Failed to Comply with Food Safety Rule Deadlines

This week, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California concluded that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) by failing to comply with specific deadlines for food safety rules, which were set out in the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). For a number of major food safety regulation areas, FDA failed to meet the dates set for completion. Although some of the rules were proposed in January, many remain under review at FDA or the White House.

read in full

President Obama’s Budget Proposal Assumes Flawed Poultry Inspection Rule Will Be Finalized

Yesterday, the president released the proposed budget for funding the federal government in Fiscal Year (FY) 2014. The budget for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) assumes savings from finalizing a controversial proposed rule to change the way chickens and other poultry are inspected in processing plants.

read in full

Sunstein’s “Simpler Government” Is Legally Suspect, Overly Secretive And Politically Unaccountable

By Lisa Heinzerling
Originally posted on Think Progress

In his new book, “Simpler: The Future of Government,” Harvard law professor Cass Sunstein writes about his nearly four years as President Barack Obama’s “regulatory czar.” As the Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (known as “OIRA”) within the Office of Management and Budget, Sunstein oversaw the regulatory output of the many agencies of the executive branch. Rules on worker health, environmental protection, food safety, health care, consumer protection, and more all passed through Sunstein’s inbox.

read in full

Kudos to the Office of Advocacy!

The Center for Effective Government recently published a report criticizing the Office of Advocacy at the Small Business Administration for catering to the anti-regulatory agenda of Big Business rather than representing the unique interests of small business. Among other issues raised in our report was a concern that the environmental roundtables held by the Office of Advocacy were too one-sided – with the presentations at the roundtables dominated by opponents of regulation. 

read in full

Stronger Standards for Hazardous Chemicals Benefit the Public and Spur Innovation

Stronger standards for hazardous chemicals not only protect human health and the environment, but can also spur innovation and benefit the economy. A recent report, Driving Innovation: How stronger laws help bring safer chemicals to market, examined the impact of laws governing hazardous chemicals and found that the prospect of stricter laws on toxic chemicals sparked the invention, development, and adoption of alternatives. The demand for these alternatives is growing globally.

read in full

More American Workers Will Die as Silica Rule Delayed

Silica has long been known to cause silicosis, a progressive, irreversible, but preventable lung disease that kills people. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) reported that in 2007, 120 workers died from silicosis; 180-360 new cases of the disease are reported each year. Recent evidence shows that silica exposure also causes lung cancer. OSHA estimates that a lower allowable limit on silica in the workplace would prevent 60 deaths each year.

read in full

New Web Tool Provides Easy Tracking of Rulemaking Comments

A new online tool allows users to better follow the rulemaking process and monitor the public comments agencies receive on proposed rules. Docket Wrench, launched by the Sunlight Foundation, provides access to more than 3.5 million regulatory documents. The tool is intended to help the public follow the influence of special interests in the rulemaking process by tracking and grouping their comments.

read in full

Pages

Subscribe to The Fine Print: blog posts from Center for Effective Government