Regulations
We Need Protection from Industrial Hazards in Our Communities
Apr 19, 2013 by Randy Rabinowitz
On Wednesday, a fire at the West Fertilizer Co. in West, TX, caused an explosion so powerful it registered 2.1 on the Richter scale and leveled significant parts of this rural community. As many as 15 people died and around 200 were injured, many gravely. We still do not know what caused the explosion or whether it could have been prevented with better safety practices and regulatory oversight.
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CEO of Alcoa Embraces Regulations as Good for Business, the Economy
Jan 18, 2013 by Katie Greenhaw
The fact that public protections can increase productivity, spur innovation, and encourage creation of new markets is not news to us – or, apparently, to business leaders. New standards can create incentives to improve technologies and manufacturing processes
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Regulatory Delay in 2012
Dec 18, 2012
Congressional opponents of public protections spent much of 2012 attempting to increase the procedural hurdles to establishing new rules that would implement federal laws and standards. Efforts to attack the scientific evidence employed by agencies continued. Both efforts are likely to re-emerge next year.
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Anti-Regulatory Bill Would Limit the SEC's Ability to Protect Investors
Nov 6, 2012
A pending anti-regulatory bill that targets independent regulatory agencies would significantly curtail the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) ability to protect investors from financial fraud and other economic hazards. The Independent Agency Regulatory Analysis Act of 2012 (S. 3468) would require independent agencies to conduct formal cost-benefit analyses for all significant rules and would allow the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) to review those analyses. This would cause lengthy delays in implementing the financial oversight contained in the Dodd-Frank law.
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Regulations.gov Releases New Features
Oct 3, 2012 by Katie Greenhaw
This week, Regulations.gov released new enhancements to the site as part of a continuing redesign and improvement effort. There are more changes to come, but the latest features make rulemaking dockets easier to navigate and understand.
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The Regulatory Tsunami That Wasn’t
Sep 27, 2012
This report shows that there is little difference between the Obama administration and past administrations in their overall level of regulatory activity. There has been an increase in the number of significant rules during the Obama administration, but that has been driven by the statutory and judicial deadlines the Obama administration faced and by regulatory actions left uncompleted by prior administrations. The number of pending regulations leading into this election year is remarkably similar to comparable time periods under past administrations and does not provide any evidence of plans for an avalanche of regulations to come.
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Celebrating Thousands of Lives Saved on the Road
Sep 10, 2012 by Randy Rabinowitz
This week, as we commute to our jobs or take our kids to school, take a moment to reflect on the differences made by the landmark Highway Safety Act and the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act, signed into law on Sept. 9, 1966.
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Updated: House Majority Trying to Shut Down Safeguards – Again
Jul 20, 2012 by Jessica Randall
The highlight of next week's legislative calendar in the House is likely to be a vote on H.R. 4078, the misleadingly named "Red Tape Reduction and Small Business Job Creation Act." With this vote, the House majority is set to launch yet another attack to shut down the safeguards that protect Americans against health, safety, and economic disasters.
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National Transportation Safety Board: Pipeline Regulations Need Teeth
Jul 13, 2012 by Jessica Randall
On July 10, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) announced its report on the 2010 Kalamazoo River oil spill in Michigan. The report is a scathing indictment of Enbridge Energy, the company responsible for the safety of the pipeline involved in the spill, but also blames inadequate federal regulation.
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Why "Obamacare" Supporters Need to Care about the Health of the Regulatory System
Jun 28, 2012 by Jessica Randall
By now, you’ve almost certainly heard about the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision in “the health care case” (National Federation of Independent Businesses v. Sebelius). In short, the majority ruled that the mandate is a legitimate exercise of Congress’s power to tax and that financial incentives can be used to encourage states to expand Medicaid eligibility.
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