Notice and Comment

Feb 8, 2016

Top 400 Taxpayers See Tax Rates Rise, But There’s More to the Story

As Americans were gathering party supplies to greet the New Year, the Internal Revenue Service released their annual report of cumulative tax data reported on the 400 tax r...

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Feb 4, 2016

Chlorine Bleach Plants Needlessly Endanger 63 Million Americans

Chlorine bleach plants across the U.S. put millions of Americans in danger of a chlorine gas release, a substance so toxic it has been used as a chemical weapon. Greenpeace’s new repo...

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Jan 25, 2016

U.S. Industrial Facilities Reported Fewer Toxic Releases in 2014

The Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data for 2014 is now available. The good news: total toxic releases by reporting facilities decreased by nearly six percent from 2013 levels. Howe...

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Jan 22, 2016

Methane Causes Climate Change. Here's How the President Plans to Cut Emissions by 40-45 Percent.

UPDATE (Jan. 22, 2016): Today, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released its proposed rule to reduce methane emissions...

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more news

Obama Turning Back Clock on Some Bush Midnight Rules

The Obama administration is taking action to reverse controversial regulations finalized in the closing days of the Bush administration, including one affecting endangered species and another limiting access to reproductive health services.

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Endangered Species Rule Targeted in House Spending Bill

Feb 27, 2009 by Matthew Madia

The House version of the FY 2009 omnibus appropriations bill, passed on Feb. 25, contains a provision that could reverse a Bush-era rule that weakened the Endangered Species Act. The regulation, published jointly Dec. 16 by the departments of Interior and Commerce and effective as of Jan. 15, was pilloried by environmentalists who say it will cut experts out of the process for listing species as endangered.

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HHS Will Revise Bush Reproductive Health Rule

Feb 27, 2009 by Matthew Madia

The Health and Human Services Department will revise a controversial regulation finalized under the Bush administration. The rule, which took effect Jan. 20, gives health care providers the right to refuse to provide women with access to or information about reproductive health services, if the provider objects on moral or religious grounds. It is sometimes called the provider conscience rule.

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USDA Tries to Tighten COOL Rules

Feb 25, 2009 by Matthew Madia

USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack is asking, but not telling, the meat industry to go above and beyond labeling requirements set out in new regulations finalized during the Bush administration.

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EPA Preparing to Battle Climate Change on Multiple Fronts

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), led by new administrator Lisa Jackson, is taking its first steps toward tackling global climate change. Jackson has announced her intent to review several Bush-era policies that limited the agency's ability to curb greenhouse gas emissions through regulation.

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Climate Change Rules Among Obama's First

Feb 13, 2009 by Matthew Madia

The Environmental Protection Agency is preparing to issue two climate change proposals in the near future. EPA has sent the White House two draft proposed rules: one that would mandate an increase in the proportion of biofuels in the national gasoline supply and another that would create a registry for greenhouse gas emissions.

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Obama EPA to Reverse Bush Air Pollution Loophole

Feb 12, 2009 by Matthew Madia

The Environmental Protection Agency will delay the effective date of a rule finalized under the Bush administration that would add a loophole to the agency's New Source Review program. EPA's decision comes in response to a petition from the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). EPA also cites a memo from White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel which granted agencies leeway to address some Bush regulations.

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New Limits on Toxins in Toys Take Effect

Effective Feb. 10, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) will begin enforcing new standards for children's products containing lead and phthalates. The standards take effect just days after a federal court voided a Bush administration effort to legalize the sale of products not meeting the standards if the products had been manufactured before Feb. 10. CPSC is enforcing the regulations in response to a 2008 law that gives the agency new powers and responsibilities to protect the public from potentially dangerous consumer products.

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Midnight Regulations

clock The Bush administration rushed out a host of problematic regulations in its final months. Many of these "midnight" regulations actually represent deregulatory actions that weaken or eliminate safeguards protecting health, safety, the environment, and the public's general welfare. Now, the Obama administration and Congress bear the responsibility for undoing Bush's last minute actions. Check here frequently for the latest news.

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Action on Midnight Rules Switches to Agencies

Jan 29, 2009 by Matthew Madia

One of the first tasks on the to-do list for new Obama administration agency heads will be dealing with the midnight regulations left by the Bush administration. The White House has likely said all its going to say on the issue (more here), but the majority of Bush's regulations are still unaddressed.

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