White House Influence and Interference

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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Climate Change Memo Controversy: Lessons Learned

May 14, 2009 by Matthew Madia

The Small Business Administration (SBA) is the source of some controversial language in a climate change memo sent from the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to the EPA, according to news reports.

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OMB Watch Calls on Obama Administration to Improve Scientific Integrity

May 13, 2009 by Matthew Madia

On May 13, OMB Watch submitted to the White House recommendations for improving scientific integrity in the federal government. From the comments:

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OIRA Looms Large over Rules, GAO Says

May 13, 2009 by Matthew Madia

This week, the Government Accountability Office released a report on the rulemaking process. GAO had been asked by Congress in 2007 to assess agency rulemaking practices and to pay particular attention to the role of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) – the Executive Branch gatekeeper for all things regulatory.

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OMB Watch Statement on Cass Sunstein Confirmation Hearing

WASHINGTON, May 13, 2009—On May 12, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee held a hearing on the nomination of Cass Sunstein to be administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). A highly respected academic, Professor Sunstein has authored a number of provocative writings on regulation and the regulatory process. His hearing was the first opportunity to hear how he would implement President Barack Obama's regulatory agenda.

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OMB Denies Interference in EPA Climate Policy

May 12, 2009 by Matthew Madia

Today, White House Office of Management and Budget Director Peter Orszag issued a statement denying that his office made any attempt to push back against the Environmental Protection Agency’s recent notice that called greenhouse gases a threat to the public.

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Questions for OIRA’s Cass Sunstein

May 6, 2009 by Matthew Madia

The Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee has scheduled a hearing on the nomination of Cass Sunstein to be the administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA). The hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, May 12 at 10:00am, and it looks like it will be webcast.

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Did the Obama White House Meddle with EPA’s GHG Finding?

Apr 29, 2009 by Matthew Madia

On April 17, the Environmental Protection Agency declared that greenhouse gas emissions are a threat to public health and welfare. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson made the so-called endangerment finding under section 202 of the Clean Air Act. The finding now obliges EPA to regulate emissions under the Act.

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Comments on New Regulatory Order Pour into OMB

Approximately 170 groups and individuals submitted comments for the Obama administration to consider as it begins reshaping or retaining the current regulatory structure. Although they varied significantly in many details, the comments reflect a familiar split between business interests and public interests that has characterized the regulatory debate for years.

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Sunstein Officially Nominated

Apr 20, 2009 by Matthew Madia

The internets are buzzing with the news that President Obama has officially nominated Harvard Law Professor Cass Sunstein to head the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs – the administration’s gatekeeper for all things regulatory.

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Will Sunstein Substitute Information for Regulation?

Apr 10, 2009 by Matthew Madia

Grist, the environmental news website, has posted an interview with Cass Sunstein, President Obama’s supposed pick to lead the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA).

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