Political 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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Political Influence Leads to Revised Endangered Species Decisions

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) will revise seven of eight decisions made under the Endangered Species Act program after reviewing them for improper political interference. The four-month review came as a result of a Department of Interior inspector general's investigation of allegations that former Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fish, Wildlife and Parks, Julie A. MacDonald, intimidated staff and changed the scientific information agency scientists developed for decisions about listing or delisting threatened or endangered species.

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Multinationals Push for New Greenhouse Gas Emissions Regulations

Two calls-to-action on cutting greenhouse gas emissions were released Nov. 30, shortly before world leaders met in Bali to begin outlining a global agreement to succeed the Kyoto Protocol. First, business leaders from 150 global firms issued a communiqué calling for "a comprehensive, legally binding United Nations framework to tackle climate change." Second, a report sponsored by a coalition of U.S businesses and nongovernmental organizations said the U.S. could reduce its output of greenhouse gas emissions substantially using existing technologies and low-cost emerging alternatives, but to do so "will require strong, coordinated, economy-wide action that begins in the near future."

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From Industry, a Big Push for Bad Regs

Dec 3, 2007 by Matthew Madia

In September, Reg•Watch blogged about a New York Times article highlighting a recent trend in which businesses are asking the federal government to regulate them. In some cases, the businesses' intentions seem good. In other cases, the requests may be nothing more than political maneuvering. An article in yesterday's Times revisits the latter of those two cases:

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Draft Guidance Would Create Drug Approval Loophole

Nov 30, 2007 by Matthew Madia

An investigation by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee shows that FDA is considering a new policy (which would take the form of a draft guidance document) that would allow drug companies to market unapproved use of pharmaceuticals by distributing journal articles. In a letter to FDA Commissioner Andrew von Eschenbach, Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) explains the problem:

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To Protect Donors Trade Groups Seek Clarification on New Disclosure Provision of S.1

Nov 29, 2007 by Amanda Adams*

Trade associations still do not want to be included in the stealth lobbying coalition provision of the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act (S.1). The Hill reports, "Trade groups like the U.S.

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Testimony on Amending Executive Order 12866

Testimony of Gary Bass, Executive Director of OMB Watch, at the April 26, 2007 House Science and Technology Committee subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight hearing, "Amending Executive Order 12866: Good Governance or Regulatory Usurpation?: Part II"

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Testimony on Amending Executive Order 12866

Testimony of Rick Melberth, OMB Watch Director of Regulatory Policy, at the February 13, 2007 House Science and Technology Committee subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight hearing, "Amending Executive Order 12866: Good Governance or Regulatory Usurpation?"

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E.O. 13422: Unanswered and Unaccountable

On Jan. 18, 2007, President George W. Bush issued Executive Order 13422, which amends Executive Order 12866, Regulatory Planning and Review. As of July 24, 2007, agencies are to be in full compliance with the changes. But despite great attention paid by Congress, the media and the public, little new information has surfaced. This analysis outlines the ways in which the American people remain in the dark about how these changes will influence the way our government operates.

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White House Issues Memo on Nanotechnology Oversight

Nov 27, 2007 by Matthew Madia

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and Council on Environmental Quality have issued a memo to federal agencies titled, "Principles for Nanotechnology Environmental, Health, and Safety Oversight."

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Latest Analyses from OMB Watch

Nov 21, 2007 by Matthew Madia

Every two weeks, in OMB Watch's e-newsletter The Watcher, we analyze a few recent issues in regulatory policy. Here are the articles from the November 20 issue: More of the Same: Import Safety Panel Leaves Business in Charge The Bush administration's cabinet-level Interagency Working Group on Import Safety released its final report Nov. 6 on ways to improve the safety of food and consumer products imported into the U.S. The report calls for limited increases in some federal agencies' responsibilities but does little to change the current voluntary regulatory scheme for imports. Read more...

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