In a new blog post written for The Huffington Post, OMB Watch Executive Director Gary Bass finds similarities among the BP oil spill, the Massey Energy mine explosion, and Toyota's massive vehicle recall. "In each instance, businesses with poor safety records have continued to operate in a system of voluntary regulation," Bass writes.

In recent months, failures at BP's Deepwater Horizon Gulf of Mexico facility injured and likely killed 11 oil rig workers and spawned an unprecedented environmental catastrophe; an explosion at Massey Energy's Upper Big Branch mine in West Virginia killed 29 miners; and a recall of millions of Toyota vehicles occurred after an acceleration defect was linked to injuries and deaths. These events have a few things in common, not the least of which is that they all illustrate a governmental failure to effectively regulate business activity and protect the public.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s plans for a single, environmentally-protective proposal to regulate coal ash were changed during a six-month review at the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA). An internal administration document released Friday shows the significant edits made to EPA’s original draft.