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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Wall Street Journal Stumps for Messy Anti-Regulatory Bill

Jan 14, 2011 by Matthew Madia

Today, the Wall Street Journal came out in favor of the REINS Act (introduced last year and sure to be introduced again) which would require all new major regulations – regardless of their benefit to the public – go before Congress before taking effect.

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GOP Eyes EPA's Climate Change Regulations as First Target

Jan 14, 2011 by Hal Gordon*

On January 2nd, the EPA began regulating climate altering greenhouse gas (ghg) emissions from stationary sources like for the first time. The long overdue action has the new Congress up in arms.

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Protecting the Public or Big Business? Battle Lines are Drawn

As the 112th Congress convenes, a renewed battle over the role of government in protecting the public is being waged. The battle reflects the decades-old myth that regulations are "job-killers" and that government must either sacrifice jobs to provide public safety or sacrifice lives, health, and environmental quality to protect jobs.

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Rules to Watch for in 2011

Federal agencies have released their rulemaking agendas for 2011, providing the public with a roadmap of the health, safety, and environmental safeguards it can anticipate in the new year.

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Issa Will Make Regulatory Hit Lists Public

Jan 11, 2011 by Matthew Madia

In December, Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA), now the new chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, wrote to industry lobbyists asking them to identify existing regulations that they want to see repealed.

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Despite Philosophical Shift, Regulatory Process Largely Unchanged

Jan 6, 2011 by Matthew Madia

The Obama administration has adopted a public-centric regulatory philosophy in its first two years in office, but has failed to transform the regulatory process as promised, according to a new OMB Watch report released today. The report, The Obama Approach to Public Protection: The Regulatory Process, is the third and final in a series of OMB Watch reports assessing the administration’s record on regulatory issues.

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Report Finds Regulatory Process Changes Stalled at Midterm Point of Obama Administration

WASHINGTON, Jan. 6, 2011—Today, OMB Watch released the third and final report in a series on public protections and the Obama administration. The new report, The Obama Approach to Public Protection: The Regulatory Process, finds that although the Obama administration's overall regulatory philosophy is strikingly different from that of the previous administration, promised changes to the federal regulatory process have stalled out.

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President Obama Signs Landmark Food Safety Bill

Jan 4, 2011 by Matthew Madia

This afternoon, President Obama signed into law the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, a major overhaul of food safety law and regulation. Consumer and food safety advocates are calling it a historic day. “This is the most important food safety advance in 70 years,” said Caroline Smith DeWaal, food safety director at the Center for Science in the Public Interest:

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Big Helping of Parliamentary Trickery Keeps Food Safety Bill Alive

Dec 20, 2010 by Matthew Madia

The U.S. Senate approved, for the second time, a bill to overhaul the food safety system in the U.S. by expanding the powers of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Late Sunday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid struck a deal with both Republicans and House leaders, dodging a filibuster and allowing the bill to pass through a parliamentary maneuver. The bill was approved by voice vote.

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White House’s Long-Awaited Scientific Integrity Plan Released

Dec 17, 2010 by Matthew Madia

White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Director John Holdren issued a memo to executive branch agencies today that could improve scientific integrity in the federal government. "The memo is a sign of relief for federal scientists who are unsure of their rights and whose work is too susceptible to manipulation," said Gary D. Bass, Executive Director of OMB Watch.

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