Category Archives: regulation

About three years ago, our friends at the Mercatus Center launched a website called RegData that compiles a searchable database on many facets of regulations. For the first time, it also quantified just how many regulatory restrictions are in the 175,000-page Code of Federal Regulations. By doing text searches for terms such as “must,” “shall,” “shall not,” and the like, they found that, as of 2010, there have been more than one million regulatory restrictions. Ten Thousand Commandments turns out to be an understatement, by a factor of one hundred.

This week a major RegData revamp was released, with more data that is more searchable than before. Head on over and play with the search tools for a bit and see what you’ll find. There is also a short instructional video where Patrick McLaughlin walks you through the site.

In a week like any other, new regulations hit the books for everything from tax delinquents to the electromagnetic spectrum.

On to the data:

• Last week, 75 new final regulations were published in the Federal Register. There were 80 new final rules the previous week.
• That’s the equivalent of a new regulation every two hours and 15 minutes.
• So far in 2014, 2,239 final regulations have been published in the Federal Register. At that pace, there will be a total of 3,543 new regulations this year. This would be the lowest total in decades; this will likely change as the year goes on.
• Last week, 1,987 new pages were added to the Federal Register.
• Currently at 48,550 pages, the 2014 Federal Register is on pace for 76,819 pages. This would be the lowest total since 2009.
• Rules are called “economically significant” if they have costs of $100 million or more in a given year. 26 such rules have been published so far this year, three of them in the past week.
• The total estimated compliance costs of 2014’s economically significant regulations currently ranges from $7.62 billion to $10.87 billion. They also affect several billion dollars of government spending.
• 181 final rules meeting the broader definition of “significant” have been published so far this year.
• So far in 2014, 417 new rules affect small businesses; 60 of them are classified as significant.

Highlights from selected final rules published last week:

• This week’s economically significant rule is a 141-pager from the EPA on water cooling at power plants. Its expected annual cost is between $274.9 million and $297.3 million.
• Between hurricanes and oil spills, it’s been a rough decade for the Gulf Coast region. In 2012, the federal government established a trust fund to aid with ongoing recovery efforts, into which more than $650 million has been deposited. On Friday, the Treasury Department issued an interim final rule for how that trust fund will operate. Gulf County, Florida, for example, will receive precisely 6.743202298 percent of funds going to Florida. Even though “this rule may have an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more,” it somehow escaped the “economically significant,” designation, though it was tagged under the broader definition of “significant.”
• For a fee of just $26, the U.S. Coast Guard will document your vessel.
• The FCC is setting up an incentive auction for broadcast tv spectrum. This could be a big one for the tech sector, potentially in a very good way if politics stays out of it.
• Since 1985, the federal government has had a Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board. A new regulation adjusts the Board’s representation.
• New labeling requirements for touting the energy efficiency of air conditioner, heat pumps, and furnaces.
• The Florida leafwing butterfly and the Bartram’s scrub-hairstreak butterfly are now endangered species. They are also receiving 10,561 acres and 11,539 acres, respectively, of critical habitat.
• The IRS offers rewards for ratting out tax delinquents.
• The Agricultural Marketing Service is decreasing its assessment rate on oranges and grapefruit from the Lower Rio Grande Valley in Texas.

For more data, see Ten Thousand Commandments and follow @10KC and @RegoftheDay on Twitter.

Despite another 47 proposed regulations and 80 final regulations last week, 2014 remains on pace to have the smallest number of new regulations of any year in either of the last two administrations.

On to the data:

• Last week, 80 new final regulations were published in the Federal Register. There were 98 new final rules the previous week.
• That’s the equivalent of a new regulation every two hours and 6 minutes.
• So far in 2014, 2,164 final regulations have been published in the Federal Register. At that pace, there will be a total of 3,535 new regulations this year. This would be the lowest total in decades; this will likely change as the year goes on.
• Last week, 1,576 new pages were added to the Federal Register.
• Currently at 46,563 pages, the 2014 Federal Register is on pace for 76,084 pages. This would be the lowest total since 2009.
• Rules are called “economically significant” if they have costs of $100 million or more in a given year. 25 such rules have been published so far this year, three of them in the past week.
• The total estimated compliance costs of 2014’s economically significant regulations currently ranges from $7.34 billion to $10.57 billion. They also affect several billion dollars of government spending.
• 177 final rules meeting the broader definition of “significant” have been published so far this year.
• So far in 2014, 401 new rules affect small businesses; 60 of them are classified as significant.

Highlights from selected final rules published last week:

• Last week’s trio of economically significant rules all come from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. They will increase government spending by $750 million, $120 million, and $180 million, respectively, for a total of $1.05 billion. Since the rules are mum on paperwork and other compliance costs, I am counting them as zero-cost in our running compliance cost tally.
• The federal government is launching a Cotton Transition Assistance Program. Here’s a press release, and here’s a Federal Register rule outlining the program’s policies.
• The EPA issued a regulation for how often diesel-fueled vehicles should be maintained.
• The EPA also revised its definition of a “volatile organic compound” inside the commonwealth of Virginia.
• If you grow Irish potatoes in Oregon, regulations specify which types of containers you may use.

For more data, see Ten Thousand Commandments and follow @10KC and @RegoftheDay on Twitter.

The dog days of summer may be upon us, but regulatory agencies are still working hard, issuing 46 proposed regulations and finalizing nearly 100 more regulations.

On to the data:

• Last week, 98 new final regulations were published in the Federal Register. There were 74 new final rules the previous week.
• That’s the equivalent of a new regulation every one hour and 43 minutes.
• So far in 2014, 2,104 final regulations have been published in the Federal Register. At that pace, there will be a total of 3,554 new regulations this year. This would be the lowest total in decades; this will likely change as the year goes on.
• Last week, 1,448 new pages were added to the Federal Register.
• Currently at 44,987 pages, the 2014 Federal Register is on pace for 75,992 pages. This would be the lowest total since 2009.
• Rules are called “economically significant” if they have costs of $100 million or more in a given year. 22 such rules have been published so far this year, none of them in the past week.
• The total estimated compliance costs of 2014’s economically significant regulations currently ranges from $7.34 billion to $10.57 billion. They also affect several billion dollars of government spending.
• 171 final rules meeting the broader definition of “significant” have been published so far this year.
• So far in 2014, 388 new rules affect small businesses; 58 of them are classified as significant.

Highlights from selected final rules published last week:

• The Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Bureau is eliminating a little-used form. This little bit of housecleaning could stand to be done at other agencies as well.
• The federal government has designated a new wine-growing region in northern California, to be called Manton Valley.
• The Short’s bladderpod, whorled sunflower, and fleshy-fruit gladecress are now endangered species.
• A few corrections to the federal government’s National Poultry Improvement Plan.
• Administrative Updates to Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument Regulations.
• Moroccan blueberries are now legal to import, if they meet certain conditions.
• New energy conservation standards for home furnaces.
• If you grow pears, you can buy pear crop insurance from the federal government.

For more data, see Ten Thousand Commandments and follow @10KC and @RegoftheDay on Twitter.

In addition to 100 final regulations, 62 proposed regulations made their way to the Federal Register last week.

On to the data:

• Last week, 100 new final regulations were published in the Federal Register. There were 63 new final rules the previous week.
• That’s the equivalent of a new regulation every one hour and 41 minutes.
• So far in 2014, 1,912 final regulations have been published in the Federal Register. At that pace, there will be a total of 3,464 new regulations this year. This would be the lowest total in decades; this will likely change as the year goes on.
• Last week, 1,559 new pages were added to the Federal Register.
• Currently at 42,130 pages, the 2014 Federal Register is on pace for 76,322 pages. This would be the lowest total since 2009.
• Rules are called “economically significant” if they have costs of $100 million or more in a given year. 22 such rules have been published so far this year, none of them in the past week.
• The total estimated compliance costs of 2014’s economically significant regulations currently ranges from $7.34 billion to $10.57 billion. They also affect several billion dollars of government spending.
• 159 final rules meeting the broader definition of “significant” have been published so far this year.
• So far in 2014, 355 new rules affect small businesses; 53 of them are classified as significant.

Highlights from selected final rules published last week:

• The IRS issued new rules for straddle-by-straddle identification.
• New size requirements for oranges grown in Texas.
• New handling requirements for potatoes in Washington State.
• Energy efficiency testing procedures for refrigerators and freezers.
• A new rule from HUD is ominously titled “Removal of HOPE for Homeowners Program Regulations.”
• It was a busy week at the EPA, which issued 20 new regulations last week.
• The Coast Guard chipped in another 18 regulations.

For more data, see Ten Thousand Commandments and follow @10KC and @RegoftheDay on Twitter.

In a busy week, the Federal Register topped 40,000 pages, with Friday’s edition alone adding 666 pages.

On to the data:

• Last week, 63 new final regulations were published in the Federal Register. There were 79 new final rules the previous week.
• That’s the equivalent of a new regulation every 2 hours and 40 minutes.
• So far in 2014, 1,812 final regulations have been published in the Federal Register. At that pace, there will be a total of 3,406 new regulations this year. This would be the lowest total in decades; this will likely change as the year goes on.
• Last week, 2,370 new pages were added to the Federal Register, roughly double an average week’s output.
• Currently at 40,571 pages, the 2014 Federal Register is on pace for 76,262 pages, which would be the lowest total since 2009.
• Rules are called “economically significant” if they have costs of $100 million or more in a given year. 22 such rules have been published so far this year, none of them in the past week.
• The total estimated compliance costs of 2014’s economically significant regulations currently ranges from $7.34 billion to $10.57 billion. They also affect several billion dollars of government spending.
• 152 final rules meeting the broader definition of “significant” have been published so far this year.
• So far in 2014, 336 new rules affect small businesses; 51 of them are classified as significant.

Highlights from selected final rules published last week:

• The EPA is rescinding an earlier regulation for labeling pesticide exports.
• A “nonessential experimental population” of Chinook salmon is being released in the Okanogan River sub-basin. Fishermen will not be allowed to catch them.
• New testing procedures for water heater energy efficiency.
• Truck drivers can use software to record their working hours, which are capped by regulations. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration issued a new regulation for that software.
• Both Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issued rules designating critical habitat for the loggerhead sea turtle.
• The federal government is updating its National Poultry Improvement Plan.
• The FDA is reclassifying transcranial magnetic stimulators for headache relief into Class II.
• The northern Mexican gartersnake and the narrow-headed gartersnake are now threatened species.

For more data, see Ten Thousand Commandments and follow @10KC and @RegoftheDay on Twitter.