Category Archives: regulation

This week in the world of regulation:

• Last week, 68 new final regulations were published in the Federal Register. There were 84 new final rules the previous week.
• That’s the equivalent of a new regulation every 2 hours and 28 minutes — 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
• All in all, 1,998 final rules have been published in the Federal Register this year.
• If this keeps up, the total tally for 2013 will be 3,646 new final rules.
• Last week, 1,750 new pages were added to the 2013 Federal Register, for a total of 43,686 pages.
• At its current pace, the 2013 Federal Register will run 78,572 pages.
• Rules are called “economically significant” if they have costs of $100 million or more in a given year. One such published last week, for a total of 17 so far in 2013.
• The total estimated compliance costs of this year’s economically significant regulations ranges from $5.78 billion to $10.39 billion.
• So far, 138 final rules that meet the broader definition of “significant” have been published in 2013.
• So far this year, 333 final rules affect small business; 30 of them are significant rules.

Highlights from final rules published last week:

• Last week’s economically significant regulation comes courtesy of the Affordable Care Act. By changing eligibility requirements for Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), the federal government hopes to save $465 million in spending over five years. The rule contains nary a word about compliance costs, so I am scoring this rule as zero-cost in our running compliance cost tally.
• The Topeka shiner is a federally endangered fish. The biggest ones are a few inches long. The Fish and Wildlife Service is establishing a “nonessential experimental population” of them in northern Missouri.
• Just in time for a record-breaking summer heat wave, the Energy Department issued new energy conservation standards for room air conditioners. The rule also affects clothes dryers.

For more data, go to TenThousandCommandments.com.

This week in the world of regulation:

• Last week, 84 new final regulations were published in the Federal Register, despite the July 4^th holiday. There were 78 new final rules the previous week.
• That’s the equivalent of a new regulation every 2 hours — 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
• All in all, 1,930 final rules have been published in the Federal Register this year.
• If this keeps up, the total tally for 2013 will be 3,650 new final rules.
• Last week, 1,371 new pages were added to the 2013 Federal Register, for a total of 41,936 pages.
• At its current pace, the 2013 Federal Register will run 78,139 pages.
• Rules are called “economically significant” if they have costs of $100 million or more in a given year. No such rules were published last week, for a total of 16 so far in 2013.
• The total estimated compliance costs of this year’s economically significant regulations ranges from $5.78 billion to $10.39 billion.
• So far, 132 final rules that meet the broader definition of “significant” have been published in 2013.
• So far this year, 324 final rules affect small business; 28 of them are significant rules.

Highlights from final rules published last week:

• The BPA ban for infant formula packaging was published this week. CEI’s Angela Logomasini has written a paper explaining why BPA is good for public health.
• Due to adverse comments received, the EPA is partially withdrawing air quality rules for North Carolina and Georgia.
• Federal regulations require truck drivers to keep track of when they eat. Since drivers don’t always comply, the requirements have been revised.
• When companies want to merge, the Hart-Scott-Rodino act requires them to ask permission first in many cases. If the companies get cold feet during the waiting period, a new rule makes it easier for them to withdraw the merger request.
• New energy-efficiency standards for federal buildings and high-rise apartments and condos.
• The Justice Department engaged in a bit of housekeeping by repealing some regulations related to programs that no longer exist.
• New critical habitat for six west Texas aquatic invertebrate species.
• In New Bern, North Carolina, there is a drawbridge that crosses the Trent River. The federal government regulates when it goes up and down.

For more data, go to TenThousandCommandments.com.

• The IRS Just Accidentally Published Thousands of SSNs Online
• US agency baffled by modern technology, destroys mice to get rid of viruses
  $170,000 of PCs, printers, keyboards, cameras, and mice destroyed in gross overreaction.
• USDA Tells Magician to Write Disaster Plan for His Rabbit
• Elderly man who picked dandelions for food gets $75 ticket
• Metro rips out Phantom Planter’s flowers at Dupont Circle station

This week in the world of regulation:

• Last week, 78 new final regulations were published in the Federal Register, despite the July 4^th holiday. There were 80 new final rules the previous week.
• That’s the equivalent of a new regulation every 2 hours and 9 minutes — 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
• All in all, 1,846 final rules have been published in the Federal Register this year.
• If this keeps up, the total tally for 2013 will be 3,623 new final rules.
• Last week, 1,461 new pages were added to the 2013 Federal Register, for a total of 40,565 pages.
• At its current pace, the 2013 Federal Register will run 78,615 pages.
• Rules are called “economically significant” if they have costs of $100 million or more in a given year. One such rule was published last week, for a total of 16 so far in 2013.
• The total estimated compliance costs of this year’s economically significant regulations ranges from $5.78 billion to $10.39 billion.
• So far, 130 final rules that meet the broader definition of “significant” have been published in 2013.
• So far this year, 312 final rules affect small business; 28 of them are significant rules.

Highlights from final rules published last week:

• This week’s economically significant rule prohibits students from receiving two consecutive Pell grants in the same year. The final rule does not contain a cost estimate, which is bad transparency. Fortunately, the earlier interim final rule does estimate that this will reduce anticipated federal spending by “approximately $24.3 billion over five years.” Since this affects government spending and not compliance costs, I am not counting this in the running compliance cost tally.
• A new regulation allows Customs to refuse to allow products into the country if they are not satisfied with their energy efficiency – or their labeling.
• The EPA has issued a new standard for measuring airborne lead.
• The EPA also issued new air quality regulations for Virginia, Illinois, and the District of Columbia.
• Federal organ transplant regulations now include blood vessels in the definition of “organ.” If they are attached to another organ covered under this definition.
• The federal government has a California Desert Grape Administrative Committee. It is raising the assessment rate it charges growers inside its jurisdiction.
• The National Mango Board is revising its membership rules to include more foreign producers.
• New FCC regulation for closed captioning of programming delivered over the Internet.
• New critical habitat designated for the fountain darter, a small fish “generally smaller than 3 cm long” found in Texas.
• The Buena Vista Lake shrew is also receiving 2,485 acres of critical habitat.

For more data, go to TenThousandCommandments.com.

This week in the world of regulation:

• Last week, 80 new final regulations were published in the Federal Register. There were 96 new final rules the previous week.
• That’s the equivalent of a new regulation every 2 hours and 6 minutes — 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
• All in all, 1,768 final rules have been published in the Federal Register this year.
• If this keeps up, the total tally for 2013 will be 3,605 new final rules.
• Last week, 1,461 new pages were added to the 2013 Federal Register, for a total of 39,104 pages.
• At its current pace, the 2013 Federal Register will run 78,208 pages.
• Rules are called “economically significant” if they have costs of $100 million or more in a given year. One such rule was published last week, for a total of 15 so far in 2013.
• The total estimated compliance costs of this year’s economically significant regulations ranges from $5.78 billion to $10.39 billion.
• So far, 124 final rules that meet the broader definition of “significant” have been published in 2013.
• So far this year, 306 final rules affect small business; 28 of them are significant rules.

Highlights from final rules published last week:

• This week’s economically significant rule sets national standards for school lunches and breakfasts. The rule does not include a cost estimate, claiming that “it is not possible to define a level of disease or cost reduction expected to result from implementation of the rule.” This is a basic failure of transparency. That the Food and Nutrition Service is unwilling to include cost-benefit analysis implies that even the agency believes that this rule’s effect on childhood obesity will be imperceptible. I have placed this rule’s costs at the bare minimum of $100 million needed for it to qualify for its economically significant status. Given the multi-billion dollar costs of other federal school lunch rules, this is could be a severe underestimate.
• It took the Forest Service nearly two pages to define what a ski area is.
• The Coast Guard is establishing 23 different safety zones, security zones, and the like for fireworks shows and other summer events across the country.
• The Postal Service is updating its refund and exchange policies.
• New safety standards for infant walkers and swings.
• The National Park Service is changing its policies regarding protesting and pamphleteering in national parks.

For more data, go to TenThousandCommandments.com.