Archive for November, 2012
Regulation’s Impact on Jobs
Nov 29th
From: RegBlog
Donald R. Arbuckle
“Job killing regulations” is an epithet commonly heard this year, with unemployment at persistently high levels and a presidential election cycle just completed. Many politicians and media commentators have come to accept this phrase as axiomatic, and for them, it is a convenient shorthand for what they believe is a major cause of current high unemployment rates and the economic downturn.
Accolades to the Census Bureau, OMB and BLS for Developing a Supplemental Measure of Poverty
Nov 26th
From: OIRA Watch
The Census Bureau, with support from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the support of the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB), has developed an additional methodology for measuring poverty in America.
Work on the supplemental measure of poverty began when then-OIRA Administrator Cass Sunstein requested OMB’s Chief Statistician, Katherine K. Wallman, to spearhead an improved understanding of poverty. CRE has had a long term interest in publicizing the poverty level. It is not an overstatement to summarize Jim Tozzi’s views as being that the unemployment rate, as important as it is, is essentially a “middle class” metric because even at an 8% unemployment level, 92% of the cohort is employed–a statistic of minimal interest to either the rich or the poor. A metric that states that 1 in 6 Americans are in poverty demonstrates a need for it being given considerably more attention in public policy debates.
Focus on OIRA, Regulator of Regulatory Agencies, as Obama Prepares for Second Term
Nov 23rd
From: Regulatory Focus
By Alexander Gaffney, RF News Editor
What’s next for the White House’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA)?
The agency, a sub-agency of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), is sometimes referred to as the regulator of regulators; the agency charged with reviewing regulations promulgated by other agencies to ensure they meet federal guidelines and are generally cost-effective and minimally burdensome.
That mission has made it the bane of more than a few regulatory agencies, including the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which has recently seen several of its regulations—from Unique Device Identifier (UDI) rules to ones covering standards for laser products—delayed for months or even longer.
All Eyes on OIRA for Hints About Second Term
Nov 19th
From: CQ
By Geof Koss and Lauren Gardner
Having survived an avalanche of campaign ads accusing him of destroying jobs by over-regulating this or that industry — his supposed “War on Coal” comes to mind — PresidentBarack Obamanow faces the challenge of deciding how aggressively to pursue his regulatory agenda.
For the past two years, Republicans have tried to rescind environmental and health care regulations that, they say, hurt the economy; they have mostly fallen short in the effort. At the same time, environmentalists and consumer advocates have chafed at what they view as the administration’s tendency to soften or delay new regulations.
Cass Sunstein, Former Administrator, White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, to Discuss “Deciding by Default: Lessons From Behavioral Economics” November 26
Nov 15th
From: Princeton University
Cass Sunstein, who served as administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) from September 2009 – October 2012, will discuss “Deciding by Default: Lessons from Behavioral Economics” at the Woodrow Wilson School on Monday, November 26, 2012, at 4:30 p.m., Robertson Hall.
Obama 2.0 and Regulation: Looking Forward, Mindful of the Past
Nov 7th
From: Huffington Post
by Rena Steinzor, President, Center for Progressive Reform
President Obama’s reelection holds the possibility of great progress for public health, safety, and the environment — if, and only if, he recognizes the importance of these issues and stops trying to placate his most implacable opponents.
The weeks leading up to the election brought powerful reminders of two of the challenges at hand: rising sea levels and more severe storms that scientists say we should expect as a result of unchecked climate change, and a meningitis outbreak that sickened hundreds, thanks to an obscure compounding pharmacy that escaped regulators’ reach. And let’s not forget that we are recovering from an economic downturn in which under-regulation of giant financial institutions played no small part. This is the context, the starting point.