Archive for March, 2019
White House Announces Acting Regulatory Chief
Mar 27th
From: GovExec
The White House budget office on Tuesday tweeted a confirmation of recent news reports that Paul Ray, the deputy administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, is temporarily leading the agency in charge of the Trump administration’s ambitious deregulation effort.
Ray, previously a counselor to Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta, takes over for Neomi Rao, who on March 13 was confirmed by the Senate as a judge on the U.S. Appeals Court for the District of Columbia.
OIRA Influences Tax Policy?
Mar 7th
From: Politico | Morning Tax
Eyeing the French
By BERNIE BECKER
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CUT THE FAT: Treasury’s announcement that it would curb the use of several of its regulatory tools — including so-called sub-regulatory guidance like revenue rulings and procedures, as Aaron noted — surprised lots of D.C. tax people.
Tax Notes’ Jonathan Curry had a thorough explainer on the new three-page memo and the largely positive reception it received, noting that the changes suggest the influence of Kristin Hickman, a senior official in the Office of Management and Budget’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. There’s also a judicial angle here — the Supreme Court will soon hear arguments in a case where it could undercut the so-called Auer deference, which generally requires courts to side with agencies’ interpretations of their own regulations in legal disputes.
Who will be Trump’s next regs czar? Here are 4 contenders
Mar 5th
From: E&E News
(Left to right) Dominic Mancini, Mark Paoletta, Rosario Palmieri and Paul Ray are all potential replacements for Neomi Rao as the head of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. Claudine Hellmuth/E&E News(graphic);PUCRS International/ Facebook(Mancini); Cpl. Christian Varney/Marine Corps/Wikipedia (Paoletta); Palmieri/LinkedIn; Hillsdale College (Ray)
The agency leading the Trump administration’s deregulation agenda could soon be on the search for a new administrator.
The current head of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Neomi Rao, may soon be confirmed to replace Justice Brett Kavanaugh on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
President Trump Launches AI Strategy For Federal Government
Mar 4th
Editor’s Note: Also see White House Emphasizes Data Quality, Consensus Standards, OIRA Review in Regulating Artificial Intelligence.
From: Mondaq
Article by Rajesh De, Brad L. Peterson, David L. Beam, Kendall C. Burman, Alex C. Lakatos and Howard W. Waltzman | Mayer Brown
On February 11, 2019, President Trump signed an “Executive Order on Maintaining American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence” (the “Order”) and, in doing so, set out a high-level strategy to strengthen the leadership position that the United States has maintained in AI. Important for companies, the Order sets off a number of opportunities for the private sector to give comments back to the federal government on how it can make changes that strengthen private sector AI development.