Regulatory Transactions

Editor’s Note: See, EPA Climate Change Program: The Data Quality Act Ensures That the Federal Administrative Process Is Neither Ignored Nor Abused.

From: Inside EPA

Many last-minute revisions made to EPA’s greenhouse gas rule for existing power plants are intended to strengthen and streamline the agency’s legal justification for the landmark regulations as well as jettisoned provisions that appeared vulnerable to legal challenges, according to an analysis by InsideEPA/climate of the massive regulatory document recently released by EPA.

Read Complete Article (paywall)

From: JD Supra Business Advisor

by Lisa Burchi, Lisa Campbell | Bergeson & Campbell, P.C

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From: Regulatory Studies Center

by Sofie E. Miller, Senior Policy Analyst

On October 16, the Office Management and Budget (OMB) released its annual Draft Report to Congress on the Benefits and Costs of Federal Regulations (“the Report”), which provides a window into regulatory activity conducted by federal agencies in Fiscal Year 2014. The Report indicates that the new regulations issued last fiscal year have both higher costs and lower benefits than those issued in FY 2013, and that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) remains by far the largest contributor to both regulatory costs and benefits in this Report.

Editor’s Note: Cross-posted from Regulatory Cybersecurity/FISMA Focus. The Federal Register notice of OMB’s Request for Comments on Circular A-130 is available here.

From: The White House

by Anne Rung, Tony Scott, Howard Shelanski

From: RegBlog | Penn Program on Regulation

Eric Schlabs

Regulation sometimes leaves businesses with as many questions as answers. Does a project fall within a given agency’s regulatory scheme? If it does, then what exactly does that regulation require businesses to do – and at what cost? These uncertainties may well even discourage investment and stifle the economy.

To alleviate these concerns, a committee of the Administrative Conference of the United States (ACUS) is considering recommendations that agencies increase their use of declaratory orders whenever a regulated party wants to know whether its business practices fall under an agency’s regulatory ambit.

A Nationwide Constituency for OIRA Will Allow It to Discharge Its Statutory Obligation To Free All Citizens From Onerous Regulations  On a Continual Basis Without Intermittent Disruptions From a Vocal Few

Steps:

1.  OIRA, the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs located in the White House Office of Management and Budget, is in need of  a National constituency if it is going to fend off proposals to limit its scope of operation. OIRA’s staff has been reduced fifty percent since the date of its establishment in 1980. OIRA is frequently presented as a villain in both press and academic articles because it is performing a very difficult task—saying no to regulatory proposals, however well intended, which fail to meet tests of economic efficiency and effectiveness. A national constituency will provide a counter balance to OIRA’s detractors.

From: GinPress |The official semi-private blog of the Southeastern Cotton Ginners Association

by Dusty

According to an article from Jackson and Lewis’ OSHA Law Blog, OSHA submitted a draft final rule to Improve Tracking of Workplace Injury and Illnesses to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. OIRA is part of the office of Management and Budget and all federal rules roll through that office at some point before becoming final.

The Ask

Here is a forum where students and the public  may express their views on placing a cap on the expenditures that can be imposed on the public by federal regulators, please see http://www.thecre.com/forum2/?p=1052

The Background

When we think of regulatory governance we think of two issues:

(1) A process which requires a benefit/cost  analysis of proposed regulations and an independent review of the analysis (in sum an  OIRA), and

(2)  placing a cap on the expenditures the regulators can impose on the public.

With respect to (1) above it took 20 years to design and implement.

From: Farm Futures

Groups say new regulations for anhydrous facilities put unnecessary burden on businesses during busy season

A memorandum from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration regarding anhydrous ammonia retail facilities has some agriculture groups concerned that a new definition of such facilities could ultimately impact anhydrous supply and availability to farmers.

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“This new interpretation will cost agricultural retail facilities tens of millions of dollars to implement. Taken together, the costs imposed by the changes will easily exceed the $100,000,000 threshold used by the OMB when determining whether a regulatory action is “major,” thereby requiring review,” the letter says.

From: Lexology

Tammy Ward Woffenden | Locke Lord LLP

Joint waivers issued by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) relating the application of the physician self-referral law, the Federal anti-kickback statute, and certain civil monetary penalties (CMP) law provisions for specified arrangements involving Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) participating in the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) are due to expire November 2, 2015. . . . On September 9, 2015, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) received a Final Rule regarding MSSP Final Waivers (CMS-1439-; RIN 0938-AR30F) for regulatory review. According to the OMB’s website, review of the final rule is still pending.