OMB Releases Fall 2018 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions
The Office of Management and Budget’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), in conjunction with the U.S. General Services Administration’s Regulatory Information Service Center and the 60 Cabinet, Executive, and Independent agencies across the Federal Government, released today the Trump Administration’s semi-annual Current Regulatory Plan and the Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions.
The report provides an update on actions administrative agencies will take in both the near and long term. The agenda amends and eliminates what the administration calls “regulations that are ineffective, duplicative, and obsolete,” so that the administration can “promote economic growth and innovation and protect individual liberty.”
These efforts are in line with President Trump’s Executive Orders 13771 and 13777, which require agencies to reduce regulatory burdens and enforce regulatory reform initiatives. Given the Administration’s focus on deregulatory efforts, the Regulatory Agenda includes withdrawing and reconsidering numerous regulatory actions, as well as identifying newly anticipated deregulatory actions that emerged from reviews that remain underway. Agencies have committed to focusing on the costs and benefits of each regulatory and deregulatory action, while prioritizing the maximization of net benefits of regulations. The Fall 2018 Unified Agenda recognizes that reform will take time and require “rigorous analysis, public input, and a careful consideration of legal requirements.” The Fall 2018 Unified Agenda aims to provide greater information and transparency about agency-proposed regulatory actions.
The administration has highlighted:
In fiscal year 2018, agencies issued 176 deregulatory actions, 57 of which were significant, and 14 regulatory actions, for a ratio of 12:1, far surpassing the Administration’s 2:1 requirement. Comparing significant deregulatory actions to significant regulatory actions yields a ratio of 4:1.
Agencies saved $23 billion in net regulatory costs across the government in fiscal year 2018. These results expand upon the Administration’s first year, for a total regulatory cost reduction of $33 billion.
Informed by each agency’s submissions for the Fall 2018 Regulatory Plan and Unified Agenda, agencies have worked with OIRA to identify a regulatory cost allowance or cost cap for fiscal year 2019. Agencies project saving $18 billion in regulatory costs in fiscal year 2019.
In addition to the above projection, one of the most significant deregulatory rules anticipated for completion in fiscal year 2019 is the “Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient Vehicles Rule,” which revises greenhouse gas standards and Corporate Average Fuel Economy Standards for passenger cars and light trucks. The Department of Transportation and Environmental Protection Agency have proposed a range of options projected to save between $120 and $340 billion in regulatory costs.
The momentum for reform continues to accelerate as agencies complete substantial deregulatory actions.
Consistent with Administration priorities, agencies have proposed actions that streamline infrastructure development, promote emerging technologies, and provide small business relief.
To provide timely and accurate notice to the public of upcoming regulatory and deregulatory actions, agencies have targeted actions likely to occur in the next year and have withdrawn or delayed other actions. A clear agenda helps to avoid surprise and achieves greater predictability of forthcoming actions.
The Fall Agenda reflects Administration priorities for reducing regulatory burdens across administration agencies, including from the historically independent agencies.
The Administration’s comprehensive regulatory reform efforts have required significant changes to the regulations database. The Fall Agenda has enhanced search capabilities and functionality and agencies provide consistent and unique identifiers that allow the public to track regulatory policy through the entire process.
Administration-wide regulatory reform has been coupled with targeted reforms in specific high-burden areas, as specified under Executive Orders 13789 and 12866. Furthermore, reforms enacted in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act require the Department of Treasury to issue a number of regulations, and Treasury and OIRA are working closely together to improve said regulations.