This week a sprinkling of interesting events flavors administrative law. Recess appointments litigation may get closer to sweetening the United States Supreme Court (SCOTUS) calendar. A court decision on timing of electronic filing soured one agency’s day, and provides lessons for others. Another court fed a bitter pill to the Department of Justice (DOJ) in… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: EPA
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 4/29/13
Posted in Agency Authority, Constitutional Issues in Regulations, Judicial Review & Remedies, Regulatory ProcessBusy and long today: The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), a hospital disproportionate share payment reduction proposed rule. OIRA may have a new Administrator who may or may not have the opportunity to review the rule –… Continue Reading
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 4/15/13
Posted in Judicial Process, Regulatory ProcessA confluence of external factors may have suppressed regulatory activity over the past week – the budget, sequestration, gun control, immigration, tax filing deadline, or what have you. In any event, this morning’s review takes the opportunity to catch up on a few events and questions that might not otherwise garner attention: Environmental Protection Agency… Continue Reading
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 4/8/13
Posted in Judicial Review & Remedies, Regulatory ProcessFollow-up on previous events of interest is the focus of this morning’s review. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has published its intentions on comments and hearings on new motor vehicle emission and fuel standards proposed rule, but has not published the proposed rule. Both the Department of Labor (DOL) and the Department of Homeland Security… Continue Reading
EPA’s Tier 3 Vehicle Emission Reduction Proposed Rule: Good, Bad, …
Posted in Regulatory ProcessLast week’s major administrative law milestones are not over, but this post is a little different: plaudits and pans for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulatory process. EPA released its pre-publication, long awaited, much debated, and massive Control of Air Pollution From Motor Vehicles: Tier 3 Motor Vehicle Emission and Fuel Standards proposed rule on… Continue Reading
Letters to a Senator: 8th Cir. says EPA violated APA Requirements
Posted in Judicial Review & Remedies, Regulatory ProcessOccasionally, an opinion begs to be quoted, and so no further introduction is needed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit’s March 25, 2013, opinion in Iowa League of Cities v. EPA: The Iowa League of Cities (“League”) seeks direct appellate review of two letters sent by the Environmental Protection Agency… Continue Reading
SCOTUS Reverses 9th Circuit on Logging Road Culverts – New Rule Irrelevant
Posted in Judicial Review & Remedies, Regulatory ProcessThe Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) today vacated the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit decision in Decker v. Northwest Environmental Defense Center, holding that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s original interpretation of its original regulations warranted Auer deference, that a new EPA rule on the subject did not moot… Continue Reading
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 3/11/13
Posted in Agency Authority, Regulatory ProcessForgive the absence – surprisingly little to report over the past two weeks. The Office of Management and Budget maintained a relatively stable docket with no truly significant rules being submitted or completed. One might attribute this lull to sequestration – fears and realities – but it remains a question. Congress may be tied up… Continue Reading
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 2/4/13
Posted in Executive - OMB Review, Judicial Review & Remedies, Regulatory ProcessRegulatory and judicial processes intersected last week to a greater extent than usual, with several departments addressing (or not) court decisions and ongoing litigation. Highlights: Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) proposing its promised rule on contraceptives and religious organizations that has been the subject of numerous cases, including direct challenges and injunctions; Environmental… Continue Reading
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 1/28/13
Posted in Agency Authority, Executive - OMB Review, Judicial Review & RemediesA short week after the Inaugural Holiday (reaffirming that the Republic works) may have slowed publication of rules slightly, but the courts were in full swing. In addition to finding that the recess appointments to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) were unconstitutional and void, which drew the lion’s share of attention, the United States… Continue Reading
2012 Year End Review: Top 10 Most Read Posts & Thoughts for 2013
Posted in Judicial Review & Remedies, Regulatory ProcessA year of writing this blog – and 115 … now 116 posts – warrants a traditional end-of-year review and prospective for next year. For the Federal Regulations Advisor to be useful, it must be responsive to you, its readers. Top 10 Posts: Popularity is often fickle, skewed toward longevity and against recent posts, but… Continue Reading
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 12/24/12
Posted in Judicial Review & Remedies, Regulatory ProcessNumerous regulations moved prior to year-end annual leave, which is not as surprising as it may seem – holiday planning sometimes invigorates action. Among the highlights, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) completed review on major Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Clean Air Act (CAA) final rules on commercial boilers and Portland cement in response… Continue Reading
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 12/17/12
Posted in Executive - OMB Review“Review Lite.” The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) completed review on nine proposed or final rules last week, the most significant of which were the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) particulate matter revision under court order and a reconsideration of the chemical manufacturing area sources by proposed rule. The Department of Transportation (DOT) National Highway… Continue Reading
CFTC Pool Operator Rule Upheld – Broader Lessons Need Consideration
Posted in Executive - OMB Review, Judicial Review & Remedies, Regulatory Flexibility & Small Business, Regulatory ProcessThe United States District Court for the District of Columbia granted the agency summary judgment in Investment Company Institute v. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), leaving intact the Commodity Pool Operators and Commodity Trading Advisors: Compliance Obligations final rule (as corrected) (the “pool” rule). Plaintiffs claimed that the CFTC had violated the Administrative Procedure Act… Continue Reading
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 12/10/12
Posted in Executive - OMB Review, Judicial Review & RemediesRegulatory activity continued to pick up speed last week, with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) submitting three rules for Office of Management and Budget (OMB) review, while OMB completed one time-sensitive review. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published an economically significant Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) proposed rule on benefit… Continue Reading
Supreme Court Argument Recap: Changing Rules During Litigation – Logging Roads & EPA Pollution Permits
Posted in Judicial Process, Judicial Review & RemediesIn an ongoing effort to prevent logging, environmentalists have woven the most complex of webs in Decker v. Northwest Environmental Defense Center and Georgia-Pacific West, Inc. v. Northwest Environmental Defense Center, argued this morning in the Supreme Court of the United States. At bottom, Congress, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Justice (DOJ)’s… Continue Reading
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 12/3/12
Posted in Regulatory ProcessRule submission to and completions by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) began to pick up speed last week. Most significant, OMB quickly completed review of a legally significant Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) logging road final rule – a subject of oral argument this morning at the Supreme Court and about which Congress has… Continue Reading
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 11/12/12
Posted in Executive - OMB Review, Judicial Review & RemediesOn Election Night, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) was reviewing 147 significant rules, proposed rules, and other notices. With the election over, the floodgates have now cracked. OMB’s docket has suddenly grown to 158, and we may expect to see many more rules – and perhaps… Continue Reading
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 11/5/12
Posted in Judicial Review & Remedies, Regulatory ProcessThe election is tomorrow and regulatory activity seems to be in the calm before the storm. Congress further pressured the Administration on the lack of a Unified Agenda, but the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) did complete review on some very time-sensitive regulations, while the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced at least some compliance… Continue Reading
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 10/15/12
Posted in Judicial Process, Judicial Review & Remedies, Regulatory ProcessLast week a number of small events, mostly in the courts. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s long awaited CAFÉ regulation finally published in the Federal Register; a suit was filed to invalidate the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)’s extractive industries reporting rule, the Department of Justice (DOJ) sought further review of decisions in Food and… Continue Reading
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 10/1/12
Posted in Judicial Review & Remedies, Regulatory Flexibility & Small Business, Regulatory ProcessSmall movements with potentially large impact over time occurred last week, but most did not see the light of day in the national or legal media. Key points: Department of Labor (DOL) extended the effective date of the H-2B Wage Methodology rule given another appropriation rider; Department of Homeland Security (DHS) continues to lag behind… Continue Reading
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 9/24/12
Posted in Legislation, Regulatory Flexibility & Small BusinessA relatively quiet week allows us to catch up on some important odds and ends. The Small Business Administration (SBA) published three new small business size standards that affect large swaths of the economy and many future regulatory analyses. The Congress left town (they were here for a short period), but the House passed limitations… Continue Reading
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 9/17/12
Posted in Regulatory Flexibility & Small Business, Regulatory ProcessA bevy of new rules and proposed rules were issued last week. Most notable contributions come from the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (CFPB), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and Small Business Administration (SBA). On the management side, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has… Continue Reading
Opinion: Five Suggestions to Improve Regulatory Transparency
Posted in Regulatory ProcessThis blog noted a number of sizable regulations in the pipeline several weeks ago – some published, some to be published, some just completing review by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and some compound sets of regulations not subject to that review. All exhibit transparency issues for even a practiced regulatory scrivener. Size… Continue Reading