The Obama Administration released a Unified Agenda and Regulatory Plan overnight December 22, 2012, after being missing in action for months and finally skipping the Spring 2012 version altogether, not releasing any instructions for the development of the Fall 2012 Unified Agenda, and with no announcement of the 2012 Fall Unified Agenda whatever. OMB’s lack… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: Unified Agenda
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 11/26/12
Posted in Executive - OMB Review, Judicial Review & RemediesThe week of Thanksgiving is traditionally a quiet one – dedicated rightly to giving thanks for what we have with a touch of jostling for more as Black Friday has blended backward into Thanksgiving Day. In addition to shopping, Black Friday traditionally is a quite time in the government – time to clean the office… 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 – 10/29/12
Posted in Regulatory ProcessWashington (with the Federal Government closed) braces for approaching storm Sandy – not regulatory, at least this week, but the regulatory tsunami appears more destined to occur than ever. The Spring 2012 Unified Agenda now appears to have been an exercise in futility and wasted resources, as the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA)… Continue Reading
Monday Morning Regulatory Review – 10/8/12
Posted in Judicial Process, Regulatory ProcessPolitics is undeniably everywhere. Activity at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has become noticeably thin in the past month – the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) has completed review on a paltry number of rules and notices. Congress is off seeking re-election, and even the courts do not appear to be… 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
OMB Missing in Action: Unified Agenda and Presidential Transition Planning
Posted in Regulatory ProcessAmid every Presidential campaign, some regulatory actions become the grist of the political mill, while others are laid to rest peacefully. The regulatory process – as a process – transcends the politics and some institutional “continuity of operations / continuity of government” steps need to be taken. So far, however, the Office of Management and… Continue Reading
DOJ’s “Departure Bar” Regulation to Reopening Immigration Cases: Another Circuit, Another Loss
Posted in Judicial Review & RemediesThe United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit joined several other circuits in holding contrary to statute a Department of Justice (DOJ) regulation divesting the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) of jurisdiction when an alien leaves the United States in Lin v. U.S. Attorney General. The Eleventh Circuit found that the “Departure Bar”… Continue Reading
Guns, Ammo, Conflicting Agency Views & the Importance of OMB Review
Posted in Executive - OMB ReviewThis morning’s Wall Street Journal highlights an often overlooked, critical, confusing, and somewhat misnomered regulatory function: Office of Management and Budget (OMB) review. Adam Entous and Evan Perez write that “U.S. homeland-security and law-enforcement agencies have objected to Obama administration proposals to relax export restrictions on high-powered firearms, threatening a centerpiece of the president’s trade… Continue Reading
Be Sued & Settle – Agencies Can’t Avoid Administrative Law
Posted in Executive - OMB Review, Judicial Review & Remedies, Regulatory Flexibility & Small Business, Regulatory ProcessThe practice of suing and (immediately) settling litigation does not override the requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), and other statutory requirements, but it may limit the Administration’s discretion to review regulations under Executive Orders 12866 and 13653. Defenders of Wildlife v. Jackson illustrates this practice’s lack of transparency… Continue Reading
Unified Agenda and Regulatory Plan Finally Released – 2012 Insight
Posted in Executive - OMB ReviewOMB released the Fall 2011 Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions and Fall 2011 Regulatory Plan today. These two “documents” are important planning documents for agencies and the public because they provide some insight and some transparency to agency and OMB planning for the coming year.
Jobs Council Recommends Regulatory Reforms: Old News?
Posted in Executive - OMB Review, Regulatory Flexibility & Small Business, Regulatory ProcessPresident Obama’s Jobs Council recommended regulatory reforms on January 17, 2012, with few surprises and little that is new. Some recommendations are welcome reiterations of good ideas, and some repeat past small steps already taken. A few are quite worthwhile. The Council now recommends: earlier public outreach through greater use of the existing Advance Notice… Continue Reading