Jerry Ellig
9/19/1962 – 1/20/2021
"We are saddened by the tragic and sudden loss of Jerry Ellig, a wonderful colleague, brilliant scholar, and dear friend. Jerry’s warm and positive personality endeared him to all who were fortunate to know him. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family at this terribly difficult time. We have no further details to share at this time, but we hope you’ll join us as we reflect on the positive difference he made in our lives."
Featured Content
Congressional Review Act
The CRA allows Congress to disapprove regulations issued by agencies and contains a lookback provision which, according to the 2020 House calendar, may put any rules issued by the Trump administration after August 21, 2020 in jeopardy.
Midnight Rulemaking
The final months of an outgoing presidential administration typically generate a significant amount of regulatory activity. This increased regulatory activity during the “midnight” period has been documented in every presidential transition since the Carter administration.
Our Latest Publications
Into the Void: The GAO's Role in the Regulatory State | By: Bridget C.E. Dooling
This American University Law Revew article examines how Congress has used the GAO’s legal opinion function to expand the application of the Congressional Review Act.
Bespoke Regulatory Review | By: Bridget C.E. Dooling
This Ohio State Law Journal article addresses concerns from independent agencies about OIRA's regulatory review.
2020 Regulatory Year in Review | By: Mark Febrizio & Zhoudan Xie
Ten Important Regulatory and Deregulatory Developments from the year that was 2020.
Advice for the Biden-Harris Administration | By: Susan E. Dudley | January 6, 2020
Five recommendations for the Biden-Harris administration to embrace regulatory humility and secure better regulatory outcomes.
One Trump-Era Notion Biden May Want to Embrace | By: Susan E. Dudley & Sally Katzen in Wall Street Journal | January 3, 2021
Independent regulators should analyze the costs and benefits of new rules, like executive agencies do.
Improved Economic Analysis Should Be Lasting Part of Pai's FCC Legacy | By: Babette Boliek, Jerry Ellig, & Jeff Prince in The Hill | December 29, 2020
The FCC was ahead of the curve on how to perform economic analysis.
Congressional Review Act Update | By: Daniel R. Pérez | December 23, 2020
The House calendar is set, we think, and based on procedures within the CRA all regulations issued since August 11 may be undone by the new Congress when it convenes in January.
The Biden-Harris Team Needs Benefit-Cost Analysis | By: Susan Dudley in Forbes | December 21, 2020
Changes in administration always bring out advocates for rethinking practices and policies, and that’s healthy. But calls for abandoning benefit-cost analysis are tired old ideas that failed to take hold in the Clinton and Obama administrations and should fail again.
Civil Service Reform Is Needed but Trump’s Lame Duck Initiative Is Not the Answer (and Could Make Things Worse) | By: Susan Dudley in Forbes | December 16, 2020
Civil service reform is important, but one has to wonder why the Trump administration is undertaking it with only a few weeks left in the administration. More baffling, why are they targeting OMB, the government agency most responsible for government accountability and evidence-based decisions?
President Trump’s Midnight Regulatory Agenda | By: Daniel R. Pérez | December 14, 2020
What is in the Trump administration's final Unified Agenda?
Forty Years After Surface Freight Deregulation | By: Jerry Ellig in The Regulatory Review | December 14, 2020
The regulatory reforms of the railroad and trucking industries are models for evidence-based, bipartisan policymaking.
Support the Center
Do you want better regulations? We can help YOU achieve that goal! The GW Regulatory Studies Center could not be here today without the generous support of individuals, foundations, and organizations around the world who actively donate resources to allow us to provide paid internships to promising students, host widely attended bipartisan events, and publish material on the most pressing issues in regulatory policy.
What We're Working On
USDA Reports
A series of Center reports as part of cooperative agreements with the US Department of Agriculture.
Regulators' Budgets
Analyzing regulatory policy through annual agency budgets.
Improving Policy
Congressional testimony and public interest comments to federal agencies by Center scholars.
COVID-19 and Regulation
The GW Regulatory Studies Center is actively compiling resources to better understand how COVID-19 is affecting the rulemaking process, and what the US federal government is doing in relation to the pandemic. Our COVID-19 and Regulation page provides resources that we consider helpful in understanding these changes. Learn more about the Columbian College's response and guidance on the CCAS COVID-19 Resources and Updates page.
Making A Difference
Cass R. Sunstein
Robert Walmsley University Professor, Harvard Law School
OIRA Administrator (Obama)
"The GW Regulatory Studies Center has done phenomenal work in cataloguing and analyzing reforms in regulatory policy...[it is] a national treasure."
Shawne McGibbon
General Counsel, ACUS
Graduate of GW Law
"The Regulatory Studies Center gives students hands on experience that I craved when I was in school. Programs like this are simply invaluable."
James Lankford
United States Senator from Oklahoma
"I am grateful for the non-partisan expertise and information that I can trust from the GW Regulatory Studies Center."
