What the Supreme Court’s Rejection of the Employer Vaccinate-or-Test Rule Means for Biden’s Agenda
The Biden administration’s pandemic response strategy suffered a setback on Jan. 13. The Supreme Court handed down a rushed decision that stayed a workplace safety rule issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in November 2021.
Vaccine Mandates and Roads Not Taken
Earlier this month, a six-justice majority of the U.S. Supreme Court stayed the vaccinate-or-test mandate that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) imposed on employers that have more than 100 employees.
One Year On, a Critical Role Needs to Be Filled By the Administration
President Biden has made regulation a priority during his first year in office. On Day One, he carried through on campaign promises and signed several executive orders, memorandums and directives charging agencies to reverse much of his predecessor’s actions and to “modernize” regulatory review. Since then, he has also aggressively pursued new regulatory priorities, including those related to racial equity, climate change, employment, and the pandemic.
The first few days of the Biden administration were replete with regulatory news. Not only did the new president direct agencies to halt and undo Trump policy changes, he charted his own course with a series of ambitious regulatory goals.
Regulatory Policies and the Biden Administration
Last month, the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs released its semiannual Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions. The documents lay out a priority set for the Biden administration as it enters into its second year.
2021 Regulatory Year in Review
This Regulatory Insight recaps ten important developments related to federal regulations that occurred in 2021.
When Regulating An Appliance ... Follow The Science!
Read Susan Dudley's latest column for Forbes, "When Regulating An Appliance . . . Follow The Science!"
Energy Conservation Standards for Residential Clothes Washers
We served as members of the National Academy of Sciences Committee on Review of Methods for Setting Building and Equipment Performance Standards, and offer these comments based on the peer review we conducted between the fall of 2019 and spring of 2021.
Setting Appliance and Equipment Standards
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine provide independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation and conduct other activities to solve complex problems and inform public policy decisions.
Joint Letter to the Dept. of Energy
We served as members of the National Academy of Sciences Committee on Review of Methods for Setting Building and Equipment Performance Standards. We write to request that the Committee’s report and recommendations, “Review of Methods Used by the U.S. Department of Energy in Setting Appliance and Equipment Standards,”1 be placed on the rulemaking docket for rule EERE–2021–BT–STD–0003, “Energy Conservation Program for Appliance Standards: Procedures, Interpretations, and Policies for Consideration in New or Revised Energy Conservation Standards and Test Procedures for Consumer Products and Commercial/Industrial Equipment.”
