Commentaries & Insights

The Fall 2021 Unified Agenda

December 14, 2021

On Friday, the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs released its annual Regulatory Plan and semiannual Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions. Most agencies echo the Biden administration’s desire to focus on equity concerns in rulemaking in their statements of regulatory priorities. Aside from routine rulemakings, most of the large rules published for the first time in the Fall 2021 Unified Agenda are regulatory actions related to the COVID-19 pandemic or environmental policy.

Happy Birthday, APA!

December 3, 2021

The Administrative Procedure Act (APA) of 1946 celebrated a milestone birthday this year. Its requirements—that regulations be grounded in statutory law and an administrative record that includes public notice-and-comment—have guided executive branch rulemaking without significant amendment for 75 years. It is one of the most important and enduring pieces of legislation ever enacted, yet its passage wasn’t always assured. This commentary, excerpted from my recent Daedalus essay on “Milestones in the Evolution of the Administrative State,” reviews the contentious and messy, yet constructive, process that yielded this landmark act.

Increasing Early, Transparent Consideration of Regulatory Alternatives

November 10, 2021

In an article originally published by The Regulatory Review, Professors Carrigan and Shapiro summarize their research on studying agency consideration of alternatives during rulemakings.

ACUS Publishes Draft Recommendations to Improve the Congressional Review Act

November 9, 2021

A new project at the Administrative Conference of the United States will consider technical reforms to the Congressional Review Act. The recently-issued draft report is an excellent primer on the details of regulatory agency and congressional staff implementation of the CRA. It provides a deep dive analysis of several policy options available to Congress to improve the CRA. ACUS is going through its process to develop draft recommendations now.

Unpacking the OECD Recommendation on Agile Regulatory Governance

October 27, 2021

On October 6, the OECD Council adopted a Recommendation at the ministerial level related to agile regulatory governance. The Recommendation is designed to help governments consider regulatory structures that best bolster innovation in their countries. Overall, this Recommendation signals that the OECD sees regulation focused on promoting innovation as valuable—particularly in light of the rapidly-evolving nature of emerging technologies.

Benefits of a Rowdy Bureaucracy

October 26, 2021

Professor Andrew Rudalevige's book introduces us to a core idea: the executive branch matters to executive orders.

What’s the Status of the Biden Administration’s Workplace Vaccine Mandate?

October 21, 2021

The workplace vaccine mandate faces steep legal and practical challenges, but the president’s announcement may still help drive up vaccination rates.

Notice and Comment Policymaking in China

October 20, 2021

This commentary examines how the notice and comment process in Guangzhou has changed.

OIRA the Angel; OIRA the Devil

October 8, 2021

In their most recent book, Reviving Rationality, Mike Livermore and Ricky Revesz build on their record of support for the use of analytical tools, particularly cost-benefit analysis, to evaluate rules prior to their issuance.

Skipping Notice and Comment Over Time

October 6, 2021

The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs makes regulatory review data on interim-final rules easily accessible. Analyzing interim-final rules that have gone through regulatory review over time can shed light on the success of agency efforts to bypass the notice-and-comment process.