Agency Rulemaking Highlights

Modernizing Regulatory Review

• President Biden issued Executive Order (EO) 14094, which supplements and reaffirms important elements of EO 12866. The document moves the threshold for “economically significant” regulations to $200 million with a requirement to adjust that threshold every three years for inflation, directs agencies and the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) to implement measures that seek to make public participation more inclusive and transparent, and directs the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to revise guidance on regulatory analysis.

• OMB published a request for comments on guidance for implementing Section 2(e) of EO 14094 related to reforming the process by which the public requests meetings with OIRA on regulatory actions under review pursuant to EO 12866. Comments due June 6.

• In response to Sec. 3 of EO 14094, OMB issued two requests for comments on its circulars governing regulatory impact analysis (A-4) and discount rates for benefit-cost analysis (A-94). OMB also requested nominations of experts to participate in an independent scientific peer review of an updated draft of Circular A-4. Comments on each proposal are due June 6.

See overviews of the Modernizing Regulatory Review actions by RSC’s Susan Dudley and Bridget Dooling. 

Proposed Vehicle Emission Standards for Model Year 2027

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing new federal emissions standards for light/medium duty and heavy duty vehicles which would avoid a projected 10 billion tons of CO2 emissions through 2055. The proposal is also projected to accelerate the transition to electric vehicles (EVs): EPA contends EVs could account for 67% of new light-duty vehicle sales and 46% of new medium-duty vehicle sales in model year 2032. Following publication in the Federal Register, comments due within 50 days for the heavy-duty vehicle proposal and within 60 days for the light/medium duty vehicle proposal.

Petroleum-Equivalent Fuel Economy Calculation

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy proposes to revise its procedures for calculating a value for the petroleum-equivalent fuel economy of EVs for use in the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) program administered by the Department of Transportation. Comments due June 12.

Medicare Program Updates for 2024

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final rule revising the Medicare Advantage (Part C), Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit (Part D), Medicare cost plan, and Programs of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) regulations. The rule implements changes related to Star Ratings, marketing and communications, health equity, provider directories, coverage criteria, prior authorization, passive enrollment, and other program areas. Effective June 5. Concurrently, CMS issued proposed rules on Medicare’s Inpatient Psychiatric Facilities Prospective Payment System-Rate Update and Prospective Payment System and Consolidated Billing for Skilled Nursing Facilities, both with a due date for comments of June 5. For a third proposed rule, Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility Prospective Payment System, CMS is accepting comments through June 2.

Eliminating Unlawful Text Messages

The Federal Communications Commission issued a final rule requiring mobile wireless providers to block texts, at the network level, on a reasonable Do-Not-Originate list which includes phone numbers that are invalid, unused, or from numbers a subscriber has requested be blocked. Effective May 11.

Use of Salt Substitutes

The Food and Drug Administration is proposing to amend its regulations that specify salt (sodium chloride) as a required or optional ingredient to permit the use of salt substitutes in standardized foods, in order to reduce the sodium content. The proposal seeks to support a healthier food supply while facilitating innovation and maintaining the foods’ essential characteristics. Comments due August 8.

Washington Post Editorial Board: The Abortion Pill Should Remain Available While Courts Deliberate 

Liz Borkowski & Julia Strasser: A Bad Medication Abortion Decision Threatens the Future Availability of Drugs in the US

Paul Weinstein Jr.: More Bank Failures if Congress and Biden Can’t Cut a Debt Deal

Aurelien Portuese: US Antitrust Kneecaps Companies Trying to Compete Globally

Lisa Jarvis: Abortion Pill Mifepristone Ruling Threatens Pharmaceutical Innovation

Tim Culpan: China's Regulators Aren't Done Yet With Their Tech Crackdown

Dan Becker & Maya Golden-Krasner: One Decision Can Help Get Biden’s Climate Goals Back on Track

Wall Street Journal Editorial Board: A Legal Clash Over the Abortion Pill

Wall Street Journal Editorial Board: Biden’s Biased Housing Bias Rule

Aaron Klein: Why FDR Limited FDIC Coverage

Governance & Politics

• White House Revises Regulatory Review to Account for Equity, Seeks Public Feedback, Federal News Network
• Biden's Regulatory Update is Finally Here, Government Executive
• Battle Over Biden Labor Nominee Julie Su Heats Up, Reuters
• IRS to Hire 30,000 Employees Over the Next Two Years, Government Executive

Financial Markets & Housing

• US Says Decentralized Finance Services Being Used for Illicit Transfers, Reuters
• Crypto Regulation: US Treasury Statement on DeFi Emphasizes Anti-Money Laundering Rules, Forbes
• DeFi Needs to Comply With Anti-Money Laundering Rules, US Treasury Says, Bloomberg
• Decentralized Cryptocurrency Markets Threaten US Security, Treasury Says, Wall Street Journal
• FHLBs Get Backing From Advisers to Biden as Criticism Mounts, Bloomberg
• New York Finance Regulator Says Signature Bank’s Closure Not Related to Crypto, Wall Street Journal

Energy & Environment

• EPA is Said to Propose Rules Meant to Drive Up Electric Car Sales Tenfold, New York Times
• Biden to Remake US Auto Industry with Toughest Emissions Limits Ever, Washington Post
• The EPA Faces Questions About its Approval of a Plastic-Based Fuel With an Astronomical Cancer Risk, ProPublica
• EPA Seeks to Restrict a Toxic Sterilizer, Despite Industry Red Flags, Washington Post
• Biden Vetoes Congressional Bid to Undo his Water Regulations, The Hill
• EPA is Said to Propose Rules Meant to Drive Up Electric Car Sales Tenfold, New York Times
• Part of a Law to have Federal Buildings Stop Using Natural Gas was Never Implemented, NPR
• EPA Orders Valero to Improve Chemical Safety at California Refinery, Reuters
• Utilities Pursue Pipeline Sales as Natural-Gas Bans Catch On, Wall Street Journal

Health & Safety

• Federal Judge Rules to Freeze Use of Abortion Pill Nationwide, Axios
• Medication Abortion is Still Possible with Just One Drug. Here's How it Works, NPR
• Texas Abortion Pill Ruling Threatens FDA, Washington Post
• White House Announces Increased Sanctions to Combat Fentanyl Trafficking, Politico

Business & Technology

• Biden Administration Weighs Possible Rules for AI Tools Like ChatGPT, Wall Street Journal
• Why a Bill that Could Ban TikTok is Raising Privacy Concerns, The Hill
• AI ‘Trustworthiness’ Is Focal Point of New US Government Inquiry, Bloomberg
• US Government Is Seeking Public’s Input On How To Regulate Artificial Intelligence, Forbes
• Commerce Department Looks to Craft AI Safety Rules, Axios
• TikTok Is Fined $15.9 Million Over Misusing Kids’ Data in Britain, New York Times
• UK Regulator Launches Cloud Market Investigation Amid Concerns on Practices of Amazon, Microsoft, Wall Street Journal

Transportation & Infrastructure

• Regulators Say Railroads Must Examine How they Build Trains, Associated Press
• Feds Urge Review of ‘Train Makeup’ Amid Rising Derailments of Long Trains, Washington Post
• EPA Car Rule to Push Huge Increase in EV Sales, Associated Press
• Drone Delivery in New Zealand Could Open Skies in EU, Australia, Bloomberg
• As Space Fills with Satellites, Operators Want to Create Rules of the Road, Axios

Education

• Advocates Call Biden's Transgender Athlete Proposal Either ‘a Step Forward’ or ‘a Betrayal’, NPR
• Lawmakers Criticize Proposed Title IX Changes Guiding Trans Athletes, Axios
• Biden Administration Says Schools May Bar Trans Athletes from Competitive Teams, Washington Post
• Online Program Manager 2U Sues Education Dept. over New Regulation, Washington Post