CEI’s Battered Business Bureau: The Week in Regulation

This week in the world of regulation:

• Last week, 84 new final regulations were published in the Federal Register, despite the July 4th holiday. There were 78 new final rules the previous week.
• That’s the equivalent of a new regulation every two hours — 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
• All in all, 1,930 final rules have been published in the Federal Register this year.
• If this keeps up, the total tally for 2013 will be 3,650 new final rules.
• Last week, 1,371 new pages were added to the 2013 Federal Register, for a total of 41,936 pages.
• At its current pace, the 2013 Federal Register will run 78,139 pages.
• Rules are called “economically significant” if they have costs of $100 million or more in a given year. No such rules were published last week, for a total of 16 so far in 2013.
• The total estimated compliance costs of this year’s economically significant regulations ranges from $5.78 billion to $10.39 billion.
• So far, 132 final rules that meet the broader definition of “significant” have been published in 2013.
• So far this year, 324 final rules affect small business; 28 of them are significant rules.

Highlights from final rules published last week:

• The BPA ban for infant formula packaging was published this week. CEI’s Angela Logomasini has written a paper explaining why BPA is good for public health.
• Due to adverse comments received, the EPA is partially withdrawing air quality rules for North Carolina and Georgia.
• Federal regulations require truck drivers to keep track of when they eat. Since drivers don’t always comply, the requirements have been revised.
• When companies want to merge, the Hart-Scott-Rodino act requires them to ask permission first in many cases. If the companies get cold feet during the waiting period, a new rule makes it easier for them to withdraw the merger request.
• New energy-efficiency standards for federal buildings and high-rise apartments and condos.
• The Justice Department engaged in a bit of housekeeping by repealing some regulations related to programs that no longer exist.
• New critical habitat for six West Texas aquatic invertebrate species.
• In New Bern, North Carolina, there is a drawbridge that crosses the Trent River. The federal government regulates when it goes up and down.

For more data, go to TenThousandCommandments.com.