The week in regulations: Fuel casks and water beads

The Federal Reserve cut interest rates. President Trump proposed $12 billion in giveaways to farmers harmed by his tariffs. Agencies issued new regulations ranging from emergency alerts to raisin marketing.

 On to the data:

• Agencies issued 77 final regulations last week, after 43 the previous week.
• That’s the equivalent of a new regulation every two hours and 11 minutes.
• With 2,329 final regulations so far in 2025, agencies are on pace to issue 2,447 final regulations this year.
• For comparison, there were 3,248 final regulations in 2024, 3,018 in 2023, and 3,168 in 2022.
• Agencies issued 33 proposed regulations in the Federal Register last week, after 25 the previous week.
• With 1,433 proposed regulations so far in 2025, agencies are on pace to issue 1,506 proposed regulations this year.
• For comparison, there were 1,769 proposed regulations in 2024, 2,102 proposed regulations in 2023, and 2,044 in 2022.
• Agencies published 426 notices last week, after 466 notices the previous week.
• With 18,077 notices so far in 2024, agencies are on pace to issue 18,992 notices this year.
• For comparison, there were 25,506 notices in 2024, 22,902 in 2023, and 28,973 in 2022.
• Last week, 1,433 new pages were added to the Federal Register, after 1,616 pages the previous week.
• The average Federal Register issue in 2025 contains 244 pages.
• With 57,865 pages so far, the 2025 Federal Register is on pace for 60,795 pages.
• For comparison, the 2024 Federal Register has an all-time record 107,261 pages. The 2023 edition has 90,402 pages, and the 2022 Federal Register has 80,756 pages.
• Rules with $200 million or more of economic effects in at least one year qualify as major under Section 3(f)(1). This replaced the former economically significant tag for $100 million-plus regulations.
• However, the $100 million economically significant tag is now revived under a Trump Executive Order, and the $200 million 3(f)(1) tag is going away. Rules from both categories have appeared this year.
• There are 15 3(f)(1) or economically significant regulations so far in 2025, with none in the last week.
• This is on pace for 16 3(f)(1) or economically significant regulations in 2025.
• For comparison, there were 20 3(f)(1) significant regulations in 2024, 28 3(f)(1) and/or economically significant regulations in 2023, and 43 economically significant rules in 2022. Note that these are not apples-to-apples comparisons, since 3(f)(1) and economically significant rules have different thresholds.
• This year’s section 3(f)(1) and economically significant regulations have estimated costs ranging from net savings of $1.68 billion to net costs of $3.55 billion.
• For context, the cost tally for 2024’s 3(f)(1) significant regulations is net savings of $16.42 billion to 26.45 billion. 2023’s 3(f)(1) and/or economically significant regulations estimated costs range from $62.60 billion to 90.48 billion. Cost estimates for 2022’s economically significant rules range from $45.28 billion to $78.05 billion. The exact numbers depend on discount rates and other assumptions.
• There were five new final regulations last week meeting the broader definition of “significant,” after six the previous week.
• So far this year, there are 138 new regulations meeting the broader definition of “significant.” This is on pace for 149 significant regulations in 2025.
• For comparison, there were 339 such regulations in 2024, 290 in 2023, and 255 in 2022.
• So far in 2025, 587 new regulations affect small businesses, on pace for 617. Twenty-eight of them are significant, on pace for 29.
• For comparison, in 2024 there were 770 regulations affecting small businesses, 76 of them significant. In 2023 there were 789 regulations affecting small businesses, 79 of them significant.

Highlights from last week’s new final regulations:

• Travel regulations for federal employees.
• Spent fuel casks.
• Housing subsidies.
• The Energy Department is rescinding a loan program for minority-owned businesses.
• The Energy Department is rescinding nondiscrimination rules for construction projects.
• The Energy Department is rescinding its nondiscrimination rules for sex education.
• Chinook salmon from the California and Oregon coasts will not be listed under the Endangered Species Act.
• The Justice Department is reorganizing its Tax Division.
• The Emergency Alert System.
• Controllable flight disruptions.
• Technical amendments to SEC paperwork.
• Subsidized loans for rural areas.
• MDMB-4en-PINACA is temporarily a Schedule I controlled substance.
• CUMYL-PEGACLONE’s temporary Schedule I status has been extended.
• Marine mammal casualties due to an LNG project in Cook Inlet in Alaska.
• The Justice Department is reorganizing its Tax Division.
• Phone subsidies for rural areas.
• Updated safety standards for bassinets and cradles.
• Loan guarantees for rural businesses.
• Russia sanctions.
• Water bead requirements.
• The FCC is removing some outdated regulations.
  
  

And highlights from last week’s proposed regulations:

• Spent fuel casks.
• Sport pilot practical standards alignment.
• Population projections for summer flounder, scup, black sea bass, and bluefish fisheries.
• HHS policies for safe harbors.
• A marketing order for raisins.
• Revisions to Medicare organ transplant rules.
• Dogs are prohibited from the Pribilof Islands.
• CUMYL-PEGACLONE will soon be a Schedule I controlled substance.
• Extra Aerobatic Aircraft airworthiness.
• Public hearing for CAFE standard changes.

For more data, see Ten Thousand Commandments and follow @10KC and @RegoftheDay on Twitter. See also CEI’s Agenda for Congress.