This Week in Ridiculous Regulations

The coronavirus outbreak began to infect financial markets as well as people, with stock markets having their worst week since at least 2008. The number of new regulations in 2020 also reached 500 on Friday. Meanwhile, agencies issued new final regulations ranging from portable bed rails to Canada goose permits.

On to the data:

• Last week, 86 new final regulations were published in the Federal Register, after 53 the previous week.
• That’s the equivalent of a new regulation every one hour and 57 minutes.
• Federal agencies have issued 500 final regulations in 2020. At that pace, there will be 3,125 new final regulations. Last year’s total was 2,964 regulations.
• There were also 57 proposed regulations in the Federal Register last week, for a total of 363 on the year. At that pace, there will be 2,269 new proposed regulations in 2020. Last year’s total was 2,106 proposed regulations.
• Last week, agencies published 494 notices, for a total of 3,445 in 2020. At that pace, there will be 21,532 new notices this year. Last year’s total was 21,804.
• Last week, 1,938 new pages were added to the Federal Register, after 1,551 pages the previous week.
• The 2020 Federal Register totals 12,206 pages. It is on pace for 73,343 pages. The 2019 total was 76,288 pages. The all-time record adjusted page count (which subtracts skips, jumps, and blank pages) is 96,994, set in 2016.
• Rules are called “economically significant” if they have costs of $100 million or more in a given year. Two such rules have been published this year. Four such rules were published in 2019.
• The running cost tally for 2020’s economically significant regulations ranges from net savings of between $180 million and $4.69 billion. 2019’s total ranges from net savings of $350 million to $650 million, mostly from estimated savings on federal spending. The exact number depends on discount rates and other assumptions.
• Agencies have published 16 final rules meeting the broader definition of “significant” so far this year. 2019’s total was 66 significant final rules.
• So far in 2020, 97 new rules affect small businesses; six of them are classified as significant. 2019’s totals were 501 rules affecting small businesses, with 22 of them significant.

Highlights from last week’s new final regulations:

• Professional development for pilots.
• Reducing Social Security benefits for non-English speakers will save an estimated $5.3 billion over the period 2020-2029.
• The Lousiana pinesnake is now a threatened species.
• The black pinesnake, categorized as a “least concerned” species, is receiving more than 324,000 acres of designated critical habitat.
• Agricultural disaster assistance programs. It is unclear if President Trump’s trade war qualifies under the rule.
• Joint employer status.
• The Agriculture Department offers telecommunications loans for distressed borrowers.
• The national veterinary accreditation program.
• More immigration restrictions, this time in the form of migratory bird permits for Canada geese.
• The Transportation Department is repealing some aircraft allocation regulations.
• Portable bed rail safety standards
• Returning merchandise via the U.S. Postal Service.
• New EPA emission standards for the surfaces of metal cans.
• Marine mammal casualties caused by the U.S. Navy.
• Royalty rates for digital radio stations.
• A tax decrease for tart cherries grown in Michigan.
• The Defense Department is removing a regulation for health promotion.
• A correction to last week’s land erosion tax treatment regulation.

For more data, see Ten Thousand Commandments and follow @10KC and @RegoftheDay on Twitter.