This week in ridiculous regulations: Au pairs and processed pears

The 2023 edition of Wayne Crews’ Ten Thousand Commandments is out now. Henry Kissinger died at age 100. Meanwhile, agencies issued new regulations ranging from systemic risk to poultry grower tournaments.

 On to the data:

• Agencies issued 52 final regulations last week in a four-day week, after 68 the previous five-day week.
• That’s the equivalent of a new regulation every three hours and 14 minutes.
• With 2,768 final regulations so far in 2023, agencies are on pace to issue 3,009 final regulations this year.
• For comparison, there were 3,168 new final regulations in 2022, and 3,257 new final regulations in 2021.
• Agencies issued 33 proposed regulations in the Federal Register last week, after 33 the previous week.
• With 1,953 proposed regulations so far in 2023, agencies are on pace to issue 2,123 proposed regulations this year.
• For comparison, there were 2,044 new proposed regulations in 2022, and 2,094 in 2021.
• Agencies published 658 notices last week, after 374 notices the previous week.
• With 21,099 notices so far in 2023, agencies are on pace to issue 22,934 notices this year.
• For comparison, there were 22,505 notices in 2022, and 20,018 in 2021.
• Last week, 1,284 new pages were added to the Federal Register, after 1,728 pages the previous week.
• The average Federal Register issue in 2023 contains 368 pages.
• With 84,065 pages so far, the 2023 Federal Register is on pace for 91,375 pages.
• For comparison, the 2022 Federal Register totals 80,756 pages, and 2021’s is 74,352 pages. The all-time record adjusted page count (subtracting 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. This recently changed to $200 million. There are 27 such rules so far in 2023, none in the last week.
• This is on pace for 29 economically significant regulations in 2023.
• For comparison, there were 43 economically significant rules in 2022, and 26 in 2021. The higher threshold will likely lower this year’s number.
• The total estimated cost of 2023’s economically significant regulations so far ranges from $90.48 billion to $62.60 billion, according to numbers self-reported by agencies.
• For comparison, the running cost tally for 2022’s economically significant rules ranges from net costs of $45.28 billion to $78.05 billion. In 2021, net costs ranged from $13.54 billion to $1992 billion. The exact numbers depend on discount rates and other assumptions.
• There were five regulations meeting the broader definition of “significant” last week, after six the previous week.
• So far this year, there are 258 new regulations meeting the broader definition of “significant.” This is on pace for 280 significant regulations in 2023.
• For comparison, there were 255 such new regulations in 2022, and 387 in 2021.
• So far in 2023, 719 new regulations affect small businesses, on pace for 782. Seventy-four of them are significant, on pace for 80.
• For comparison, in 2022 there were 912 rules affecting small businesses, 70 of them significant. 2021’s totals were 912 rules affecting small businesses, 101 of them significant.

Highlights from last week’s new final regulations:

• New rules for various Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac housing finance shenanigans.
• The FTC is updating its ten-year regulatory review schedule.
• Cost of living adjustments for webcasters.
• Cost of living adjustments for public broadcasters.
• Cost of living adjustments for satellite broadcasters.
• Threatened species status for the North American wolverine.
• A list of bioengineered foods.
• The Federal Reserve is updating some of its reserve requirements.
• And rules for capital stock.
• New FDIC rules for determining systemic risk.
• Dodd-Frank-related changes to the Federal Reserve’s and the CFPB’s Regulation M regarding consumer leasing.
• Dodd-Frank-related changes to the Federal Reserve’s and the CFPB’s Regulation Z regarding truth in lending.
• Standards for lowfat and nonfat yogurt are hereby revoked.
• The commercial quota for gag.
• Poultry grower tournaments.
• Promoting telehealth in rural America.

And from last week’s proposed regulations:

• 30-day notification requirement for evictions. This will have the unintended consequences of making rent more expensive, and making landlords more reluctant to rent to first-time and low-income renters.
• The State Department is considering essentially ending the au pair program.
• Critical habitat for five coral species.
• Oil, gas, and sulfur operations in the Outer Continental Shelf.
• Medical device classifications for wound dressings.
• Seven species that will not be added to the Endangered Species List.
• New energy conservation standards for oil, electric, and weatherized gas consumer furnaces.
• The Postal Service’s electronic verification system.
• Treatment standards for about 2,000 gallons of waste from the Hanford Site in Washington State.
• Critical habitat for the Sacramento Mountains checkerspot butterfly.
• IRS rules for transactions between family members.
• Tax increase on processed pears grown in Washington State.
• Atlantic deep-sea red crab specifications.
• Milk in the Appalachian, Florida, and Southeast milk marketing areas.

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