Trump’s Executive Order on Regulations Is Welcome, But More Is Needed

Reason.com discusses President Trump’s executive order on new regulations with Wayne Crews. 

Still, rolling back federal regulations in a meaningful way will require more than this order.

“Regulations have compounded for decades with very little rollback ever taking place, so President Trump’s executive order requiring agencies to identify two regulations for elimination, for every one new regulation issued, is both reasonable and a step in the right direction,” says Clyde Wayne Crews, vice president for policy at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a free market think tank based in Washington, D.C. “However, it is important to focus on eliminating the equivalent regulatory burden rather than a specific number of regulations.”

Last year, for example, Congress passed 211 bills while federal regulatory agencies approved 3,852 regulations, according to CEI, which tracks federal regulations. Including last year’s record-breaker, 13 of the 15 longest registers in American history have been authored by the past two presidential administrations (Barack Obama owns seven of the top eight, with George W. Bush filling in most of the rest), according to CEI.

Crews says the only way Trump can ensure long-lasting regulatory reform is to work with Congress. Otherwise, the next president could simply undo any executive orders he signs.

Read the full article at Reason.com.