Overnight Regulation: GOP fears deluge of ‘midnight regs’

Welcome to OVERNIGHT REGULATION, your daily rundown of news from Capitol Hill and beyond. It’s Monday evening here in Washington. Here’s the latest.

 

THE BIG STORY

Republicans are sounding the alarm about a deluge of “midnight regulations” that could be pushed through agency pipelines in the waning days of the Obama administration.

It has become increasingly common for outgoing presidents to preside over late-term bursts of rules, as they look to cement their marks on Washington and accomplish remaining policy goals before they exit the White House. 

{mosads}Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, for instance, each issued flurries of regulations in the weeks between the election of their successor and their departure from office. 

Republicans — who warned of a torrent of new rules ahead of the 2012 elections, only to see President Obama re-elected — are already raising the specter again, even though there is more than a year left in the current administration.  

“This administration has already dropped a lot of controversial regulations, and I’m a little concerned about what could be coming at the last moment,” Rep. Tom Marino (R-Pa.) told The Hill.

The remarks followed GOP interrogations of the Obama administration’s top regulatory official last week in the House and Senate. Lawmakers repeatedly asked Howard Shelanski, administrator of the White House’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), whether the administration plans to open the floodgates to allow new rules after the 2016 election.  

The OIRA is responsible for scrutinizing major rules issued by federal agencies to make sure they are cost-effective and efficient. 

Shelanski sought to assuage the concerns, promising due diligence at the small office serving as gatekeeper for regulations coming out of agencies across the federal government. 

“I will do my darnedest to make sure that OIRA gets every opportunity to review all the rules that come through,” Shelanski told lawmakers. “I will do everything in my power to ensure that happens.”

OIRA is already working with federal agencies to prioritize the rules they plan to issue before the end of the Obama administration, Shelanski said.

In meetings with federal agencies, Shelanski is warning them to “get their ducks in a row.”

“We cannot do high quality review if we have a flood of last-minute regulations,” Shelanski acknowledged. 

Despite the assurances, Republicans, who have been relentless in assailing the president’s regulatory policies throughout the Obama administration, say they remain concerned. 

Read the rest of the story here: http://bit.ly/1Dq2ARk

 

ON TAP FOR TUESDAY

The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on sanctuary cities following the killing of a young woman in San Francisco, allegedly by an illegal immigrant. Jim Steinle, the father of Kathryn Steinle, who was fatally shot, will testify. http://1.usa.gov/1TCGVPn

The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions’ Employment and Workplace Safety Subcommittee will hold a hearing to discuss the Labor Department’s investment proposal for American families and retirees. http://1.usa.gov/1Jsquhb

The House Rules Committee will hold a hearing to formulate a rule on the Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act of 2015 and the Improving Coal Combustion Residuals Regulation Act of 2015. http://1.usa.gov/1Vl1uld

The House Veterans’ Affairs’ Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee will hold a hearing on VA procurement. http://1.usa.gov/1Ln5caM

 

TOMORROW’S REGS TODAY

The Obama administration will publish 190 new regulations, proposed rules, notices, and other administrative actions in Friday’s edition of the Federal Register.

Here’s what to watch for:

–The Department of Energy (DOE) will issue new energy conservation standards for certain air conditioners.

The efficiency rules from the Energy Department’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy will apply to packaged terminal air conditioners. The agency was also looking at new requirements for packaged terminal heat pumps, but decided they are “not economically justified.”

The rule goes into effect in 60 days. http://bit.ly/1Kh4QPP

–Financial agencies will issue new flood insurance regulations.

The Department of the Treasury, Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Farm Credit Administration, and National Credit Union Administration are updating their rules for loans in areas with special flood hazards.

The rules will implement provisions of the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act of 2014.”

The rules go into effect between Oct. 1, 2015 and Jan. 1, 2016. http://bit.ly/1OskN7c

–The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will propose new conservation practice standards.

The USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is looking to update the National Handbook of Conservation Practices. 

The public has 30 days to comment. http://bit.ly/1gKj5mx

–The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) will propose new annual catch limits for fishermen.

The catch limits would apply to Pacific Island bottomfish, crustacean, and precious coral. The rules would include accountability measures.

“The proposed catch limits and accountability measures support the long-term sustainability of fishery resources of the U.S. Pacific Islands,” the agency wrote.

The public has 15 days to comment. http://bit.ly/1RKoKcV

 

NEWS RIGHT NOW

Big banks: The Federal Reserve finalized rules Monday that require the nation’s biggest banks to hold much more capital to guard against collapse. http://bit.ly/1OijzL8

Minimum wage: Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is pushing new legislation to raise the minimum wage for all workers to $15 an hour. http://bit.ly/1Ifq5Ee

Worker misclassification: The Obama administration is looking to protect low-wage workers who are improperly classified as independent contractors, part of its push against income inequality. http://bit.ly/1MDPHZ5

Chemical laws: Sens. Tom Udall (D-N.M.) and David Vitter (R-La.) are pushing Senate leadership to schedule a vote on a bipartisan bill to reform the nation’s toxic chemical laws before lawmakers leave for summer recess in three weeks. http://bit.ly/1LyY35J

‘Midnight regs’: Republicans are sounding the alarm about a deluge of  “midnight regulations” that could be pushed through agency pipelines in the waning days of the Obama administration. http://bit.ly/1Dq2ARk

Drones: A Navy submarine has become the first to launch and recover an underwater drone used in a military operation, AP reports. http://bit.ly/1OsAGux

Federal Reserve: President Barack Obama has chosen Kathryn Dominguez, an economist at the University of Michigan, to join the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, the White House said on Monday. http://bit.ly/1CSyBGS

Weed: Scientists in Israel are exploring another medical use for marijuana: Their research indicates that a compound in the plant helps heal bone fractures, The Huffington Post reports. http://huff.to/1Jt8vr0

 

BY THE NUMBERS

$15: The minimum wage proposed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). 

$12: The minimum wage proposed by Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) earlier this year and currently backed by top Democrats including Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (Nev.) and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (Calif.).

 

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“This administration has already dropped a lot of controversial regulations, and I’m a little concerned about what could be coming at the last moment,” Rep. Tom Marino (R-Pa.) told The Hill when asked about midnight regulations.

 

We’ll work to stay on top of these and other stories throughout the week, so check The Hill’s Regulation page (http://digital-staging.thehill.com/regulation) early and often for the latest. And send any comments, complaints or regulatory news tips our way, tdevaney@digital-staging.thehill.com or lwheeler@digital-staging.thehill.com. And follow us at @timdevaney and@wheelerlydia.

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