President Biden is scrambling to finish a slew of federal regulations by the end of April, fearing a second Trump presidency would reverse his legacy.
In the past week alone, the Biden administration proposed 37 rules and finalized 59 that will cost businesses $875.3 billion — $20 billion less than the total of President Obama’s rules over two terms, according to data from the American Action Forum, a right-leaning economic think tank that tracks federal regulations and their costs.
“I think in this past week you really started to see an uptick in activity,” said Dan Goldbeck, director of regulatory policy at the American Action Forum. “They are prioritizing some really big items. For the rest of the year, you are going to see a concerted effort to get some of these items across the finish line so they can avoid scrutiny next year if the election goes a certain way.”
The White House declined to comment on the flurry of rulemaking.
The most controversial rules that the Biden administration finalized in the past week include:
• A Health and Human Services requirement for nursing homes that receive Medicare and Medicaid funding to have a minimum number of staffers.
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• Strict EPA emissions standards for heavy-duty trucks, buses and other large vehicles starting in 2027.
• More rigorous Department of Labor standards on retirement investment advisers.
• Emissions cuts from new natural gas and existing coal-fired power plants.
Mr. Biden is facing a deadline to cram through some of his regulatory priorities, or much of his legacy may not survive beyond the November election. If Donald Trump wins the White House and Republicans hold the House, they could overturn many of Mr. Biden’s regulations through the 1996 Congressional Review Act. The law allows Congress to rescind agency rules within 60 congressional session days after a regulation is finalized and sent to Capitol Hill.
CRA resolutions can pass with a simple majority in the Senate, making it easier to overturn a regulation than to pass traditional legislation.
Given the unpredictability of Congress’ schedule, it’s unclear when the deadline for protecting rules will begin. Congress won’t be in session much in the fall because of election-year campaigning. That would likely put the lookback period for regulations around May 22.
Mr. Trump angered environmental activists and former Obama officials during his first term when he and a Republican-controlled Congress used the CRA to rescind 16 Obama-era rules. Mr. Trump didn’t spare any agency. He slashed regulations from the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Departments of Interior and Health and Human Services, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
Before Mr. Trump’s presidency, the CRA was invoked only once. President George W. Bush used it in 2001 to rescind a Clinton administration workplace safety rule.
Mr. Biden has used the CRA three times to terminate Trump-era regulations that loosened oil and gas emissions standards. He also used executive orders to reverse Mr. Trump’s policies.
The CRA passed in 1996 with overwhelming bipartisan support. Lawmakers hailed it as a vital oversight power for Congress.
• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.
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