Trump Has Stopped or Delayed More Than 1,500 Rulemakings
June 6, 2018
Trump Has Stopped or Delayed More Than 1,500 Rulemakings
Deregulatory Frenzy Puts Workers and Environment at Risk
Contact: David Rosen, drosen@citizen.org, (202) 588-7742
Michael Tanglis, mtanglis@citizen.org, (202) 454-5183
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Trump administration has withdrawn or paused more than 1,500 ongoing rulemakings designed to protect the public, according to a report from Public Citizen released today. That vastly exceeds the number under President Barack Obama at a similar point in his administration and roughly parallels the number under President George W. Bush.
The report, which analyzes 20 years of Unified Agenda data on rulemakings reported by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, also shows that President Donald Trump has withdrawn substantially more rulemakings deemed “significant” than either of his most recent predecessors at this stage of their administrations. Rulemakings are categorized as “significant” if they are projected to have an economic impact of more than $100 million or if they meet certain criteria, such as raising novel policy issues or affecting multiple agencies. Significant rulemakings typically are the most important rulemakings in protecting workers, consumers, public health and safety, and our environment.
“Trump is cutting the safety net out from under the very people he promised to protect,” said Mike Tanglis, senior researcher for Public Citizen’s Congress Watch division and author of the report. “Examples of rulemakings that the Trump administration has terminated or postponed include one that would have addressed the hazards that led to the 2010 Upper Big Branch mine disaster, which killed 29 people. Others would have protected workers from vehicles backing up, which are one of the top causes of workplace fatalities, prevented explosions from combustible dust and reduced emissions of the potent greenhouse gas methane.”
“The data are telling. But what the data do not convey is the human cost,” said Lisa Gilbert, vice president of legislative affairs. “While we may not yet know the names of those needlessly killed or injured by the administration’s determined inaction, we do know that people will die and suffer needlessly as a result of its deregulatory agenda.”
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