This morning, the Center for Progressive Reform's Rena Steinzor testifies before the House Science and Technology Committee’s Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight. In her remarks, she calls on the White House to reshape the role of the director of OMB's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs -- the so-called regulatory czar. All too frequently OIRA has been the place where protective regulations go to get weakened or killed, and Steinzor argues forcefully that there's a better role for the OIRA director: a defender of federal regulatory agencies and their missions, rather than an impediment to regulation. She says:
The Obama Administration and Congress should define a new mission for the regulatory czar. The American people need more, not less regulation on every front, from mortgage lending to workplace hazards. The regulatory czar’s mission should be to rescue struggling regulatory agencies by helping them to obtain more resources and stronger legal authority.
Her testimony is online, here. And the news release is here.
A few related documents:
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Matthew Freeman | April 30, 2009
This morning, the Center for Progressive Reform’s Rena Steinzor testifies before the House Science and Technology Committee’s Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight. In her remarks, she calls on the White House to reshape the role of the director of OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs — the so-called regulatory czar. All too frequently OIRA […]
David Driesen | April 29, 2009
A coalition of conservative and moderate Democrats has recommended deleting section 336 of the Waxman-Markey climate change bill because of “concern among industry about potential new liability for any emitter” under that provision (see the proposed amendments). Some polluters’ objective, apparently, is to avoid liability for violating the law, and they recommend this deletion as […]
Matthew Freeman | April 29, 2009
This morning, the Center for Progressive Reform’s Rena Steinzor testifies before the House Science and Technology Committee’s Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight. In her remarks, she calls on the White House to reshape the role of the director of OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs — the so-called regulatory czar. All too frequently OIRA […]
A. Dan Tarlock | April 29, 2009
This post is written by CPR Member Scholars Dan Tarlock and Holly Doremus How has the Department of Interior fared during the first 100 days? If history is any guide, the issue may be more important than many people assume. With one major and one minor exception, Secretaries of the Interior stay put in Democratic […]
William Funk | April 28, 2009
There are few areas where the difference between the Republican and Democratic parties is more stark than that of the Freedom of Information Act. The FOIA, of course, requires agencies to provide copies of their records to any person upon request unless the record fits within one of nine specific exemptions. Among the most important […]
Rena Steinzor | April 28, 2009
Inside the Washington Beltway, we are awash in stories about President Obama’s first 100 days. Some are comparative—how is Obama doing in relationship to Franklin Roosevelt at the same point in his first term? Some are pure spin—“we’re competent and we love each other!" opines Rahm Emanuel, the obviously biased Obama chief of staff. And […]
Victor Flatt | April 27, 2009
Two weeks ago, Representatives Waxman and Markey put forth a 648-page legislative draft for dealing with climate change. That draft had proposals for the use of offsets, some good and some not so good (see my earlier post). Moderate and conservative Democrats on the Energy and Commerce Committee have now put forward suggested changes (as […]
Yee Huang | April 24, 2009
Never mind the unusual wave of intersex fish or the mutant frogs appearing in a waterway near you. Earlier this week the Associated Press published the results of an investigation of pharmaceuticals in the nation’s waters. The reporters found that U.S. drug companies have legally released at least 271 million pounds of pharmaceuticals into waterways, […]
Frank Ackerman | April 23, 2009
It must be worthwhile; at least, I keep doing it. Wednesday was the third time in the last eight months that I’ve testified before a House committee about the costs of inaction on climate change, a topic I study at the Stockholm Environment Institute-US Center, a research institute affiliated with Tufts University in Boston. The […]