December 2024

Elon Musk's and Vivek Ramaswamy's vision for reducing the size of government hinges on fewer regulations. There’s ample opportunity for regulatory reform, but they must recognize that the regulatory state is bound by procedures designed to ensure transparency and accountability. They can’t yada yada yada over the important parts and must do their homework and work with Congress to ensure that DOGE’s reforms stick.

We recently checked in with Trachtenberg School alumna Elizabeth Linderbaum (MPP ‘22) for insights on her career in regulatory policy. Linderbaum is the Deputy Director of Regulatory Affairs at the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) in Bethesda, Maryland. Read More >

The Regulatory Studies Center is a user-supported, independent academic center dedicated to the study of, and scholarship regarding, regulatory process and procedure. As we approach the end of 2024, the importance of independent, nonpartisan study of regulation has never been greater, and your support is critical to our research, students, events, and insights.

Your support makes everything we do possible and we hope that, through the end of 2024, you can help us continue our important work by making a year-end contribution to the RSC.

We thank you in advance for your consideration and look forward to continuing to be part of these important policy debates in 2025!

Roger Nober
GW Regulatory Studies Center

December 9, 2024
Richard J. Pierce for The Regulatory Review

United States v. Eaton is the basis for the constitutional validity of tens of thousands of important decisions made by the executive branch every year. But the case is under-appreciated, even among administrative law experts. 

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November 25, 2024
Commentary by Susan Dudley & Sarah Hay

Murray Weidenbaum’s groundbreaking Regulators’ Budget report has provided authoritative data on the on-budget costs of regulation for decades. We propose methodological improvements to better reflect the modern regulatory environment.

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November 20, 2024
Commentary by Steven Balla, Sarah Hay & Zhoudan (Zoey) Xie

Steven Balla, Sarah Hay & Zhoudan (Zoey) Xie | November 20, 2024
With GOP majorities in the US House and Senate, the new administration has the opportunity to fast-track its reversal of Biden-era regulations using the Congressional Review Act. Which rules are likely to fall within the CRA lookback window and which might become potential targets for reversal early next year?

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November 14, 2024
Susan Dudley for Forbes

Susan Dudley wrote in Forbes that the federal regulatory apparatus has been growing for decades and must be addressed as part of the solution to reducing government waste. Within the White House, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) are well-suited to help reduce bureaucratic inefficiencies.

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November 14, 2024
Susan Dudley for Forbes

Donald Trump won a decisive victory last week and will reoccupy the Oval Office in January. Polls suggest that dissatisfaction with the economy was one of the main reasons for his comeback and experts attribute the better economy during his first term to his tax cuts and deregulation. While Trump made fewer campaign promises regarding regulation than he did in 2016, his previous record and campaign statements suggest some regulatory actions we could expect him to take in his second term.

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November 14, 2024
Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis
By Christopher Carrigan, Jerry Ellig & Zhoudan Xie

This article explores the role of microeconomic analysis in policy formulation by assessing how the regulatory impact analyses (RIAs) that federal regulatory agencies prepare for important proposed rules may affect outcomes when regulations are challenged in court.

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November 14, 2024
Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis
By Susan Dudley & Jerry Ellig

Over the last century, the United States has witnessed three approaches to achieving better regulatory outcomes: the removal of “economic” regulations in certain sectors; regulatory impact analysis (RIA) of new “social” regulations; and retrospective analysis of existing regulations. This article reviews the rationale for each approach, the results to date, and the remaining challenges. It finds that both institutional and technical factors influence the success of reform efforts.

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November 14, 2024
Working Paper
By Xiaohan Ma & Zhoudan Xie

An increase in regulatory uncertainty in the energy sector was found to reduce oil production and operations, while also having negative effects on nationwide and state-level economic outcomes.

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November 12, 2024
Working Paper
By Susan Dudley

To offer some insight into the question of how Artificial Intelligence should be regulated, this essay looks at experience with regulating past novel technologies—commercial flight, biotechnology, and the internet. These case studies help inform some preliminary lessons that may be applicable to other emerging technologies, including AI.

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October 2024
Working Paper
By Susan Dudley, Joseph Cordes et al.

The Society for Benefit-Cost Analysis has posted a series of working papers forthcoming in a special issue of the Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis edited by Susan Dudley and Tom Kneisner based on former SBCA presidents’ comments on OMB’s revised regulatory analysis guidelines.

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October 8, 2024
Governance
By Steven J. Balla, Andrew Wan, Zhoudan Xie, Yat To Yeung & Geng Zhai

Chinese government responsiveness to lengthy and critical comments demonstrates that — even in an autocracy — public scrutiny matters to policymakers.

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Susan Dudley will moderate a panel hosted by the Federalist Society: Department of Government Efficiency: Opportunities and Challenges (December 19, 2024).

Susan Dudley and Sarah Hay will present the Center’s Regulators’ Budget as part of the Regulation and Governance series on The Metrics of Regulation (December 17, 2024).

Roger Nober moderated a panel discussion of the GW Milken School of Public Health on challenges and opportunities for the regulation of cannabis (December 10, 2024). 

Susan Dudley is serving on a Bipartisan Policy Center Working Group to Enhance Legislative Process Following SCOTUS Rulings in administrative law, such as Loper Bright. BPC Press Release (December 10, 2024). 

Susan Dudley presented her new working paper on “Expertise and Accountability in the Executive” at a C. Boyden Gray Center roundtable (November 8, 2024)

Susan Dudley was quoted in Christian Science Monitor: Can DOGE Cut $2 Trillion in Federal Spending? Not Directly, But it has Trump’s Ear (December 16, 2024).

Steven Balla and Sarah Hay were interviewed by the Capital News Service (Maryland): Trump and GOP Congress Will Have a 60-Day Deregulation Fast Pass (December 11, 2024).

Sarah Hay was interviewed by the Washington Post: Biden Administration Finalizes New Regulations Amid GOP Repeal Threats (December 11, 2024).

Steven Balla was interviewed by Fierce Healthcare: How Trump Could Roll Back Biden-era Healthcare Regulations (December 6, 2024).

Steven Balla was interviewed by Spectrum News: What Will Happen to the Potential Federal Menthol Cigarette Ban? (December 4, 2024).

Susan Dudley was cited in Agri-Pulse: DOGE Bulls Forward With Plans to Cut Federal Government (November 28, 2024).

RegStats data cited in Axios: Trump's Plan: Roll Back Biden's Record-breaking Regulations (November 25, 2024).

Susan Dudley was quoted in CapX: It Takes More Than Rhetoric to Shrink the State (November 22, 2024).

Roger Nober and Susan Dudley were quoted in U.S. News: Czars, Advisers and a New Department of Government Efficiency: Dissecting a Trump Administration Strategy (November 14, 2024).

Steven Balla was quoted in MotherJones on the Congressional Review Act: Dear Joe Biden: Here’s How You Can Protect Reproductive Rights From Trump’s Zealots (November 14, 2024).

RegStats data cited in WestLaw Today: Congressional Review Act Looms After Election Results (November 13, 2024).

RegStats data cited in Bloomberg: Trump’s ‘Epic’ Deregulation Must Preserve Financial Stability (November 13, 2024).

Susan Dudley was interviewed on Fox5 DC TV: Trump Appoints Elon Musk to Lead Department of Government Efficiency (November 13, 2024).

Howard Beales was cited in City Journal: Farewell to a Norm-Buster (November 12, 2024).

Roger Nober, Susan Dudley and Aram Gavoor were featured in the Federalist Paper magazine’s Fall 2024 issue.

Sarah Hay and Zhoudan Xie are quoted in GovExec: If Republicans Sweep on Election Day, They Could Easily Repeal These Biden Policies (November 4, 2024).

Aram Gavoor was interviewed by Nexstar Media Group: White House Sets New Rules for AI Use (October 24, 2024).

Joseph Cordes was interviewed on KCCI-TV: Presidential Candidates Push Economic Plans Ahead of Election Day (October 23, 2024).

Susan Dudley was interviewed about her career in administrative law by ACUS Chair Andy Fois on the Between the Lines podcast (October 15, 2024).

Listen to our podcast for insights on regulatory trends. Recent discussions have explored the Congressional Review Act, Biden's Data Security executive order, effective public engagement strategies for federal agencies, and more.