Fight Back
If war isn't sufficient to remove bureaucratic obstacles, then what is?
US Bureaucracy is Blocking Arms for Ukraine
Regulations designed to prevent arms getting into the hands of our enemies and strategic competitors are holding back sending aide to Ukraine, a country engaged in defending itself from the invasion of one of these American foes. Some context would be nice.
‘It is clear that export regulations are having a negative impact on the battlefield and the US should step up to the challenge and update the regulations now. It is vital to act urgently to assist and support our Ukrainian allies as they fight for their country’s survival. ‘
Supreme Court ruling is bad news for science — and the public
There is the persistent assumption that all regulation is good. Anything that makes it harder to regulate is, by extension, bad. This kind of partial equilibrium analysis is how you get a physician deciding to lock up teenage girls like prisoners under house arrest, with complete disregard for their mental health, educational progress, or their future professional ambitions. I digress.
‘It is certainly hard to see how losing the Chevron doctrine serves the public good. Downgrading the scientific and technical expertise that lies in executive agencies like the EPA and Food and Drug Administration is likely to embolden companies to challenge policies meant to protect the public, as well as to inspire timid rule-making. What happens across the pond can influence events elsewhere: policymakers should worry about this official slapping down of expertise.’
Is it possible that regulation-by-rulemaking is dominated by enforcement at the agencies? These people didn’t get dressed up for nothing, to paraphrase the Mel Gibson movie Braveheart.
‘A pair of US Supreme Court decisions curtailing the rule-writing authority of federal regulators will likely force banking agencies to rely on their supervisory and enforcement powers to police Wall Street.’
Loper Bright Won’t Rein In Every Regulator
Judicial deference to agencies isn’t only a problem at the federal level. It may be a bigger problem at the state and local level.
‘Because regulators get a judicial pass when agency actions are challenged in court, deference doctrines result in more arbitrary rulemaking, more investigations, more findings of violation, and ultimately, in bigger, more intrusive government.
‘State agencies—probably more so than federal agencies—exercise tremendous power. While most Americans will never come under the scrutiny of the federal Environmental Protection Agency, for instance, nearly all Americans will at some point interact with state and local agencies. Regulators from these agencies make crucial decisions on matters involving everything from land use, to child welfare and parental rights, to a person’s right to operate a business or obtain a license to practice a trade or profession.’
Lina Khan Loses in Court Again—This Time on Non-Competes
Loper claims its first high-profile victim. Well, at least, it did in this initial skirmish.
‘As Judge Ada Brown explains, a “plain reading” of the law “does not expressly grant the Commission authority to promulgate substantive rules regarding unfair methods of competition.” The law instead lets the FTC hold administrative hearings and issue cease-and-desist orders against businesses charged with unfair methods of competition.
‘The FTC pointed to an ostensibly vague provision that authorizes it to “make rules and regulations for the purpose” of carrying out the prohibition on unfair methods of competition. Chair Lina Khan argued this provision empowered the FTC to regulate business practices as long as Congress doesn’t expressly say it can’t. Judge Brown disagreed.’
The IRS Has a High-Earner Delusion
All of the bleating in defense of the regulators ignores the fact that there more than a few instances of inconsistency, incompetence, and irresponsibility. Instead of targeting rich people with sketchy tax filings, moving to audit 8% of people with earnings in excess of an arbitrary threshold cost a ton of money and distracted investigators from going after the actual bad guys.
Regulators are just as irrational as everyone else. There is nothing special about them.
‘Unlike bank robbers, IRS auditors tend to look where the money isn’t. That’s what happened after the agency started scrutinizing more tax returns from the wealthiest Americans. A new report says increased targeting of these taxpayers was hugely ineffective.
‘The policy, launched in 2020 by former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, required the IRS to audit 8% of taxpayers each year who earned more than $10 million. To hit that quota, the agency started examining returns with fewer irregularities. The efficiency drop was steep, according to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, or Tigta, which recently reviewed the results.’
An Unaccountable Government Threatens Us Once More This Fourth of July
Awkward. Have regulators become so accustomed to legislation-by-title?
‘Federal agencies have slowly seized the powers granted to Congress and the American people over the years by issuing regulations that distort the clear meaning of our laws and repeatedly dodging congressional oversight. This rule by executive fiat threatens the rights and freedoms of our innovators, small businesses, energy industry, hunters and fishermen, patients and physicians, and all Americans.
‘Here’s an example: Three years ago, Congress passed the No Surprises Act, a bipartisan bill to provide patients with price transparency and remove the financial burden of surprise out-of-network medical bills. In direct violation of the law that we wrote, the Biden administration and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) implemented rule-making that enriches insurance companies — exactly what we legislated against.’
Federal judge temporarily blocks rule banning noncompete contracts
The Chamber of Commerce steps up to the plate. This time.
‘“This ruling is a big win in the Chamber’s fight against government micromanagement of business decisions,” Daryl Joseffer, chief counsel at the Chamber, said in a statement. “The FTC’s blanket ban on noncompetes is an unlawful power grab that defies the agency’s constitutional and statutory authority and sets a dangerous precedent where the government knows better than the markets.”’
The End of Chevron Deference: What It Means for Government Contractors
The bar for contractor protest.
‘The Supreme Court’s overruling of Chevron opens the door for government contractors to try to overturn existing government contract regulations as contrary to their underlying statute.’