President Joe Biden of the United States released his next regulatory to-do list on Wednesday, detailing his ambitions to influence industries, institutions and communities through the government’s rulemaking power.
Regulations shoring up climate-change monitoring and clarifying labor rules regarding independent contractors and government workers are on the agenda, as is a pledge for new tax guidance on digital currency and new protections for disabled people.
The list, typically issued twice a year, offers a window into how the administration plans to use 29 cabinet-level departments, executive agencies and federal commissions to advance the president’s priorities. The 2,651 rules on the current list touch on diverse areas ranging from farm loans, child nutrition and seafood inspections to energy standards, whistleblower provisions and international arms regulations.
The Office of Management and Budget, which released the agenda, said it highlights the administration’s efforts to increase its focus on worker health and safety, promote clean air and water, and mitigate the danger of climate change.
“The Administration will also continue to enact a whole-of-government approach to make our communities safer and build a more equitable economy that reduces barriers to opportunity, roots out discrimination, and delivers environmental justice to communities across the nation,” it said in a statement.
The last regulatory agenda was released in June. Though released in January, the start of Biden’s third year in office, this one was titled “Fall 2022.”
The White House regulations office will sign off on each rule before it is published and takes effect. The Senate in December confirmed Richard Revesz, a lawyer who specializes in regulation and climate change, to lead that team.