President Issues New Executive Order

On July 11, 2011, President Obama issued Executive Order 13579 as a supplement to the January  2011 Executive Order 13563 that called for all executive agencies to “…produce a regulatory system that protects ‘public health, welfare, safety, and our environment while promoting economic growth, innovation, competitiveness, and job creation.’”  This new order expands that directive to include all independent regulatory agencies as well.  As a practical matter, this means that all Federal departments, agencies, and commissions will have to conduct retrospective analyses of existing significant regulations; identify those that may be “outmoded, ineffective, insufficient, or excessively burdensome;” and implement the appropriate remedy to make the program “more effective or less burdensome in achieving the regulatory objectives.  EPA is already implementing the requirements of Executive Order 13563 and has received recommendations for action from states and ASDWA.