Trump targets regulations for rollbacks

President Trump took steps to deliver on an earlier threat by signing an executive order requiring agencies to identify two regulations to cut when proposing a new measure. Not only are federal regulations needed to enforce federal laws, but they also shield the public from a host of harms ranging from pollution to contaminated food and drugs to financial fraud. Additionally, Trump’s executive order, which is based on an arbitrary “add one, cut two” approach, requires that the total cost of new regulations in 2017, as determined by the White House’s Office of Management and Budget, be no greater than zero. Moreover, OMB’s evaluation would not take into account a regulation’s benefits to public health, job creation, or environmental services. This Trump edict favors Big Business over the environment—and at the expense of public safety. Questions remain about how the executive order would be implemented in cases where it contradicts longstanding laws designed to both protect the public and ensure that businesses know what’s required of them and why. What is certain is that fewer regulations would leave more Americans with dirtier air and water and greater health risks.

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