Politics

Dems Are Quietly Telling Biden Admin To Churn Out Regulations At Breakneck Speed As 2024 Election Looms

(Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz)

Democrats in Congress are encouraging the Biden administration to quickly enact a slew of far-reaching regulations ahead of the 2024 presidential election, according to Punchbowl News.

The Biden administration has pursued an aggressive regulatory agenda to implement President Joe Biden’s political priorities, including measures to encourage the production of more electric vehicles, forgive student loans, restrict “junk fees” by service providers and ban non-competition clauses in contracts, among many others. Amid concerns that Biden may not win the election against former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, Democrats have been encouraging the administration to finalize rules as soon as possible to preclude their expeditious reversal if Biden loses office, Punchbowl News reported.

“Time, time, time is how I describe this to every head of every agency I speak with,” said Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts to Punchbowl News. “We need to have this done and done quickly. If we didn’t learn that lesson back in 2016, then shame on us.”

I’m excited to announce @EPA has finalized technology standards for passenger cars and trucks avoiding more than 7 billion TONS of carbon pollution AND saving drivers money. https://t.co/tUQ89vR7QB

— Michael Regan, U.S. EPA (@EPAMichaelRegan) March 20, 2024

Regulations enacted by an administration may be rescinded by its successor subject to the Administrative Procedures Act or repealed by Congress using the Congressional Review Act (CRA), which allows the body to repeal regulations finalized by executive branch agencies within 60 legislative days of their publication in the Federal Register. CRA votes are expedited and do not require cloture in the Senate, precluding them from being filibustered.

Joint resolutions passed under CRA provisions must still be presented to the President and may be vetoed by him, with such resolutions representing all of Biden’s veto actions during his term. However, in 2017, the Republican-led 115th Congress passed several CRA resolutions to repeal several regulations finalized by the Obama administration that Trump signed into law.

The administration is currently in the process of finalizing several high-profile regulatory actions that affect multiple aspects of American life. These include a planned rule by the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) to impose background checks on firearms purchased at gun shows and online, a rule to expand mental healthcare access in coverage plans offered by health insurance providers, a rule to impose stricter pollutant emissions standards for heavy-duty commercial vehicles and a rule to increase the cost of leases for oil and gas exploration on public lands.

The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), which reviews all regulations by non-independent executive branch agencies before they are finalized, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.