Recent Projects

Currently, the federal government treats lease sales as a now-or-never decision. That’s an approach that leads to too many leases sold too quickly, at too low a price. Instead, BOEM should be waiting to sell these leases until the time is right—when they can get the highest possible price.

Policy Integrity recently launched a wiki aimed at providing a better understanding of how energy sectors are subsidized by the tax code. The wiki will gather the expertise of lawyers, economists, tax professionals, and concerned citizens to catalog tax breaks received by the fossil and renewable energy industries.

The United States Parole Commission, the board responsible for granting parole and supervising parolees in its jurisdiction, is considering a proposal to improve its procedures for determining how to respond when released offenders violate the terms of their parole.

The Dept. of Housing and Urban Development has issued two proposals that would significantly alter the way the government handles homelessness and institute major improvements to the agency’s work; Policy Integrity recently submitted a letter on both.

The U.S. Department of Transportation announced new restrictions to the amount of time truckers can spend behind the wheel. DOT maintained an 11-hour limit on truck drivers’ hours, scaling back a proposal to give them more rest. The rule does introduce some new limits, including a reduction a driver’s maximum work week by 12 hours to 70 hours.

Today, the Environmental Protection Agency released air pollution regulations to lower emissions of 84 different toxic chemicals, including mercury.

Today the EPA released a new proposal to curb air pollution from industrial boilers. It’s an update on a version released in March of 2010, but never finalized.

The federal regulation of greenhouse gases from coal-powered plants called “New Source Performance Standards” has been delayed several times but is now set to be released in early 2012.

Policy Integrity submitted comments to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) urging updates to its New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) program standards for nitrogen oxide (NOx ) and nitric acid plants, which can emit dangerous air pollutants that can cause illness and alter the climate. Though a statute requires the EPA to review and revise related regulations every eight years, the rules governing these plants have not been updated in four decades.