Recent Projects

Cars that hit the streets in 2017 through 2025 will run on far less fuel than they do now. Last summer, the Obama Administration announced a deal with automakers aiming to up the average to 56 miles per gallon and EPA-DOT proposed a new rule that would hold them to that standard.

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.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently announced its final policy on incorporating full fuel cycle analysis. This form of analysis expands on the current way of estimating the energy savings of appliances by including the costs of everything from fuel extraction to distribution and also estimating the greenhouse gas impacts of the machine.

The EPA released proposed regulations earlier this year in May to curb hazardous air pollutants, including mercury, from electric utility steam generating units (EGUs). Policy Integrity submitted comments today to the EPA on improving the efficiency of these rules, known as Utility MACT and Utility NSPS. They are both expected to be finalized later this year.

In January, President Obama issued a call for all federal agencies to review their existing regulations, looking for rules that had grown outdated, ineffective, or insufficient over time. Back then, there was much discussion over whether the move was a gift to business or a robust defense of strong protections even in a downturned economy.

In addition to submissions to the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency, Policy Integrity also sent our recommendations on developing policies for conducting retrospective reviews to fourteen additional agencies this week, including the Department of the Interior (DOI), the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Small Business Administration (SBA), and the State Department.

Today, Policy Integrity submitted comments to the Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

Back in January, President Obama signed Executive Order 13,563 requesting that agencies develop and submit preliminary plans to periodically review existing significant regulations.

Policy Integrity submitted comments on the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Association’s (“FMCSA”) proposed revisions to its hours of service regulation (“HOS regulation”) for commercial truck drivers. The regulation dates back to the Motor Carrier Act of 1935, which has seen little change to its basic structure despite numerous subsequent revisions. Our comments find FMCSA’s proposed modifications lacking for several reasons.

Policy Integrity recently submitted comments to the EPA on their “Valuing Mortality Risk Reductions For Environmental Policy” white paper, which focuses on topics related to the EPA’s practices regarding the valuation of mortality risks.