Symposium: Reflections on Executive Order 13,422. Introductory Comment

Abstract

This Symposium evaluates President Bush's January 2007 amendments to the Executive Order governing the White House regulatory review process. A brief review of the current process will provide context to evaluate the recent changes. All federal agencies except independent commissions submit their rules to the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA). Agencies are required to submit a benefit-cost analysis on the most important rules. OIRA then reviews this analysis and may return the rule to the agency for further work. While seemingly obscure, this review process has generated tremendous political controversy and academic inquiry since President Reagan mandated the practice on a wide-scale basis in 1981. The Bush amendments have been no exception, sparking media coverage and political controversy leading to an appropriations bill with a rider prohibiting implementation of the order.