President Obama announced yesterday that there would be a review of government regulations, in order to highlight which regulations are inefficient and damaging to businesses. Turns out there’s a catch: the review almost certainly won’t impact the regulations in either Obamacare or the financial reform legislation. From the Wall Street Journal:
The review focuses on old, outdated regulations so new ones written as part of the health-care and financial overhaul likely won’t be affected, an official at the White House Office of Management and Budget said. Mr. Obama wants agencies to take a fresh look at old regulations to determine whether they are outdated or unnecessary. “New regulations will not be priorities for the lookback,” the official said. …
The move was welcomed by some Republicans and the business community. U.S. Chamber of Commerce President and Chief Executive Thomas J. Donohue in a statement praised the executive order as a positive first step. Still, he said, the U.S. regulatory system is broken. He added, “No major rule or regulation should be exempted from the review, including the recently enacted health care and financial reform laws.”