On July 9th, USA Today contributor Darrell Delamaide penned an excellent column regarding recently introduced legislation (S. 1029, the Regulatory Accountability Act of 2013) which seeks to affect the regulatory process. As the column highlights, the quest to subject independent regulatory agencies to further cost benefit analysis, which often fail to capture non-quantifiable “costs” such as safety and loss of life, is a flawed concept.
The column provides the public with insight regarding the inner-workings of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) and how OIRA review often ends up indefinitely delaying a final rule or substituting OIRA thoughts in place of thoughtful and scientifically sound regulations issued by federal agencies.
ALPA has been working to ensure that independent agencies like the Commodities Future Trading Commission (CFTC), which are tasked with implementing rules that protect our industry and our livelihoods from rampant oil speculation, remain independent and free from political influence.
