This week in ridiculous regulations: Pedestrians’ heads and avocado maturity

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CEI celebrated its 40^th anniversary at its annual Julian Simon Memorial Award Dinner. The Federal Reserve cut interest rates. Agencies issued new regulations ranging from housing loans to cotton imports.

On to the data:

• Agencies issued 55 final regulations last week, after 47 the previous week.
• That's the equivalent of a new regulation every three hours and three minutes.
• With 2,260 final regulations so far in 2024, agencies are on pace to issue 3,100 final regulations this year.
• For comparison, there were 3,018 new final regulations in 2023, 3,168 in 2022, and 3,257 in 2021.
• Agencies issued 28 proposed regulations in the Federal Register last week, after 32 the previous week.
• With 1,268 proposed regulations so far in 2024, agencies are on pace to issue 1,781 proposed regulations this year.
• For comparison, there were 2,102 proposed regulations in 2023, 2,044 in 2022, and 2,094 in 2021.
• Agencies published 628 notices last week, after 458 notices the previous week.
• With 16,948 notices so far in 2024, agencies are on pace to issue 23,803 notices this year.
• For comparison, there were 22,902 notices in 2023, 22,505 in 2022, and 20,018 in 2021.
• Last week, 2,207 new pages were added to the Federal Register, after 1,804 pages the previous week.
• The average Federal Register issue in 2024 contains 424 pages.
• With 75,443 pages so far, the 2024 Federal Register is on pace for 105,958 pages.
• For comparison, the 2023 Federal Register totals 90,402 pages, the 2022 Federal Register has 80,756 pages, and 2021's is 74,352 pages. The all-time record adjusted page count (subtracting skips, jumps, and blank pages) is 96,994, set in 2016.
• Rules with $200 million or more of economic effects in at least one year qualify as major under Section 3(f)(1). This replaces the former economically significant tag for $100 million-plus regulations. There are 14 such rules so far in 2024, with none in the last week.
• This is on pace for 20 3(f)(1) regulations in 2024.
• For comparison, there were 28 3(f)(1) and/or economically significant regulations in 2023, 43 economically significant rules in 2022, and 26 in 2021. Note that these are not apples-to-apples comparisons, since 3(f)(1) and economically significant rules have different thresholds.
• The total estimated cost of 2024's 3(f)(1) major regulations ranges from net savings of $17.58 billion to net savings of $22.18 billion, per the Office of Management and Budget's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs.
• For comparison, the cost tally for 2023's 3(f)(1) major and economically significant regulations ranges from $62.60 billion to 90.48 billion. Cost estimates for 2022's economically significant rules range $45.28 billion to $78.05 billion. In 2021, net costs ranged from $13.54 billion to $1992 billion. The exact numbers depend on discount rates and other assumptions.
• There were three new final regulations meeting the broader definition of "significant" last week, after two the previous week.
• So far this year, there are 243 new regulations meeting the broader definition of "significant." This is on pace for 341 significant regulations in 2024.
• For comparison, there were 290 such regulations in 2023, 255 in 2022, and 387 in 2021.
• So far in 2024, 529 new regulations affect small businesses, on pace for 743. Fifty-three of them are significant, on pace for 74.
• For comparison, in 2023 there were 789 regulations affecting small businesses, 79 of them significant. In 2022 there were 912 regulations affecting small businesses, 70 of them significant. 2021's totals were 912 regulations affecting small businesses, 101 of them significant.

Highlights from last week's new final regulations:

• Rice's whale is being added to the Endangered Species List.
• Medical device classification for quantitative viral nucleic acid tests for transplant patients.
• Medical device classification for pediatric continuous renal replacement therapy systems.
• Medical device classification for devices to detect nucleic acid from viruses associated with head and neck cancers.
• Medical device classification for clozapine tests.
• NASA's cost principles and administrative and audit requirements.
• Blocking foreign assets.
• Dealing with research misconduct at HHS.
• Estate tax paperwork.
• Seat belt assembly anchorages.
• Pacific cod reallocation.
• Modernized housing counseling service delivery.
• Taxes on imported cotton.
• New construction and safety standards for manufactured homes.
• Endangered and threatened wildlife and plants.
• "Other Rockfish."
• College subsidies.
• Small business subsidies compliance date extension correction.
• FAA rules incorporating the U.S. Commercial Space Launch Competitiveness Act.
• Air quality at the Sylvamo Ticonderoga Mill.
• Performance standards for Medicaid fraud control units.
• Federal travel terminology regulations.
• Pilot program for school and library cybersecurity.

And from last week's proposed regulations:

• The FDA is revoking a mutual recognition agreement with Europe on medical devices.
• The FCC is inviting comment on whether to remove a set of regulations from 2013.
• A 5G Fund for rural America.
• The DEA wants to add N-pyrrolidino metonitazene and N-pyrrolidino protonitazene to its Schedule I list of controlled substances, same as heroin.
• On-off switches for airbags.
• Endangered species status and critical habitat for the Kentucky creekshell.
• Hydrofluorocarbon allowances.
• Guaranteed housing loans.
• Clarified updates to HUD's HUBZone program.
• Reviving decommissioned nuclear plants.
• Pedestrian head protection.
• Weather modification activities.
• Avocado maturity requirements.

For more data, see Ten Thousand Commandments and follow @10KC and @RegoftheDay on Twitter.