On September 26, 2025, the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) published a Notice of Request for Information in the Federal Register, soliciting public input on identifying existing federal statutes, regulations, and agency rules that ‘unnecessarily hinder the development, …
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced formal reconsideration of 2009 Endangerment Finding on July 29, calling repeal “largest deregulatory action in history of America.” Finding declared CO2 and 5 other GHGs endanger public health. Repeal would eliminate legal basis for all climate …
The Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) developed an AI tool aimed at eliminating 50% of federal regulations by January 2026, targeting approximately 100,000 rules across multiple agencies using AI-driven analysis
President Trump issued a Presidential Memorandum directing federal agencies to review and repeal regulations deemed unlawful based on recent Supreme Court decisions, bypassing normal notice-and-comment procedures. The directive allows agencies to use the ‘good cause’ exception in the …
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announces 31 historic deregulation actions in “the greatest and most consequential day of deregulation in U.S. history,” including reconsidering the 2009 greenhouse gas endangerment finding. Chemical industry veterans Nancy Beck (American Chemistry Council) …
President Donald Trump signed Executive Order 14148 on January 20, 2025, his first day in office, rescinding 78 Biden-era executive orders and memoranda. The order targeted climate policies, DEI initiatives, and immigration enforcement, directing agency heads to end “unlawful and radical DEI …
Trump’s Executive Order 14148 “Initial Rescissions of Harmful Executive Orders and Actions” revoked 78 Biden-era orders issued between January 21, 2021 and January 19, 2025. Rescinded climate policies (EO 13990, 14008), equity initiatives (EO 13985, 13988), COVID response (EO …
The FCC’s “Restoring Internet Freedom” order officially takes effect, eliminating the Title II net neutrality protections that had prohibited internet service providers from blocking, throttling, or creating paid “fast lanes” for content delivery. Nearly six months …
The FCC, led by Chairman Ajit Pai, votes 3-2 along party lines to repeal Obama-era net neutrality rules, marking a major victory for telecommunications industry interests over consumer protections. Pai, a former Verizon attorney appointed by Trump, argued the regulations represented government …
The FCC, led by Chairman Ajit Pai, votes 3-2 along party lines to repeal Obama-era net neutrality rules, marking a major victory for telecommunications industry interests over consumer protections. Pai, a former Verizon attorney appointed by Trump, argued the regulations represented government …
Trump signed EO 13771 on January 30, 2017, establishing a “two-for-one” rule requiring agencies to eliminate two existing regulations for every new regulation, with zero net cost increase. A November 2017 OIRA report claimed agencies achieved a 22-to-1 deregulatory ratio in eight months, …
Senate Banking Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (R-AL) became instrumental in advocating for the Financial CHOICE Act, legislation aimed at significantly restructuring financial regulation by repealing major parts of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Shelby, who had …
The Federal Communications Commission approves the Open Internet Order by a 3-2 party-line vote, establishing the first formal net neutrality regulations but with significant weaknesses that would prove legally vulnerable. FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski’s order established three core rules: …
The FCC, led by Chairman Michael Powell (son of Secretary of State Colin Powell), votes 3-2 along party lines to dramatically ease media ownership restrictions despite overwhelming public opposition. The new rules would increase the national TV ownership cap from 35% to 45% of U.S. households and …
The FCC, led by Chairman Michael Powell (son of Secretary of State Colin Powell), votes 3-2 along party lines to dramatically ease media ownership restrictions despite overwhelming public opposition. The new rules would increase the national TV ownership cap from 35% to 45% of U.S. households and …
In one of his final acts as president, Bill Clinton implements the “Roadless Rule,” prohibiting road construction, timber harvest, and most commercial development on nearly 58 million acres of pristine national forest land—more than a quarter of the entire National Forest System. The …
President Bill Clinton signed the Commodity Futures Modernization Act (CFMA) into law on his last day before Christmas recess, completing the deregulation of the derivatives market that Brooksley Born had warned against two years earlier. The legislation, inserted into a 10,000-page authorization …
In the early evening of Friday, December 15, 2000, with Christmas recess only hours away and the presidential election still unresolved, the U.S. Senate rushes to pass an essential 11,000-page government reauthorization bill. Senator Phil Gramm of Texas inserts a complex 262-page amendment - the …
President Bill Clinton signs the U.S.-China Relations Act of 2000, granting China Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) status and ending the annual congressional review process that had existed since 1980 under Jackson-Vanik provisions. The House passed the legislation on May 24, 2000 and the …
The Federal Communications Commission approves Viacom’s $35.6 billion acquisition of CBS Corporation despite the merger violating FCC regulations prohibiting one company from owning television stations reaching more than 35% of the U.S. audience and prohibiting ownership of two networks if one …
America Online (AOL), the nation’s dominant Internet service provider, announces its intention to purchase Time Warner for $164 billion in the largest media merger in history. The combined entity would control magazines, video and high-speed Internet cable, cable TV channels (including CNN, …
The President’s Working Group on Financial Markets issues a unanimous report recommending that over-the-counter derivatives be explicitly exempted from federal regulation, directly repudiating CFTC Chair Brooksley Born’s 1998 warnings about systemic risk. The report is signed by Treasury …
The U.S. Senate confirms Lawrence Summers as the 71st Secretary of the Treasury, replacing Robert Rubin and continuing the aggressive deregulation agenda. Summers had spent the previous year as Deputy Secretary orchestrating opposition to derivatives regulation, including making an “irate …
Time Magazine publishes its February 15, 1999 edition featuring Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin, Deputy Secretary Lawrence Summers, and Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan on the cover as “The Committee to Save the World,” celebrating their management of the 1997-1998 Asian and …
NationsBank completes its $62 billion acquisition of BankAmerica Corporation, creating the first truly coast-to-coast national bank in U.S. history and taking the Bank of America name. The merger occurs just one year before the formal repeal of Glass-Steagall, demonstrating how banking consolidation …
The Telecommunications Act of 1996’s media consolidation provisions trigger massive job losses across American journalism, gutting local news coverage and professional media employment. In radio alone, cities that once had 100 jobs for radio professionals now have perhaps 20, an 80% reduction …
Clear Channel Communications begins an unprecedented consolidation spree following the February 1996 Telecommunications Act, acquiring $581 million worth of radio and television stations within just four months of the act’s passage. Before the Telecommunications Act eliminated ownership caps, …
President Bill Clinton signs the Telecommunications Act of 1996, the first major overhaul of U.S. telecommunications law in over 60 years. While ostensibly designed to promote competition by allowing ‘anyone to enter any communications business,’ the act was heavily influenced by …
President Bill Clinton signs the Telecommunications Act of 1996, the first major overhaul of U.S. telecommunications law in over 60 years. While ostensibly designed to promote competition by allowing ‘anyone to enter any communications business,’ the act was heavily influenced by …
President Bill Clinton signs the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) into law, creating the first major free trade agreement to include Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) provisions binding developed nations. NAFTA’s Chapter 11 establishes corporate tribunals that allow …
On her final day as Chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Wendy Gramm approves a regulatory exemption allowing Enron to trade energy derivatives without CFTC oversight. The exemption, granted on January 14, 1993 (some sources cite January 21, the final day of the George H.W. Bush …
Ronald Reagan leaves office with a domestic legacy of systematic corruption, regulatory capture, and policy failures that define American political economy for decades. The S&L crisis triggered by his deregulation will ultimately cost taxpayers $160 billion and require prosecuting 1,000+ bankers …
President Reagan signs the Garn-St Germain Depository Institutions Act in the Rose Garden, calling it “the most important legislation for financial institutions in the last 50 years.” The Act removes Depression-era constraints on thrift asset holdings, allows S&Ls to make high-risk …
Reagan-era S&L deregulation creates massive moral hazard by combining three toxic elements: elimination of prudential lending standards, expanded federal deposit insurance covering risky investments, and weakened regulatory oversight. The Garn-St. Germain Act removes Depression-era constraints …
President Reagan appoints James Watt, former president of Mountain States Legal Foundation (funded by Coors and oil companies), as Interior Secretary. Watt immediately opens federal lands to mining and drilling, reverses environmental protections, and staffs the department with industry executives. …
In 1977, Charles Koch (chairman and CEO of Koch Industries), Ed Crane, and Murray Rothbard founded the Cato Institute, establishing a libertarian think tank that would become central to promoting deregulation, privatization, and reduced government oversight across all sectors of American society. …