An executive order issued last week by President Donald J. Trump (R) requires executive departments and agencies to identify at least 10 existing rules to be repealed for every new one they propose, though it would be no surprise to see at least some of the independent federal financial regulators fall in line.
Though the order (No. 14192 slated to appear in the Federal Register Thursday) is directed at executive departments and agencies, independent agencies often tend to go along with the spirit of such orders. This has been the case previously during incoming administrations’ directives regarding initial periods of “regulatory review” or “freezes” (like the one described in another recent memorandum issued Jan. 20 by Trump).
The Federal Reserve Board, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC), and National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) were all established as independent agencies. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is an independent bureau within the Federal Reserve System, while the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) is an independent bureau within the Treasury Department.
Trump’s approximately three-page Jan. 31 order states that, “Unless prohibited by law, whenever an executive department or agency (agency) publicly proposes for notice and comment or otherwise promulgates a new regulation, it shall identify at least 10 existing regulations to be repealed.”
The order also states that for fiscal 2025, all agency heads are directed “to ensure that the total incremental cost of all new regulations, including repealed regulations, being finalized this year, shall be significantly less than zero, as determined by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (Director), unless otherwise required by law or instructions from the Director.”
It adds that any new incremental costs associated with new regulations “shall, to the extent permitted by law, be offset by the elimination of existing costs associated with at least 10 prior regulations.”
Executive Order 14192: “Unleashing Prosperity Through Deregulation”