Browse regulations

Requires health insurance issuers in small group and individual markets to report rate increases to CMS and establishes a process for determining whether rate increases are unreasonable based on factors like excessive premiums, unjustified increases, or unfair discrimination.

Creates bureaucratic overhead that increases compliance costs for insurers, which ultimately get passed to consumers. The complex reporting requirements and CMS review process add administrative burden without clear evidence of protecting consumers from actual harm. Small insurers and new market entrants face disproportionate compliance costs, reducing competition and innovation in health insurance markets.

This regulation establishes conflict of interest standards for Public Health Service research funding, requiring institutions to disclose, review, and manage financial interests that could bias research design, conduct, or reporting. It applies to institutions and investigators receiving PHS contracts, with specific thresholds for significant financial interests and mandatory management plans when conflicts are identified.

This regulation creates massive compliance costs for institutions and researchers ($2+ trillion annually in federal regulatory burden), imposes bureaucratic overhead that stifles innovation, and represents federal overreach into academic research governance that should be handled by universities and professional societies. The regulatory capture risks and compliance burden disproportionately harm small institutions while failing to prevent actual research bias.

Establishes the Medicare Shared Savings Program allowing Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) to receive shared savings for reducing Medicare costs while meeting quality standards, with potential losses under two-sided models. Defines detailed requirements for ACO formation, governance, beneficiary assignment, quality reporting, and compliance.

Despite being voluntary, this federal regulatory overlay imposes significant compliance costs and administrative complexity that burden all providers, with small practices disproportionately affected. The 185,000+ pages of CFR create barriers to entry, protect incumbents, and centralize healthcare coordination under bureaucratic control—precisely the unseen costs Mises and Hayek warned against. Market-driven care coordination could develop organically without federal structural mandates that inevitably suffer regulatory capture and mission creep.

EPA's Chemical Data Reporting (CDR) rule requires chemical manufacturers and importers meeting production thresholds to periodically submit detailed information including chemical identity, production volumes, processing/use data, and company/site information via electronic system, with exemptions for polymers, microorganisms, naturally occurring substances, water, natural gas, and certain petroleum streams, enforced by civil penalties for non-compliance.

CDR imposes heavy compliance costs on manufacturers, especially small businesses, while collecting information that markets and states could provide voluntarily. It represents unconstitutional federal overreach into intrastate matters, raises barriers to entry protecting incumbents, and creates centralized data enabling regulatory mission creep beyond legitimate safety goals.

This regulation establishes criteria for determining when non-hazardous secondary materials (like industrial byproducts) are considered solid waste when used as fuel or ingredients in combustion units, affecting emissions standards and permitting requirements under RCRA and Clean Air Act.

This creates excessive regulatory complexity and compliance costs for businesses using industrial byproducts as fuel, with extensive testing, documentation, and approval requirements that distort market incentives and create barriers to resource recovery.

EPA regulation governing exemptions from Clean Air Act tampering prohibitions for clean alternative fuel conversions of vehicles and engines, establishing certification procedures, testing requirements, and compliance standards based on vehicle age and conversion type.

Creates excessive regulatory burden on fuel conversion manufacturers through complex certification procedures, testing requirements, and compliance documentation that stifles innovation in alternative fuel technologies and raises costs for consumers seeking cleaner fuel options.

Procedural rules governing formal administrative enforcement proceedings before the USPS Judicial Officer under 39 U.S.C. 3005, covering complaint filing, service, answers, hearings, discovery, subpoenas, transcripts, and default judgments.

Eliminating these procedural safeguards would undermine due process in USPS enforcement actions, risking arbitrary deprivations of property and liberty without fair hearings, notice, or opportunity to be heard—core constitutional protections essential for any legitimate administrative adjudication system.

VA regulation authorizing monthly allowance payments to disabled veterans who train/compete in Paralympic events or reside at designated training centers, paid at Chapter 31 educational assistance rates with dependency supplements.

This narrow benefit duplicates existing veterans' support programs, creates administrative overhead for VA and USP to certify participation, and distorts incentives toward specific athletic pursuits. The $14,000+ hidden tax burden per household justifies scrutinizing even modest programs; veterans' rehabilitation needs are already addressed through broader disability compensation and education benefits, making this specialized allowance unjustifiable as federal spending.

This VA regulation implements two caregiver programs: (1) Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers providing stipends, healthcare, respite care, and training to family caregivers of veterans with serious service-connected injuries (70%+ disability rating) who need personal care services; (2) General Caregiver Support Services offering limited support (training, counseling, respite) to any caregiver of veterans enrolled in VA healthcare. Benefits vary by caregiver type (Primary, Secondary, General) with monthly stipends tied to OPM GS-4 step 1 locality rates multiplied by 0.25, 0.625, or 1.00 based on disability severity.

Veterans with severe service-connected disabilities have a unique moral claim to federal support; family caregiving is more cost-effective than institutionalization and aligns with veterans' preference for home-based care. While the program's tiered eligibility creates distortions and administrative complexity, these can be reformed rather than discarding the core function. Deleting this would force veterans into more expensive institutional settings or abandon families caring for those who sacrificed for the nation, producing clear harm to a population owed special care.

This regulation establishes the Health Care for Homeless Veterans (HCHV) program, which provides per diem payments to non-VA community-based facilities that offer housing, outreach, case management, and rehabilitative services to homeless veterans. It defines eligibility (veterans must be enrolled in VA healthcare and homeless), sets priority tiers for resource allocation, outlines contracting procedures with private providers, and mandates specific standards for facilities regarding safety, treatment plans, staffing, quality of life, inspections, and veteran rights. Payment rates are negotiated but typically limited to 6 months per veteran.

Deleting this regulation would directly harm homeless veterans who depend on these community-based services for housing, healthcare coordination, and rehabilitation. The program leverages private-sector providers through contracts, expanding capacity beyond what VA facilities alone could provide. It establishes essential standards to ensure veterans receive adequate care, safety, and support during a vulnerable period. Without this framework, many homeless veterans—particularly those newly engaged with the VA system or with service-connected disabilities—would lose a critical pathway to stability and treatment, exacerbating homelessness and associated public health costs. The per-diem structure efficiently aligns payment with service delivery while maintaining accountability through inspections and quality requirements.

This regulation establishes NARA's responsibilities for declassification of classified national security information in federal holdings, including operation of the National Declassification Center, processing referrals, systematic reviews, and mandatory declassification review requests.

Americans would be worse off if this regulation was deleted because it ensures proper handling of classified national security information, enables public access to historical records through declassification, and prevents arbitrary reclassification of already-released materials. The process protects both national security interests and transparency rights.

This regulation governs the National Archives and Records Administration's (NARA) fee structure for reproducing archival records, including cost recovery methodology, fee calculation formulas, and exemptions for certain reproduction services. It establishes detailed procedures for setting fees based on actual costs, projected volumes, and special handling requirements for historical documents.

This regulation creates a complex bureaucratic fee structure for accessing public historical records, effectively placing a tax on Americans' right to examine their own government's documents. The elaborate cost recovery system, with its detailed formulas and overhead allocations, adds unnecessary administrative burden and cost. Historical records should be accessible at minimal cost to the public, with basic reproduction services provided at cost or subsidized, as the current system creates barriers to research and transparency while generating revenue for an agency that should prioritize public access over cost recovery.

Federal program providing early intervention services to infants and toddlers with disabilities and their families through state-administered systems, covering developmental needs, family support, and coordination with healthcare providers.

Federal intervention in early childhood disability services violates constitutional federalism - states should determine their own approaches to special education and family support. The $2 trillion regulatory burden includes programs like this that create bureaucratic overhead, distort local decision-making, and raise costs for families while limiting state innovation in service delivery.

Coast Guard regulation adjusting civil monetary penalty amounts for inflation based on the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act. Updates maximum penalty figures in Table 1 to reflect inflation, applicable to penalties issued after December 29, 2025 for violations after November 2, 2015.

Without inflation adjustments, the real deterrent value of civil penalties erodes over time, undermining enforcement. Automatic adjustment is more efficient than requiring Congress to repeatedly legislate penalty increases, ensuring penalties maintain their intended economic impact while avoiding the delays and political unpredictability of manual updates.

Requires non-Army entities to obtain a garrison commander permit to use, store, or possess ionizing radiation sources on Army installations, even if already licensed by NRC or Agreement States.

Duplicates existing NRC/state licensing, adding bureaucratic delays and costs without meaningfully improving safety; contractors already comply with comprehensive federal and state radiation standards, making this redundant and burdensome.