Browse regulations

Department of Commerce Acquisition Regulation (CAR) establishes uniform procurement policies and procedures that implement and supplement the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), covering acquisition policies, administration, and deviation procedures for Department of Commerce acquisitions.

Federal procurement regulations create unnecessary bureaucratic overhead that increases costs for taxpayers and businesses. The Commerce Department's internal acquisition rules duplicate existing FAR requirements, adding complexity without providing meaningful consumer protection or market benefits. Small businesses face disproportionate compliance burdens while the regulations protect incumbent contractors through regulatory capture. These procurement rules properly belong at the state or agency level under constitutional federalism, not as federal mandates.

Department of Energy Privacy Act regulations implementing 10 CFR part 1008, governing the collection, maintenance, use, and disclosure of personal information by DOE personnel and contractors.

Federal privacy regulation creates unnecessary compliance costs and bureaucratic overhead while providing minimal additional protection beyond existing state laws and common law privacy rights. Private sector and state-level privacy frameworks are more responsive to actual privacy concerns without the federal regulatory burden.

DOE contracting policy requiring sustainable acquisition practices and establishing safety/health enforcement mechanisms for contractors operating DOE facilities, including fee reduction provisions for violations and requirements for environmental, safety, and health clauses based on facility type and conditions.

Nuclear safety and worker health at government facilities involve catastrophic externalities that justify the state's role as property owner setting terms for contractor operations. The fee reduction mechanism is an appropriate enforcement tool that avoids duplicative penalties while ensuring accountability.

Regulation establishes a waiver process allowing offshore platform jacket projects to use foreign launch barges if no suitable U.S.-flagged vessel is available, implementing Jones Act coastwise trade requirements through Maritime Administration review and approval.

Enforces protectionist Jones Act, imposing $500+ fees, extensive documentation, and 21-month advance notice that increase offshore project costs and delays. Creates hidden tax on energy production, distorts competition by favoring less-efficient U.S. vessels, and adds regulatory complexity without offsetting public benefit. The waiver bureaucracy itself is an unnecessary cost; underlying Jones Act should be repealed.

Regulates special handling procedures for hazardous bulk solid materials transported by vessel, covering safety standards, segregation requirements, documentation, and emergency procedures to prevent accidents and protect maritime safety.

This regulation addresses genuine safety hazards in maritime transport of bulk solids. The costs of accidents (environmental damage, loss of life, economic disruption) far exceed compliance costs. Federal oversight ensures uniform safety standards across states and international waters where state regulation would be ineffective.

Federal regulations governing computerized tribal child support enforcement systems, including funding conditions, security requirements, and procurement procedures for tribal IV-D agencies

Creates costly federal bureaucracy for tribal child support systems that could be handled by tribes themselves, imposing security mandates and procurement rules that burden small agencies while duplicating existing state-level enforcement infrastructure

This regulation establishes mandatory standards and certification criteria for health information technology (Health IT) and electronic health records (EHRs). It defines technical requirements, adopts specific industry standards (HL7, LOINC, SNOMED CT, NCPDP, etc.) by reference, specifies the Common Clinical Data Set that must be captured, and sets criteria for interoperability, security, and privacy. The rule implements parts of the Public Health Service Act and requires Health IT Modules to be certified to use these standards.

This regulation imposes massive compliance costs on healthcare providers and health IT developers while stifling innovation through government-mandated technical specifications. The requirement for certification and specific standards creates barriers to entry, favors incumbent players, and prevents market-driven evolution of better solutions. The 'standards' are effectively a government pick of winners, locking in specific versions and approaches that may become obsolete as technology advances. The hidden tax of regulatory compliance disproportionately harms small medical practices and startups, reducing competition and raising healthcare costs for all Americans. Interoperability and health information exchange can be—and increasingly are being—achieved through voluntary industry standards and market competition without federal coercion.

Establishes a federal health insurance comparison Web portal requiring issuers to submit extensive data including corporate information, product details, pricing, enrollment status, geographic availability, and performance metrics (rescission rates, claim denials, appeals). Requires annual submissions, updates for changes, and CEO/CFO certification. Applies to individual and small group markets nationwide.

Creates a substantial compliance burden—especially for small insurers—by mandating complex data submissions and certifications, inflating costs that are passed to consumers. Federalizes insurance information, encroaching on states' traditional role under the Tenth Amendment. Private sector already provides comparison tools competitive enough to meet market demand; government portal distorts incentives, creates barriers to entry, and exemplifies regulatory mission creep. The unseen cost is diverted capital from underwriting and innovation to bureaucratic reporting.

Requires health insurers to report premium revenue and expenses, calculate medical loss ratios (MLR), and issue rebates if MLR falls below statutory thresholds. Mandates reporting of clinical services, quality improvement activities, and non-claims costs, with enforcement and civil penalties for non-compliance.

Creates costly compliance burden that distorts insurance markets - insurers must track and report detailed expense categories, hire compliance staff, and potentially issue rebates even when providing valuable services. The MLR calculation penalizes investment in preventive care and quality improvement while encouraging insurers to maximize claims payments rather than actual health outcomes. Small insurers face disproportionate compliance costs that raise barriers to entry and reduce competition.

Establishes the Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan (PCIP) program to provide temporary health coverage for individuals with pre-existing conditions who have been uninsured for 6 months, with federal funding and state administration options.

Creates a temporary, costly government insurance program that distorts market incentives, raises barriers to entry for private insurers, and perpetuates dependency on federal intervention rather than addressing underlying market failures in health insurance.

Regulation implements ACA's community rating and guaranteed issue requirements for health insurance, restricting premiums to only age (3:1 ratio), tobacco use (1.5:1), geography, and family composition; mandating that insurers accept all applicants regardless of health status; requiring guaranteed renewal; and establishing federal rating area rules that preempt state flexibility.

This regulation imposes costly price controls that eliminate risk-based underwriting, creating adverse selection and driving up premiums for everyone. It federalizes insurance regulation (Tenth Amendment violation), eliminates state experimentation, and forces insurers to accept all risk without market-based solutions for pre-existing conditions. The unseen effects include distorted risk pools, reduced insurer competition in high-cost areas, suppressed innovation, and barriers to entry that ultimately reduce access and affordability. Americans would be better off with state-based flexible markets where pricing reflects actual risk and coverage is voluntary.

Regulation conditions Leadership Act HIV/AIDS funding on recipients publicly opposing prostitution/sex trafficking and maintaining 'objective integrity and independence' from organizations engaged in those activities, imposing detailed separation requirements.

Imposes ideological litmus test unrelated to HIV/AIDS effectiveness; excludes organizations serving vulnerable populations based on associations; creates compliance burdens through vague 'objective integrity' standard; represents unconstitutional condition on funding infringing associational rights; adds administrative costs without demonstrated public health benefit.

Medicare EHR Incentive Program establishing payment incentives for healthcare providers who adopt and meaningfully use certified electronic health record technology, with penalties for non-compliance.

Creates costly bureaucratic compliance burden that distorts healthcare delivery, forces adoption of specific technologies regardless of provider needs, and represents federal overreach into medical practice decisions that should remain between patients and doctors.

Implements the Countermeasures Injury Compensation Program (CICP) under the PREP Act, providing medical benefits, lost income compensation, and death benefits to individuals injured by covered countermeasures (vaccines, drugs) during public health emergencies. The program serves as payer of last resort after other insurance/benefits are exhausted, with eligibility requiring proof of direct causation or reliance on a Table of Injuries with presumptive causation.

Violates constitutional federalism by federalizing what belongs to states under Tenth Amendment. Creates permanent bureaucracy adding to regulatory burden, distorts market incentives for risk-sharing, and establishes dangerous precedent of expanding federal power during 'emergencies.' States or private markets can better tailor compensation systems; federal program creates moral hazard and wastes resources on administrative overhead.

This regulation establishes the procedures that the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) follows for processing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, including how to submit requests, fee structures, appeals processes, and exemptions from disclosure.

Americans would be worse off because deletion would create legal uncertainty and increase litigation between requesters and CEQ, costing taxpayers more in legal fees than the minimal administrative cost of maintaining these clear procedures. The regulation achieves orderly access to public records as required by the FOIA statute in a cost-effective way; replacing it would require either new rulemaking or ad hoc decision-making that would be less efficient and less transparent.