Federal Register weekly update; no new significant regulations


The _Federal Register_ is a daily journal of federal government activity that includes presidential documents, proposed and final rules, and public notices. It is a common measure of an administration’s regulatory activity.

From March 16 to March 20, the _Federal Register_ grew by 1,494 pages for a year-to-date total of 16,226 pages. Over the same period in 2019 and 2018, the _Federal Register_ reached 10,970 pages and 12,848 pages, respectively. As of March 20, the 2020 total led the 2019 total by 5,256 pages and the 2018 total by 3,378 pages.

The _Federal Register_ hit an all-time high of 95,894 pages in 2016.

This week’s _Federal Register_ featured the following 692 documents:
• 568 notices
• seven presidential documents
• 35 proposed rules
• 82 final rules
No rules were deemed significant under E.O. 12866—meaning that they could have large impacts on the economy, environment, public health, or state or local governments. Significant actions may also conflict with presidential priorities or other agency rules. The Trump administration in 2020 has issued 10 significant proposed rules and 16 significant final rules as of March 20.

Not all rules issued by the Trump administration are regulatory actions. Some rules are deregulatory actions pursuant to President Trump’s (R) Executive Order 13771, which requires federal agencies to eliminate two old significant regulations for each new significant regulation issued.

Ballotpedia maintains page counts and other information about the _Federal Register_ as part of its Administrative State Project. The project is a neutral, nonpartisan encyclopedic resource that defines and analyzes the administrative state, including its philosophical origins, legal and judicial precedents, and scholarly examinations of its consequences. The project also monitors and reports on measures of federal government activity.

Click here to find more information about weekly additions to the _Federal Register_ in 2018 and 2017.

Click here to find yearly information about additions to the _Federal Register_ from 1936 to 2018.