Federal Register weekly update: Highest weekly document total so far in 2022


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, accounting for both regulatory and deregulatory actions.

From Jan. 24 through Jan. 28, the Federal Register grew by 1,342 pages for a year-to-date total of 4,762 pages.

The Federal Register hit an all-time high of 95,894 pages in 2016.

This week’s Federal Register featured the following 614 documents:

  • 509 notices
  • Zero presidential documents
  • 40 proposed rules
  • 65 final rules

Five proposed rules, including a request for information to determine whether the energy conservation standards for consumer furnaces need to be amended from the Energy Department, and seven final rules, including a withdrawal of an emergency temporary standard to require employers of 100 or more employees to implement a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration were deemed significant under E.O. 12866—defined by the potential to 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 Biden administration has issued 16 significant proposed rules, 24 significant final rules, and zero significant notices as of Jan. 28.

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.

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