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 December 19 through December 23, the Federal Register grew by 1,755 pages for a year-to-date total of 79,212 pages.
The Federal Register hit an all-time high of 95,894 pages in 2016.
This week’s Federal Register featured the following 634 documents:
- 505 notices
- Six presidential documents
- 47 proposed rules
- 76 final rules
Ten proposed rules, including revised energy performance standards for new federal buildings from the Energy Department, and five final rules, including amendments to the national emission standards for hazardous air pollutants for the site remediation source category from the Environmental Protection Agency 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 238 significant proposed rules, 245 significant final rules, and five significant notices as of December 23.
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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