A handful of contentious homeland security regulations are in the pipeline in the waning days of the Bush administration, but some of the more controversial proposals have been softened or left for the new administration to deal with.
White House Chief of Staff Joshua B. Bolten announced earlier this year that the Bush administration would avoid issuing a torrent of last-minute regulations, a practice that has been part of the republic since its founding.
Bolten directed department heads in a May memo to hold off issuing so-called midnight regulations “except in extraordinary circumstances.”
These regulations can create confusion for the incoming administration and require a lengthy proposal and public comment period to be officially undone.
But in the meantime, President-elect Barack Obama can direct his appointees not to enforce last-minute Bush regulations, or steer resources away from programs he disapproves of, according to Matt Madia, regulatory policy analyst for the watchdog group OMB Watch.
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