Biden Administration Issues Robust Spring Regulatory Agenda

The Biden administration recently announced its Spring 2023 Regulatory Agenda, which describes actions federal agencies plan to take in the near and long term. The coming regulations that may be of particular interest to the industrial metals industry include:

• In October 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) expects to publish a final rule on National Ambient Air Quality Standards for Particulate Matter, which is likely to revise the primary annual particulate matter standard. Read more about that rule here.
• In August 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) intends to issue its final joint employer rule, which is used to determine when two or more entities are jointly responsible for the terms and conditions of employment over the same group of employees. Read more about that rule here.
• In August 2023, the NLRB intends to issue its final election procedure rule, which will revise the rule finalized by the Trump administration in April 2020 that relates to blocking charges, voluntary recognition, and bargaining relationships in the construction industry. Read more about that rule here.
• By October 2023, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission intends to have determined whether to issue a final climate change disclosure rule, which would enhance registrant disclosures regarding issuers’ climate-related risks and opportunities. Read more about that rule here.

Federal lawmakers are beginning to look at the impact the increased regulatory volume is having on industry. Specifically, the U.S. House Oversight and Accountability Committee held a hearing last week on regulations that affect the manufacturing industry.

The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) submitted comments to the committee in which the organization argued, “The onslaught of new regulations is chilling manufacturing investment, curtailing manufacturers’ ability to hire new workers and suppressing wage growth, especially for the small and medium-sized manufacturers that are the backbone of the supply chain” and, as a result, “communities lose investment, the economy suffers, competitors like China gain an advantage and America’s leadership in the world is threatened.”

MSCI is working with NAM to address the federal government’s regulatory onslaught. Stay tuned to Connecting the Dots for more information.