OMB Approves 2 PHMSA Regulatory Review ANPRMs

Yesterday OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that it had approved two advanced notices of proposed rulemakings (ANPRMs) from DOT’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). These rulemakings were sent to OIRA on May 14^th, 2025. The two rulemakings are

Hazardous Materials: Mandatory Regulatory Review to Unleash American Energy and Improve Government Efficiency, and

Pipeline Safety: Mandatory Regulatory Reviews to Unleash American Energy and Improve Government Efficiency

These rulemakings were not listed in the Fall 2024 Unified Agenda, so they are almost certainly submitted in response to the requirements of §3(a) and §3(b) of EO 14154, Unleashing American Energy. That EO requires agencies to “identify those agency actions that impose an undue burden on the identification, development, or use of domestic energy resources” and then “develop and begin implementing action plans to suspend, revise, or rescind all agency actions identified as unduly burdensome”.

What is interesting here is the quick turnaround at OIRA, just two weeks. 45’s administration was no more efficient at processing rulemakings than has been the recent historical norm. It is not clear if this new bureaucratic speed is due to management efficiencies within OMB, or if it is more a reflection of the lower workload (only 38 active rulemaking today). If it is the later we should see a return to more common processing times as more regulatory actions join the queue.

These ANPRMs should be published in the Federal Register next week.