Review – Pending Rules of Interest – EOY 2025

On the last day of 2025 it is a good time to take stock of the various rulemakings of interest here that are still pending review at OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. Of the 110 rules that are currently pending at OIRA, there are three from DOT, two from the EPA, one from the DOC, one from OMB, and one from the STB that will receive some coverage in this blog. There are no pending rulemakings of interest from CISA, DOL, DOJ, DOE, or the CSB.

 

For more details about these pending rulemakings, see my article at CFSN Detailed Analysis - https://patrickcoyle.substack.com/p/pending-rules-of-interest-eoy-2025 - subscription required.

DOT Sends Administrative Rulemaking Update to OMB

Yesterday the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that it had received a notice of proposed rulemaking from DOT on “Administrative Rulemaking, Guidance, and Enforcement Procedures”. This rulemaking was not published in the Fall 2024 Unified Agenda, but it would presumably be an update to a final rule of the same title published on April 2^nd, 2021.

Earlier this month, Secretary Duffy issued DOT Order 2100.6B on “Rulemaking and Guidance Procedures.” That order superseded DOT Order 2100.6A that was published in June 2021.

OPM Sends New Civil Service Rule to OMB

Yesterday OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that it had received a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) on “Improving Performance, Accountability and Responsiveness in the Civil Service”. This rulemaking was not listed in the Fall 2024 Unified Agenda.

While there are any number of reasons that an NPRM would not have been listed in the latest Unified Agenda, I suspect that this is a de novo rule from the Trump administration directed at their concerns about the ‘deep state’. I do not expect to cover this rulemaking in any depth, but I will be watching this to see how fast this rule makes it through the regulatory process.

Regulations Pending OMB Review as of January 1st, 2025

The table below shows the regulatory actions pending at OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) that I would expect to cover when published in the Federal Register.

11/21/2024	1625-AC77	1625-DHS/USCG	Cybersecurity in the Marine Transportation System
04/11/2023	1670-AA01	1670-DHS/CISA	Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS)
10/21/2024	2137-AF51	2137-DOT/PHMSA	Pipeline Safety: Gas Pipeline Leak Detection and Repair
02/01/2024	2137-AF60	2137-DOT/PHMSA	Pipeline Safety: Safety of Carbon Dioxide and Hazardous Liquid Pipelines
12/05/2024	2060-AU73	2060-EPA/OAR	National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants: Chemical Manufacturing Area Source Technology Review
1/08/2024	1218-AC46	1218-DOL/OSHA	Infectious Diseases
12/17/2024	0694-AJ56	0694-DOC/BIS	Securing the Information and Communications Technology and Services Supply Chain: Connected Vehicles

Note: The dates shown were the dates the actions were submitted to OIRA for review.

These were all (obviously) Biden Administration submitted rulemakings, so they are subject to review by the incoming Trump Administration after January 20^th, 2025. At some point we will see the CFATS rulemaking withdrawn, marking an official decision that the program is beyond resurrection.

OMB Approves 3 BIS Space Related Rulemakings – 10-11-24

Yesterday the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that it had approved three rulemakings from the DOC’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS). Those rulemakings are:

0694-AH66 - Export Administration Regulations: Revisions to Space-Related Export Controls, Including Addition of License Exception Commercial Space Activities (CSA) – Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM),

0694-AJ87 - Export Administration Regulations: Revisions to Space-Related Export Controls for Changes Made Under Commerce Authorities – Interim final Rule (IFR), and

0694-AJ85 - Export Administration Regulations: Removal of License Requirements for Certain Spacecraft and Related Items for Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom – Final rule.

Only one of these rulemakings, the first one, was published in the Spring 2024 Unified Agenda. According to that entry:

“As part of its work with the National Space Council, the Bureau of Industry and Security, Department of Commerce requested public comment to inform its review of the controls implemented in recent revisions to Categories IV and XV of the United States Munitions List (USML) and the related transfer of items to the Department of Commerce's Commerce Control List (CCL) in an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking published on March 8, 2019. These items include launch vehicles, guided missiles, ballistic missiles, rockets, torpedoes, bombs, and mines; and spacecraft and related articles. BIS's review seeks to ensure that the CCL describes these items clearly, captures those items in normal commercial use, accounts for technological developments, and implements the national security and foreign policy objectives of the United States properly.  This proposed rule implements changes identified in response to the comments received on the March 8 ANPRM and subsequent review by the Department of Commerce and other agencies involved in the review process.”

I probably will not be covering any of these three rulemakings in any depth. At the very least though, under my ‘new’ Space Geek coverage, I will be announcing the publication of these rules in the appropriate edition of my ‘Short Takes’ post.

BIS Sends ‘Standards Activities’ Interim Final Rule to OMB

Yesterday, the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that it had received an interim final rule from the DOC’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) on “Standards-Related Activities and the Export Administration Regulations”. Earlier versions of the IFR were published on June 18^th, 2020 and September 29^th, 2022.

According to the Fall 2023 Unified Agenda entry for this rulemaking:

“The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) is amending the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to clarify the applicability of the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to releases of technology for standards setting or development in standards organizations.”

The BIS additionally notes that: “This regulatory action will be likely to have international trade and investment effects, or otherwise be of international interest.”

BIS Sends 2 Final Rules to OMB – 8-25-23

On Friday, the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that it had received two final rules from the DOC’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) for changes to export control regulations. The two rules cover:

• Revisions to Certain Australia Group Controls and Reasons for Control, and

• Revisions to the Export Administration Regulations Based on 2018, 2019, 2021, and 2022 Missile Technology Control Regime Plenary Agreements; and Revisions to License Exception Eligibility

The first rule was not listed in the Spring 2023 Unified Agenda. The entry for the second rule states that:

“This final rule makes revisions to the Export Administration Regulations based on 2021 and 2022 Missile Technology Control Regime Plenary Agreements; and Revisions to License Exception Eligibility”

Unless you closely follow these international arms control discussions (and I do not), there is no reasonable way to determine what BIS may include in these rules. Since cybersecurity issues have been covered in the past, I mention these now.

Review - Cyber Director RFI on Harmonizing Cybersecurity Regulations

Today, the Office of the National Cyber Director published a request for information in the Federal Register (88 FR 55694-55697) for “Request for Information: Opportunities for and Obstacles To Harmonizing Cybersecurity Regulations”. An earlier version of this request was made by the ONCD on July 19^th, 2023, but it was not published in the Federal Register.

Public Comments Solicited

ONCD is soliciting public comments on this RFI. Comments may be submitted via the Federal eRulemaking Portal (www.Regulations.gov; Docket # ONCD-2023-0001). Comments should be submitted by October 31^st, 2023. The earlier request on WhiteHouse.gov had a deadline of September 15^th. That deadline is specifically extended by this RFI.

 

For more details on the RFI, see my article at CFSN Detailed Analysis - https://patrickcoyle.substack.com/p/cyber-director-rfi-on-harmonizing - subscription required.