Trump’s Executive Orders Seek to Reign In Agency Overreach

In October, President Trump introduced two new executive orders designed to restrain the reach of government agencies and create more accountability among the agencies. The orders require actions such as creating an easily searchable database for all guidance documents utilized by the agencies, thus rendering illegal the practice of keeping some guidance hidden from the public. Additionally, the orders prohibit the agencies from enforcing rules they have not made publicly known in advance. The orders also instruct the agencies to identify the particular statutes or regulations that authorize the penalty they seek, and that all enforcement standards have to be clear in advance of enforcement.