Issue link: http://palletcentral.uberflip.com/i/801657
Entities with a stake in the outcome of laws and regulations must work hard to ensure that they are included in these bills as they move through the process. Once Congress has acted on an issue, it is incredibly difficult to get them to revisit it, even in extraordinary circumstances. Get engaged early and often to ensure that: a) harmful provisions are removed or muted; and/or b) competing interests or entities aren't able to steer provisions in a way that hurts or hampers (even inadvertently) its interests or operations. It is clear that Congress is going to be much more active, thus necessitating engagement and advocacy. 2. Your Best Shot to Shape the Law is Now. A concomitant item to the above point is that the new Congress provides a most fertile ground for proactively shaping issues, policies or language in favorable ways. No matter the issue, this inflection point in government offers a relatively clean slate for shaping positions and agendas. While the White House and Congress will decide on their immediate agendas, the cast of new characters in government provides significant opportunity to productively engage with a variety of officials, and move the dial in the desired direction. Noteworthy Appointments With committee appointments and leadership changes likely decided by the end of January, then committee agendas being set probably by the beginning of March, there is some time to see how things shake out. The Trump Administration has placed a particular emphasis on regulatory reform at the outset, including talks of a regulatory moratorium on all new regulations. In the meantime, recent Cabinet nominations are shedding some light on what to expect in the forthcoming regulatory climate. 1. Rep. Ryan Zinke – Department of the Interior The freshman member from Montana was tapped to run one of the most closely observed – and scrutinized – Cabinet positions. With more than 70,000 employees, the agency is responsible for overseeing the management of more than 500 million acres of Federal land and roughly 400 national parks. The Navy SEAL veteran sat on the Natural Resources Committee during his tenure, and most of the bills he sponsored focused on public land use. While he supports more coal, oil, and gas exploration on public lands, he is not one to necessarily follow the status quo of party lines. Zinke has a well- established view on the transfer of Federal lands to states and counties, breaking ranks with the GOP platform. Given Zinke's affinity for hunting and fishing, NWPCA can also expect Endangered Species Act (ESA) issues to be front and center next Congress. Given NWPCA's interest in the implementation of the ESA, stakeholders are hopeful Zinke will shift the conversation away from controversies about adding species to the endangered list, and instead focus on how to better manage them. 2. Scott Pruitt – Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) The Oklahoma Attorney General has made his career from challenging the reach of the EPA, initiating lawsuits that dispute the agency's authority to cap carbon pollution and methane emissions. An avid supporter of states' rights, he created the first "Federalism unit" at the Oklahoma Attorney General's office. The unit focuses on restoring state sovereignty from the encroachment of the federal government – suggesting that Pruitt is committed to the separation of powers enshrined in the Constitution. With Pruitt's strong and deeply rooted ties to the oil and gas industry, he will likely receive hard confirmation opposition from Senate Democrats, given his anti-position on climate change and various lawsuits against the EPA. If history is any indicator, one can expect this agency to quickly try and adopt a very hands-off approach to its regulatory agenda. 3. Andrew Puzder – Department of Labor The CEO of CKE Restaurants, the parent company of Carl's, Jr., Hardee's and Green Burrito, has been a frequent media commentator on the state of the American workforce. A vocal opponent of Obama Administration's labor laws suggests that his agenda will favor management over labor. After publishing a Forbes article earlier this year decrying the efficacy of the Department's overtime rule, he is likely to make elimination of the regulation – recently stayed by a Federal court – his first priority. Additionally, the OSHA Recordkeeping and Reporting of palletcentral.com PalletCentral • January-February 2017 27 The Trump Administration has placed a par ticular emphasis on regulator y reform at the outset, including talks of a regulator y moratorium on all new regulations. In the meantime, recent Cabinet nominations are shedding some light on what to expect in the for thcoming regulator y climate.