The Truth About Regulations
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It’s worth saying out loud: regulations are good.
In the coming days and weeks, you are going to hear a lot about regulations, much of which is meant to scare and confuse you. You are going to be bombarded with disinformation meant to sow distrust in the basic functions of government as the Trump administration continues their illegal, corrupt, and incompetent march toward authoritarianism. But “regulation” isn’t a dirty word. I like to breathe clean air. I like to take medicines that are proven safe. I like knowing my financial transactions are secure. Federal rules and safeguards provide these protections for all of us. All of these rules—otherwise known as regulations—are how laws that protect your health and safety are actually put into practice. And while the radicals who run the White House like to suggest otherwise, the truth is that Americans actually support more regulations, not less. But President Trump, his political appointees, and Elon Musk’s DOGE team are taking drastic actions to ignore or eliminate many of these regulations each of us depend on daily.
As a result of an executive order and a presidential memo, this week we could see federal agencies identify dozens, maybe even hundreds, of safeguards they plan to rescind. My colleague Julie McNamara explained in depth how Trump is seeking an illegal runaround the rules to ultimately give ”a permission slip for each agency to strike or ignore any regulation.” And for the regulations Trump cannot rescind, he will simply refuse to enforce of them.
Of course, not every regulation works perfectly, and we should continue to update and modify regulations in the face of new information and evolving conditions. But this should be done deliberately, and based on the best available evidence. Sensible safeguards take years to craft and fully implement: conducting the best available science to inform the rule, seeking and incorporating public feedback, and implementation. Every federal rule had to go through this process, and the same thoughtful, deliberate approach should be used when a rule is changed or eliminated. President Trump and Musk, unfortunately, are using a steamroller approach, carrying out a the wholesale demolition of hard-fought public protections in a matter of weeks. They are doing so at the same time they’re dismantling the structures that allow us to create effective regulations and evaluate them. Scientists have been fired and forced out en masse from federal agencies, research funding has been drastically cut, and incompetent science-deniers have been appointed to oversee important science agencies. Without regulations to enforce them, laws like the Clean Air Act are just words on paper.
Deregulation is likely to disproportionately affect Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities. Just look at Cancer Alley, an 85 mile stretch of fossil fuel and petrochemical operations, where the extreme pollution has caused elevated risks of maternal health harms, cancer, and respiratory ailments. Or look at the EPA’s recent rollback of pollution enforcement, which has put children, especially in majority-Black neighborhoods, at increased health risk due to heightened exposure to toxic air and water. There is an abundance of evidence to demonstrate that proximity to oil and gas refineries increases cancer risk. Recent research shows that EPA regulations passed during the Biden administration would save over 200,000 lives through 2050 and prevent over 100 million asthma attacks, and deliver over $250 billion in net benefits annually. All of those gains are in danger, putting many lives at risk to increase the short-term profits of politically-connected industries.
In light of the evidence, it’s not surprising that an overwhelming majority of voters in a recent poll support the work of the EPA: 76% of Trump voters and 86% of all voters oppose attempts to weaken EPA. As my colleague Elise Tolbert notes:
“the environmental justice movement emerged as a response to years of evidence showing that low-income and communities of color were disproportionately affected by environmental and health harms. Industries that others were unwilling to have near their homes, such as toxic landfills, polluting fossil fuel plants, and hazardous chemical manufacturing companies, were often placed in marginalized communities of color lacking the political power or capital to block such decisions. The recognition of EJ in the federal government fulfilled a distinct need, backed by science.”
Sadly, but not surprisingly, Trump has made the rollback of pollution safeguards even more disastrous for Black, Brown and Indigenous communities through his recent efforts to eliminate environmental justice work in the federal government.
As federal agencies now under the control of Trump administration appointees and Musk’s DOGE begin to identify the public safeguards they plan to rescind or ignore, there will be a tsunami of lies sowed by Trump and his industry supporters. The push to get rid of public protections will be well-funded and supported by powerful industries, who contributed heavily to elect Trump and followed up by sending him their wish lists of safeguards they want removed. While all of us are vulnerable to disinformation, UCS has resources to help you identify it, counter it, and stop it in its tracks.
In the coming weeks and months, UCS will hold Trump accountable for his illegal, corrupt and incompetent actions as he seeks to get rid of federal regulations that protect your health, the environment, workers, and consumers. Watch this space for more.
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