A third of all major federal rules lack notice-and-comment procedures

In 2008 I voted for Barack Obama. Back then, I was enamored by the political change that could have been achieved with a “great man.” Like so many other features of my previously liberal disposition, this has become yet another vestige.

The State hasn’t changed all that much with Obama. As Susan Dudley notes,

A new Government Accountability Office report finds that federal agencies did not go through notice-and-comment rulemaking for over one-third of the major rules issued between 2003 and 2010.  This means that a significant percentage of new regulations expected to have an impact of $100 million or more on the economy are given the force of law without public input. GAO finds a sharp increase in the practice of issuing a final regulation without first seeking public comment in 2009, when 40 percent of all major final rules were issued without notice and comment, compared to 26 percent in 2008.

In the year that separates Obama and Bush, there was a huge jump. Don’t get me wrong, I was not a fan of Bush’s policies, his assault on civil liberties is among the most troubling development in recent time. On the other hand, one of Obama’s electoral pillars was governmental transparency. Clearly, he is not living up to his promises.

HT: Chad Reese