regulations

The only way for libertarians to convince themselves that Net Neutrality is a good idea? Convince everyone that Comcast and Verizon are cute mom and pop shops with their customers' best interests at heart.

Burlington Northern Santa Fe recently said it would proceed with plans to increase speeds for oil-by-rail unit trains in Devil’s Lake, North Dakota, to 60 MPH from 30 MPH, despite opposition from local officials. The announcement came merely a week after the Obama Administration announced its proposed regulations for trains carrying oil obtained via fracking from the state's Bakken Shale basin.

OIRA operates largely in secret, exempt from most requests under the Freedom of Information Act. It routinely declines to release the changes it has proposed, the evidence it has relied upon to make them, or the identities and affiliations of White House advisers and other agencies' staff it has consulted. OIRA doesn't even disclose the names and credentials of its employees other than its two most senior officials. Maybe that's why you've never heard of OIRA.

With the temperatures increasing, and summers getting warmer, energy bills have no where to go but up. And that's going to hit small businesses especially hard.

While the U.S. Chamber, utilities, elected officials and other business organizations argue that these new rules will drive up the cost of energy thus hurting consumers and the economy, South Carolina is the perfect case study to dispel these fears. Despite a dramatic spike in the cost to consumers in order to build a pair of nuclear power plants, the state's economy is booming — at least according to Gov Nikki Haley's re-election campaign.

ALEC, the Koch and Energy-funded group dedicated to right wing causes across the US, has its sights set on Ohio's clean energy standards law.

The Supreme Court has agreed to make a decision on President Obama's executive actions regarding emissions regulations. The high court will review a lower court's upholding of the EPA's ability to regulate greenhouse gases in power plants and factories. The EPA's authority, granted under the Clean Air Act, is an effort to stave off climate catastrophe and its upheaval would put Congress in charge of figuring out how to curb dangerous emissions. Because they're real good at getting things done.

With the blessing of an influential advisory panel, federal regulators are closer to letting airline passengers use their smartphones, tablets, e-readers and other electronic gadgets during takeoffs and landings.

Very quietly, the EPA recently withdrew two rules that regulated chemicals. One of them was to add BPA — a chemical found in plastic bottles and linked to a number of health issues — to a list of substances that require more scrutiny. The regulatory agency is being blocked from adding regulations regarding plastics — much the way they were for fracking — once again from up above.

"John from California" called in to challenge Sam Seder to a debate on the merit of any and all government regulations. What follows is one of our top Libertarian calls of all time. . .