Cascade of New Regulations May Come with Obama's New Term

Election politics led to a backlog

President Barack Obama's administration deliberately held off implementing burdensome regulations that favored environmentalists, labor unions, and dealt with Obamacare in the month leading up to the election because they would be politically unpopular.

Before Obama won reelection, the backlog of regulations suggested to many industry experts that if Obama won reelection, his administration would be "publishing thousands of pages of regulations in the coming months." 

Now that Obama won, some in the business community expect a "tsunami" of regulations that will burst through the dam because about 70 percent of regulations under review have been held for more 90 days, which is 30 days more than the customary 60-day limit. And these are regulations that have made it out of the various agencies. There are many more still on hold.