President Trump

Operators struggling to meet new labor, construction and operational rules might rightfully believe that regulatory burdens are on the rise. But there are signs that regulations actually tapering off and will continue to do so.

Last week, the Office of Management and Budget issued its Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions, which tends to serve as a reliable barometer of future activity. In all, the publication examined likely regulatory action involving more than 20 departments, agencies and other rule-making bodies. OIRA predicts annual expenses among these rule-makers will collectively drop by almost $700 million. Analysts said this indicates regulators will be less active in the year to come.

Moreover, President Trump announced Thursday that federal agencies actually had beat the regulatory goal he established when taking office: Eliminate two rules for every new one proposed without additional regulatory costs. Trump said his administration actually eliminated 22 regulations for each one that has been added.

“I’m proud to announce we beat our goal by a lot,” he said. The president also called on his cabinet members to make deregulation a bigger priority during 2018.