Ryan Meade
Editor-in-Chief
Director of Regulatory Compliance Studies at Loyola University Chicago School of Law

 

As we approach the end of another calendar year, let’s see how the Federal Register page count is going.  We have occasionally checked in on the status of the horse race of pages compared to previous years.  Here is today’s ending page number compared to the last few years for December 22 (or the closest publication date):

• December 22, 2016: 94,210

• December 22, 2015: 79,653

• December 22, 2014: 76,864

• December 23, 2013: 77,555

• December 21, 2012: 75,821

Of course the number of Federal Register pages does not equate to the number or complexity of regulations (proposed or final) but it is, at a minimum, an interesting barometer on executive branch action and commentary. There is always a rush for new regulatory action and publication at the end of a presidential transition, so it is not surprising to see an uptick.  In case any readers are wondering, here is the state of the pages on the same day in 2008 and 2000.

• December 22, 2008: 78,586
• December 22, 2000: 81,319

If you would like to listen to a recording of my lecture on the presidential transition and regulations (as well as the impact on compliance), here is a link.