Federal Regulatory Policies

Several issues in the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee study on federal regulation, Regulatory Organization, were discussed, and listings of GAO work on federal regulatory activities were provided. With reference to a recommendation in the Committee report that GAO should assist in interagency coordination, the proper role of GAO would be to assist Congress in reviewing problems of interagency coordination rather than to provide direct assistance. In relation to recommendations in the areas of food regulation, transportation policy and regulation, and energy policy and regulation, the following comments were offered: (1) the recommendation that federal food regulation should be assigned to a single agency has merit, but the proper organization to assume this responsibility could not be determined; (2) legislation should be enacted to set a national transportation policy, and steps should be taken to improve the availability of budget information on the federal government's role in transportation; and (3) responsibility for setting automobile fuel economy standards should be with the Department of Energy. Congress should consider creating a separate energy health and safety regulatory agency. Possible conflicts were noted between the Economic Regulatory Administration and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.