AmericasRegulatory

White House looks to streamline regulations for shipping

An office attached to the US White House is seeking public input on ways to streamline maritime regulations, with special emphasis on commercial shipping.

The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) comes under the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), an agency in the Executive Office of the President.

OIRA oversees the implementation of government-wide policies and reviews draft regulations.

It has posted a Request for Information (RFI) asking the public for comments about how to remove or amend requirements put upon the maritime sector by various federal agencies.

Such a move is consistent with President Donald Trump’s pledge to deregulate across the US economy.

The RFI is in particular aimed at ways changes to regulations could help increase efficiency, eliminate unnecessary burdens and simplify compliance for merchant shipping.

A whole tranche of federal bodies regulates aspects of the maritime industry, including the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC), the US Maritime Administration (MARAD), Department of Transportation (DOT), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Department of Commerce (DOC), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of the Interior (DOI).

Donal Scully

With 28 years experience writing and editing for newspapers in the UK and Hong Kong, Donal is now based in California from where he covers the Americas for Splash as well as ensuring the site is loaded through the Western Hemisphere timezone.
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