Protecting People and the Environment by the Stroke of a Presidential Pen: Seven New Executive Orders for President Obama's Second Term

Abstract

Over the next four years, the nation will face a daunting to-do list of public health, safety, and environmental challenges. If progress is to be made on these challenges, the Executive Branch must take the lead.

President Barack Obama has broad authority over the Executive Branch’s various regulatory agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Existing statutes authorize these agencies and the White House itself to address the greatest public, health, and safety challenges. So if progress is to be made, President Obama will need to unleash this potential by making full use of his authority to manage agency activities by issuing Executive Orders. He can use these orders to direct the agencies to focus on high priority regulatory initiatives and to streamline the processes by which they carry out their statutory missions.

This white paper recommends seven Executive Orders for the second term of the Obama Administration, all of which are directed at addressing critical public health, safety, and environmental challenges. Each Order directs government agencies to take specific steps to create meaningful new safeguards for people and the environment. Adopting and successfully carrying out these recommendations would help to cement President Obama’s legacy as a strong defender of public health, safety, and the environment.

Keywords: President, Executive Order, Protections, Environment, Public Health, Safety

JEL Classification: K23, K32