Trump nominates regulatory chief

by Tim Devaney - 04/07/17 5:22 PM ET

President Trump appointed a new regulatory czar Friday.

Neomi Rao, an associate law professor at George Mason University, was nominated to run the White House’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA).

OIRA will play a central role in Trump’s regulatory reform agenda. This obscure agency, which is buried inside the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB), reviews regulations from federal agencies and has the power to reject rules that do not fall in line with the president’s goals.

{mosads}As the OIRA administrator, Rao will play a key role in overseeing Trump’s plan to eliminate 75 percent of federal regulations.

Rao, an expert in constitutional and administrative law, has split her career between the courtroom and the classroom.

Former OIRA Administrator Susan Dudley said Rao has a “sharp legal mind” who will be able to “manage the competing demands of regulatory policy.”

“Professor Neomi Rao is an excellent choice to lead OIRA,” said Dudley, who served at OIRA during the Bush administration, and now runs the George Washington University Regulatory Studies Center.

“Not only is she is a respected legal scholar focusing on administrative and constitutional law, but she has experience in all three branches of government,” Dudley said. “In addition to a sharp legal mind, she brings an openness to different perspectives and an ability to manage the competing demands of regulatory policy.”

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