Navigating the Regulatory State

This course, which is designed for non-law students, will examine the fundamentals of administrative agencies. Such agencies formulate rules and regulations that dramatically impact modern life. Most products, technologies and commercial activities are subject to a broad array of regulations promulgated and enforced by federal agencies aimed at assuring health and safety (e.g., by the EPA, OSHA, FDA); fair and efficient markets (e.g., by the SEC, CFPB); and progress toward other public policy goals set by Congress. The modern administrative state is fraught with controversy. Are governmental agencies a practical necessity in today's complex world, or do they represent an increasingly inappropriate delegation of decision-making? Additionally, with President Trump's announcement of a new Department of Government Efficiency to be run by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, with a mandate to "dismantle government bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure federal agencies," the regulatory state is sure to be in the news during this course term. Major themes in the course will include: - Why do agencies exist? - How are agencies created? - What powers to agencies have? - Political control of agencies. - Judicial control of agencies. - Judicial review of agency action.