Tag: Office of Management and Budget

Guidance under the gun

Once again, guidance is under the gun. In this recent speech, SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce expressed her concern for SEC staff guidance and interpretation that she seems to view as sometimes runaway or out-of-control and, sometimes, too much under the radar.  A few days later, the Acting Director of the Office of Management and Budget joined in, distributing a memo designed to limit rules and guidance that federal agencies issue, particularly outside of the notice-and-comment process. But potentially the most significant impact could result from an important case that SCOTUS is now considering (to be discussed in a separate post), which could undo the historic deference that courts have generally given to agency interpretations of their own regulations, often referred to as Auer deference. In this highly politicized environment, what will be the impact on staff guidance?