British Petroleum agrees to billion-dollar oil spill settlement, FDA asks for legislation on compounding pharmacies, and more.
- British Petroleum agreed to plead guilty to felony charges and pay $4.5 billion in penalties to the U.S., including $1.26 billion in criminal fines, stemming from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster, while separately the Department of Justice announced indictments of two BP supervisors in connection with the disaster See related The Regulatory Review essay.
- The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requested new legislation to address the regulation of compounding pharmacies in the wake of meningitis deaths.
- The Department of Health and Human Services extended the deadline for states to decide whether to create health insurance exchanges. See related The Regulatory Review essay.
- The Department of Justice (DOJ) offered guidance to help businesses avoid prosecution under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
- The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) launched ‘Project Catalyst’ to boost innovation and entrepreneurship in consumer financial services markets.
- Swaps brokers claimed that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) new international swaps rules, implemented under the Dodd-Frank Act, are harming American businesses.
- The Treasury Department announced an initiative to review and streamline anti-money laundering regulations.
- Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chair Julius Genachowski circulated a draft proposal that would eliminate the agency’s cross-ownership ban that prevents companies from owning multiple businesses on different media platforms.
- Financial regulators announced a willingness to entertain modification of the capital requirements under the Basel III Accords that would make it easier for small banks to comply. See related The Regulatory Review essay.
- California auctioned carbon emissions permits as part of its new, statewide cap-and-trade program.
- The FDA posted on its website reports of injuries or fatalities that might be related to consumption of so-called five-hour energy drinks.
- China announced that significant industrial projects must now undergo a “social risk assessment” in an effort to reduce public unrest.
