Spring Regulatory Agenda Issued (Beltway Buzz, May 24, 2019)

The Beltway Buzz is a weekly update summarizing labor and employment news from inside the Beltway and clarifying how what's happening in Washington, D.C. could impact your business.

Spring Regulatory Agenda Issued. On May 22, 2019, the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) released the administration's Spring 2019 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions. Before diving into the regulatory morass, there are a few items of note regarding these regulatory agendas. First, as one might imagine, in order to publish something this lengthy, each agency likely submitted its respective agenda weeks or even months ago. Second, these deadlines are often aspirational, so these target dates may not be accurate. Set forth below are a few highlights of what we can expect in the regulatory arena in the months ahead.

U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)

Overtime, Joint Employer, Regular Rate. Unfortunately, the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) did not provide any timeline for when final rules on these matters may issue (more on the overtime matter below). Association Retirement Plans. The Employee Benefits Security Administration is scheduled to issue a final rule in June 2019 "which would allow small businesses to band together to offer 401(k) plans to their employees." FMLA Regulations. In April 2020, the WHD is slated to issue a request for information (RFI) to "solicit comments on ways to improve its regulations under the FMLA." Yes, this is 11 months in the future, but the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and its attendant issues (e.g., intermittent leave) continue to vex employers, so this bears watching. OFCCP Transparency. In September 2019, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) will propose "to codify certain procedures and documents OFCCP uses to resolve potential violations of these laws by federal contractors and subcontractors." This likely refers to various memoranda that OFCCP has issued over the last several months regarding transparency and efficiency of its investigations. United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)

H-4 EAD. USCIS is forecasting that it will issue a proposal to "remove from its regulations certain H-4 spouses of H-1B nonimmigrants as a class of aliens eligible for employment authorization" by the end of May 2019. H-1B Reform. In August 2019, USCIS is expected to issue a proposal to revise the definitions of "specialty occupation," "employment," and the...