On August 15, 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) published a Request for Information (RFI) in the Federal Register seeking comments on state laws that unduly burden interstate commerce, raise costs, or harm markets.
When states enact laws and regulations that are stricter than those of other states, especially when these rules target out-of-state businesses or impose significant compliance burdens, they can unduly burden interstate commerce, distort markets, and increase costs for small businesses. Such state measures may include product standards, environmental policies, or production requirements that differ from the rest of the country, forcing companies active in multiple states to comply with a complex patchwork of regulations. This often leads to higher compliance costs, which are especially difficult for small businesses to absorb, and can result in higher prices for consumers nationwide.
Among the highlights are the “climate superfund” laws enacted by New York and Vermont. They impose retroactive liability on energy companies for historical climate damages based on global emissions, with likely pass-through cost increases hitting small businesses and consumers.
Another is Washington’s energy code and related natural gas restrictions that effectively constrain federally covered appliances through a performance credit system and de facto limits on natural gas, with cited per-home cost adders and builder burdens highlighting the need for housing affordability and deregulatory initiatives.
A third is Oregon’s Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) packaging program sweeps in wholesalers and distributors as “producers,” delegates broad power to a single private Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO) with confidential fee methods, and has reportedly doubled fees, creating concerns about opaque quasi-taxation and regulatory privatization. The interstate trade barriers, small business margin squeeze affecting farmers and ranchers selling into Oregon, and antitrust concerns including a single PRO with high application fees offer multiple avenues for federal intervention.
Advocacy appreciates the opportunity to comment on behalf of small entities and supports DOJ’s review of state-level practices that drive up nationwide costs and “undermine Federalism by projecting the regulatory preferences of a few States into all States.” This initiative is a valuable step in examining whether the state laws and regulations identified may be preempted by existing federal authority.
COMMENT LETTER
DOJ’s RFI on Burdensome State Laws
(PDF, 361KB)
CONTACT:
Rosalyn Steward
EMAIL:
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