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The federal government issued 171 rules, proposals, and notices this week. Most were routine — airspace tweaks, fishing quotas, fireworks safety zones, and paperwork updates — but a few stand out for families, gun owners, and taxpayers. Here is what happened, organized by topic.

School meals and food

  • Whole and 2% milk are back in school and child care meals. The USDA updated rules so schools and child care providers can serve whole or reduced-fat (2%) milk to children over age two. Previously they could only serve low-fat or fat-free milk to that group.
  • SNAP stores face firmer stocking rules. The USDA finalized a rule clarifying how it counts “varieties” of staple foods, which enforces the 2014 Farm Bill requirement that SNAP-authorized stores carry at least seven varieties in each of four staple food categories, with perishables in three.
  • A canned meat rule was deleted. The USDA removed an old regulation requiring canned “Tripe with Milk” to contain at least 65% tripe and 10% milk. It was a cleanup with no effect on safety or inspection.

Consumer products and safety

  • Crib safety standards were updated. The Consumer Product Safety Commission issued revised mandatory safety rules for full-size baby cribs, covering mesh-sided cribs and accessories. Manufacturers and importers must comply by August 1, 2026. The rules apply only to manufacturers and importers, not to child care facilities.

Aviation safety and air travel

  • Multiple aircraft inspection rules were proposed or finalized. The FAA issued directives covering Airbus A320/A321 cargo doors, ATR tail wings, Airbus A330 lavatory fittings, Airbus forward fuselage panels, Embraer pitch trim actuators, and Gulfstream G280 electrical repairs. Most are routine alignments with international findings; costs range from about $340 to $10,000 per airplane.
  • One helicopter restriction stands out. The FAA proposed prohibiting Cabri G2 helicopters from flying over water during commercial operations because the emergency locator antenna can weaken distress signals.
  • Airspace was redrawn in several places. The FAA updated controlled airspace around airports in Puerto Rico, Massachusetts, California, Pennsylvania, and Michigan, and proposed new jet routes between Montana/North Dakota and Canada. These keep flight maps aligned with current operations and navigation technology.
  • Drone no-fly zones near fixed sites were proposed. The FAA wants a standardized process for owners of eligible facilities to request drone restriction zones around their property, replacing ad hoc approvals.
  • A rule requiring 25-hour cockpit voice recorders got a typo fix. The recording requirement itself is unchanged.

Firearms regulation

  • Bump stocks were removed from the machine gun definition. The ATF updated its regulations to match the 2024 Supreme Court ruling that a semiautomatic rifle with a bump stock is not a “machine gun” under federal law.
  • The ATF proposed a legal definition of “straw purchase.” The rule would give licensed dealers and the agency a single regulatory definition — federal statutes didn’t have one.
  • Who counts as a firearms dealer would change. A proposed rule would classify anyone who intends to predominantly earn a profit from gun sales as a dealer, requiring a license and background checks. This implements a 2022 law.
  • Machine gun transfer taxes went to zero on paper. The ATF updated regulations to match a 2025 law eliminating the $200 National Firearms Act tax for silencers, short-barreled rifles, and short-barreled shotguns. Machine guns and destructive devices still cost $200.
  • Several proposed rules would cut paperwork for gun owners and dealers. These include dropping the requirement to notify local police on NFA applications, letting dealers verify each other’s licenses online, allowing electronic record-keeping, ending pre-approval for interstate transport of registered NFA firearms, and letting spouses register NFA items jointly without forming a trust.
  • The ATF proposed changing who is barred from buying guns. It wants to update the definitions of “adjudicated as a mental defective” and “committed to a mental institution” — a change that could narrow or expand the prohibited list.
  • Import rules got a cleanup. Proposals would align ATF definitions with State Department rules, allow import of dual-use frames and receivers, and treat customs-bonded warehouses like foreign trade zones.

Environment and energy

  • The EPA delayed the trichloroethylene ban again. The effective date of the 2024 rule banning most uses of the industrial chemical TCE is now May 18, 2026, giving manufacturers and workplaces more time to adjust while legal questions are sorted out.
  • The EPA proposed letting Virginia run its own coal ash permit program. If approved, the state’s Department of Environmental Quality would issue and renew permits instead of the EPA. Safety standards don’t change — only which agency signs the paperwork.
  • Missouri’s sulfur dioxide cleanup plan for New Madrid County would become federally enforceable. The EPA proposed approving the state’s plan, locking its monitoring and emission limits into federal law.
  • The EPA proposed approving San Diego’s landfill flare rule and finalized giving Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, authority to enforce federal sewage sludge incineration rules.
  • The EPA withdrew a 2024 proposal that would have changed how hazardous waste is defined at facility cleanups, keeping the current framework intact.
  • A presidential permit cleared a border crossing for the Bridger Pipeline expansion in Phillips County, Montana. Safety and right-of-way approvals are still required elsewhere.

Fishing and oceans

  • Commercial fishing quotas were adjusted. NOAA transferred 13,488 pounds of summer flounder quota from Virginia to New Jersey, reduced Louisiana’s private angler red snapper catch limit for 2026, proposed lower grouper limits in the Gulf of Mexico, restricted yellowtail flounder, and proposed catch limits for Atlantic swordfish, bluefin tuna, and albacore.
  • The Coast Guard issued dozens of temporary waterway rules. These covered fireworks displays, boat races, a hydroplane race in Maryland, the Newport-to-Bermuda Race, bridge construction on the Raritan River, rocket launches near Boca Chica Beach, Texas, and the USS Cleveland transit on Lake Erie. They are routine, localized safety measures for specific events and dates.
  • A permanent safety zone was established near St. Thomas Airport to keep boats clear of low-flying aircraft.
  • The Coast Guard proposed Atlantic shipping lanes. The plan maps commercial routes from New York to Florida to keep them clear of future offshore wind farms and pipelines. Vessels aren’t required to use them.

Money, taxes, and retirement

  • A new government retirement website was ordered. The president directed the Treasury Department to create TrumpIRA.gov by January 1, 2027, as a public directory of low-cost individual retirement accounts that meet specific standards. It doesn’t change tax law or create new money.
  • The IRS clarified that tribal fishing income counts for retirement plan limits. The change lets tribal employers use tax-exempt fishing rights income when calculating 401(k) contribution limits, removing a technical roadblock for tribal workers.
  • The SEC proposed letting some companies file financial reports twice a year instead of quarterly. Companies could choose a new Form 10-S, reducing paperwork without changing what must be reported.
  • Federal agencies moved toward fixed-price contracts. An executive order directs agencies to make fixed-price contracts the default for procurement and requires senior approval and written justification for cost-reimbursement deals above set thresholds.

Veterans

  • A House bill would require the VA to review every disability claim on file. The proposal would force the Department of Veterans Affairs to re-evaluate millions of existing claims — a major administrative undertaking.
  • Another House bill would direct the VA to plan better mental health outreach aimed at veterans not currently using VA services.
  • The VA proposed eliminating an internal review panel for vocational rehabilitation plans. It doesn’t change who qualifies for services, only streamlines the paperwork.
  • The VA withdrew a proposed rule that would have let it start copayment debt waivers automatically, saying the change is unnecessary after forgiving the backlog.

Health and medicine

  • The FDA proposed swapping “gender” for “sex” in roughly two dozen regulations covering drug labeling, clinical trials, and device rules. It’s a wording change aligned with a presidential directive; no safety standards change.
  • The FDA reclassified several medical devices. Corneal storage medium, circulating tumor cell enrichment devices, and microbiome sample preservation devices moved from the highest-risk Class III category to Class II, lowering the regulatory burden for manufacturers.
  • External condoms were formally classified as Class II devices. This clarifies the approval pathway for future manufacturers.

Sanctions and foreign policy

  • National emergencies were renewed for Iraq and the Central African Republic. These are required annual renewals that keep existing sanctions and trade restrictions in place.
  • A new executive order updated sanctions on Cuba — clarifying which sectors and associates are covered and directing Treasury and State to update compliance lists. No immediate change for most Americans.
  • The Treasury sanctions office published multiple general licenses for transactions involving Venezuelan oil, Russian energy projects (Sakhalin-2, Lukoil), Rwandan entities, Belarussian banks, and specific Iranian vessels. These are administrative renewals and wind-down windows that let businesses legally settle or continue defined transactions.

Congress

  • Bills were introduced on cashless bail, Supreme Court size, and pandemic fraud. A House bill would prohibit federal funding for programs that release people without bail; another would expand the Supreme Court from nine to thirteen justices; a Senate bill would extend the statute of limitations for pandemic relief fraud prosecutions.
  • Veteran and tribal bills were introduced. These include the VA outreach and claims-review bills, the Tribal Trust Land Homeownership Act, and a bill to expand the federal surety bond program.
  • Several ceremonial bills were proposed. These include designating July 15, 2026 as Glioblastoma Awareness Day, recognizing Cinco de Mayo, and a bill to allow a tax deduction for car loan interest.

Telecommunications

  • The FCC proposed rules to curb illegal robocalls. The plan would require telecom and VoIP companies to report more details about how they acquire and distribute phone numbers, making the supply chain more transparent.
  • The FCC set next year’s regulatory fees. The agency must collect exactly $416,112,000 for fiscal year 2026, matching its congressional appropriation.
  • Updated pole attachment rules took effect. The FCC’s new rules set hard deadlines for utilities to respond to broadband installation requests, making the process more predictable for companies building out networks.

This weekly digest is generated from federal records (the Federal Register and Congress.gov) and summarized in plain English. It may simplify or omit detail — follow the linked official sources before relying on any item. Part of The Boring Parts.

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