The Trump administration is gearing up to slash business regulations in a bid to restart the economy, The Post reported.

It's seizing on the coronavirus pandemic to achieve some of its longstanding deregulatory goals in labor and environmental policy, as well as healthcare.

The effort could be launched in late April or early May, but it's likely to trigger criticism from Democrats and many economic experts.

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The Trump administration is gearing up for a major push to slash business regulations, seizing on the coronavirus pandemic to achieve its deregulatory goals and attempt to jumpstart the coronavirus-stricken economy, The Washington Post reported.

According to the newspaper, the White House wants to ramp up administrative efforts to toss out two regulations for every one enacted and also suspend administrative rules governing small businesses.

The regulatory rollback could affect labor, healthcare, environmental policy, as well as workplace safety. White House officials are seeking to launch the effort in late April or early May to coincide with the administration's drive to reopen the economy.

But details are still in flux, The Post reported. Officials such as National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin are involved in the planning.

The Trump administration has long touted its efforts to cut red tape as a central piece of his White House achievements, particularly around the environment.

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"We've cut regulations more than any administration in history, and that's in two and a half years," Trump said late last year.

The White House is hoping to spark an economic comeback after almost 22 million Americans filed for unemployment over the last month as scores of businesses closed their doors to curb the spread of the virus.

Still, any push to cut regulations would likely trigger criticism from Democrats as well as economic experts who say the measures mirror Republican political priorities instead of an attempt to helping struggling Americans.

"This sounds exactly like the type of opportunistic political move that absolutely should not be attempted right now," Jared Bernstein, a former top adviser to presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, told The Post. "Correlations between regulations and economic activity are far shakier than they assume, and I don't believe this idea will help at all."

The Post reported that one idea under consideration in the White House is supporting a liability waiver that would absolve employers from any legal responsibility if their workers are infected with coronavirus on the job.

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