In fact, complying with regulations is among four challenges that ADP identified as especially relevant to small businesses.

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To be sure, the sultan remains firmly in control under "state of emergency" regulations which have been in effect for four decades.

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"It is more than five years since Pedro played his last Test for the West Indies, and he has only played in England as a Kolpak player for three seasons, when the regulations state that it needs to be four, " Fraser told Middlesex's website.

BBC: Middlesex sign Corey Collymore as Pedro Collins leaves

It comes in four kinds, all made strictly in accordance with German purity regulations dating from 1513.

ECONOMIST: Mein Herr of Kirgizstan

CTIA, a trade group that represents the four major mobile carriers in the United States, however, opposes the regulations.

CNN: U.S. aims to regulate mobile 'bill shock'

For four years the financial industry has successfully lobbied to water down and delay the new regulations.

FORBES: Beware The Financial-Political Complex

Government regulations mean that, beginning next March, security guards will have to undergo four days' training and pass a criminal-record and background check.

ECONOMIST: Public and private security

An independent report said four out of five employees in the bloated department were redundant and discovered a thicket of union regulations driving up costs.

FORBES: Detroit Gave Unions Keys To The City, And Now Nothing Is Left

Gonzo Gallegos, a State Department spokesman, said Monday that the State Department sent a cable four months ago to the countries that McCain was visiting, reminding them about the rules and regulations for support on a visit by a presidential candidate.

CNN: Rice sends guidance on embassy assistance for candidates

And on ERR there were four government defeats - including one which reinstated civil liability in breaches of duty of health and safety regulations.

BBC: Week ahead

Shares of BP slid by 1.6% to 408.5 pence in London after a report in the Financial Times said four of the company's five North Sea installations inspected in 2009 had failed to comply with emergency regulations on oil spills, according to offshore inspection reports from the Department of Energy and Climate Change.

FORBES