The FAA can change regs and create new ones but what they can't do is make a private company change how much they pay these FO's.[/QUOTE]

Can't they? I think the by-product of the new rules (ATP, FAR 117, Age 65) is a shortage of qualified pilots willing to work for the meager pay currently offered by the majority of regionals. The consequence may be unintentional, but the new rules certainly have created a position of opportunity for pilots, especially those pilots with an ATP. IMO.