Regulatory Accountability Act of 2017

openUnited States· United States Congress· EN

Introduced

26 April 2017

Last action

14 February 2018 · Reported

Status

Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 312.

Summary

Regulatory Accountability Act of 2017 This bill codifies and revises notice-and-comment rulemaking procedures to require federal agencies to consider: (1) whether a rulemaking is required by statute or is within the discretion of the agency, (2) whether existing federal laws or rules could be amended or rescinded to address the problem, and (3) reasonable alternatives for a new rule. For major or high-impact rules, an agency must: publish a notice of initiation of rulemaking to invite interested parties to propose alternatives and ideas that accomplish the agency's objectives and benefit the public; allow persons interested in high-impact or certain major rules to petition for a public hearing with oral presentation, cross-examination, and the burden of proof on the proponent of the rule; adopt the most cost-effective rule among reasonable alternatives that meet statutory objectives, unless additional benefits justify additional costs; and publish a framework and metrics for measuring the effectiveness of the rule on an ongoing basis. The bill defines: a "high-impact rule" as a rule likely to cause an annual effect on the economy of $1 billion or more; and a "major rule" as a rule likely to cause an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more, a major increase in costs or prices, or significant adverse effects on competition, employment, investment, productivity, innovation, public health and safety, or the ability of U.S.-based enterprises to compete with foreign-based enterprises. Agencies proposing a rule must notify the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) and publish a notice of proposed rulemaking that includes: (1) a text of the proposed rule; (2) rulemaking considerations; and (3) for any major rule or high-impact rule, a discussion of alternatives and a preliminary explanation of how the rules meets statutory objectives and how benefits justify costs. When adopting a rule, an agency must publish a notice of final rulemaking that explains its determinations and responds to comments. To obtain public comment on whether rules adopted at the end of a presidential administration should be amended or rescinded, agencies may delay rules that have not yet become effective before the inauguration of a new President. OIRA must establish rulemaking guidelines for: (1) assessing costs and benefits, economic issues, and risk assessments; and (2) avoiding inconsistency or duplication with other agency rules. The bill revises the scope of judicial review to: (1) establish a substantial evidence standard for high-impact rules, (2) allow courts to remand a matter to an agency without setting aside the agency's action, and (3) prohibit review of a determination of whether a rule is a major rule based on an increase in costs or adverse effects. Agencies issuing guidance are: (1) prohibited from foreclosing consideration of issues, (2) required to state that guidance is not legally binding, and (3) required to confer with OIRA on major guidance.

This text is taken from the official record. PoliticalRepo does not editorialize.

Timeline

26 April 2017
Introduced
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
Source: IntroReferral
26 April 2017
Introduced
Introduced in Senate
Source: IntroReferral
17 May 2017
Reported
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
Source: Committee
14 February 2018
Calendars
Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 312.
Source: Calendars
14 February 2018
Reported
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Reported by Senator Johnson with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 115-208. Minority views filed.
Source: Committee
14 February 2018
Reported
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Reported by Senator Johnson with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 115-208. Minority views filed.
Source: Committee

Votes

No vote records are attached yet.

Versions

Reported to Senate · 14 February 2018 · Download file
Introduced in Senate · 26 April 2017 · Download file

Documents

5 official files

Reported to Senate (text)

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Reported to Senate (text)
Reported to Senate · EN · 14 February 2018
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Reported to Senate (PDF)
Reported to Senate · EN · 14 February 2018
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Introduced in Senate (text)
Introduced in Senate · EN · 26 April 2017
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Introduced in Senate (PDF)
Introduced in Senate · EN · 26 April 2017
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Introduced in Senate
summary · EN · 26 April 2017
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Related records

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Sources

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Official source: https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/951
Open data entity: https://api.congress.gov/v3/bill/115/s/951
us · 115-s-951 · source updated 7 April 2025