U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE

WASHINGTON : 

1 

79–010 

" ! SENATE 115TH CONGRESS

1st Session 

REPORT

2017

115–184 

Calendar No. 261 

FEDERAL REGISTER PRINTING SAVINGS 

ACT OF 2017 

R E P O R T 

OF THE

COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND 

GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS 

UNITED STATES SENATE 

TO ACCOMPANY

H.R. 195 

TO AMEND TITLE 44, UNITED STATES CODE, TO RESTRICT THE 

DISTRIBUTION OF FREE PRINTED COPIES OF THE FEDERAL 

REGISTER TO MEMBERS OF CONGRESS AND OTHER OFFICERS 

AND EMPLOYEES OF THE UNITED STATES, AND FOR OTHER 

PURPOSES 

NOVEMBER 8, 2017.—Ordered to be printed 


congress.#13
(II) 

COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS 

RON JOHNSON, Wisconsin, Chairman 

JOHN MCCAIN, Arizona 

ROB PORTMAN, Ohio 

RAND PAUL, Kentucky 

JAMES LANKFORD, Oklahoma 

MICHAEL B. ENZI, Wyoming 

JOHN HOEVEN, North Dakota 

STEVE DAINES, Montana 

CLAIRE MCCASKILL, Missouri 

THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware 

JON TESTER, Montana 

HEIDI HEITKAMP, North Dakota 

GARY C. PETERS, Michigan 

MAGGIE HASSAN, New Hampshire 

KAMALA D. HARRIS, California 

CHRISTOPHER R. HIXON, Staff Director 

GABRIELLE D’ADAMO SINGER, Chief Counsel 

DANIEL J. SPINO, Research Assistant 

MARGARET E. DAUM, Minority Staff Director 

STACIA M. CARDILLE, Minority Chief Counsel 

CHARLES A. MOSKOWITZ, Minority Senior Legislative Counsel 

DANIEL J. WEBB, Minority Government Accountability Office Detailee 

LAURA W. KILBRIDE, Chief Clerk 

Calendar No. 261 

115TH CONGRESS SENATE REPORT " ! 1st Session 115–184 

FEDERAL REGISTER PRINTING SAVINGS ACT OF 2017 

NOVEMBER 8, 2017.—Ordered to be printed 

Mr. JOHNSON, from the Committee on Homeland Security and 

Governmental Affairs, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany H.R. 195] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, 

to which was referred the bill (H.R. 195) to amend title 44, United 

States Code, to restrict the distribution of free printed copies of the 

Federal Register to Members of Congress and other officers and 

employees of the United States, and for other purposes, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon without amendment 

and recommends that the bill do pass. 

CONTENTS 

Page 

I. Purpose and Summary .................................................................................. 1 

II. Background and Need for the Legislation ................................................... 2 

III. Legislative History ......................................................................................... 2 

IV. Section-by-Section Analysis .......................................................................... 3 

V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact .................................................................. 3 

VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate ................................................ 3 

VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Act, as Reported ........................... 4 

I. PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

H.R. 195, the Federal Register Printing Savings Act of 2017, 

ends daily distribution of the printed Federal Register to Members 

of Congress or any other office of the United States Government, 

unless the office specifically requests a subscription. The Act also 

establishes a maximum subscription length of one year before it 

would have to be renewed. 

2 

1Office of the Fed. Register, A Brief History Commemorating the 70th Anniversary of the Publication of the First Issue of the Federal Register March 14, 1936, National Archives and Records 

Administration, 2, https://www.archives.gov/files/federal-register/the-federal-register/history.pdf 

[hereinafter Brief History]. 2 Id. at 3. 3 Cong. Budget Office, Cost Estimate: H.R. 194 Federal Register Printing Savings Act of 2017 

(2017), available at https://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/115th-congress-2017-2018/costestimate/ 

hr195.pdf. 4 Brief History, supra note 1, at 14. 5Office of the Fed. Register, About This Site, https://www.federalregister.gov/reader-aids/government-policy-and-ofr-procedures/about-this-site (last visited Oct. 16, 2017). 6 Nat’l. Archives & Records Admin., About the Federal Register, https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/the-federal-register/about.html (last visited Oct. 16, 2017). 7 Robert Jackel, Federal Register Will No Longer Be Printed, Obama Says, The Regulatory Review (June 22, 2011), https://www.theregreview.org/2011/06/22/federal-register-will-no-longer-beprinted-obama-says/. 8 Id. 

9Press Release, Office of Mgmt. & Budget, We Can’t Wait: President Obama to Sign Executive 

Order to Cut Waste and Promote Efficient Spending; White House to Announce 2011 SAVE 

Award Finalists (Nov. 09, 2011) available at https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2011/11/09/we-cant-wait-president-obama-sign-executive-order-cut-waste-and-promote-. 10 Cong. Budget Office, supra note 3. 

II. BACKGROUND AND THE NEED FOR LEGISLATION

The Federal Register was first published in 1936 to ensure Executive Branch actions such as executive orders and regulations were 

properly recorded and made publicly available.1 Early editions of 

the Federal Register were short in length. For example, the first 

issue was only 16 pages.2 According to the Congressional Budget 

Office, today the average Federal Register is around 300 pages and costs $4.50 to produce and distribute.3

Since June 8, 1994, the Federal Register has been available to 

the public online.4 The online version of the Federal Register is updated daily and has navigational features that make it more userfriendly than the paper copy.5

Despite the electronic availability of the digital Federal Register, Federal offices and members of Congress still receive automatic, 

daily deliveries of physical copies of the Federal Register.6

After declaring ‘‘no one reads this thing,’’ 7 President Obama 

sought to end automatic printing of the Federal Register.8 Although 

the Obama Administration could not fully do so without legislation, 

it was successful in reducing the number of Federal agencies that 

automatically receive the Federal Register by 85 percent.9 Congressional action is necessary to cease all automatic printing and distribution of the Federal Register to Government offices. The CBO 

estimates that doing so would save about one million dollars each 

year.10

The Federal Register Printing Savings Act of 2017 would halt the 

wasteful automatic printing and distribution of the Federal Register to Members of Congress and Government offices. The Act requires offices that want hard copies to actively subscribe to the 

Federal Register and if they do so, it will be available to them free 

of charge. The Act also requires the office to renew its subscription 

each year. This provision ensures that a subscription will not be 

continually and unnecessary delivered to an office, unless specifically requested. 

III. LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

On January 3, 2017, Representative Steve Russell (R–OK) introduced H.R. 195, the Federal Register Printing Savings Act of 2017. 

H.R. 195 passed the House by voice vote on May 17, 2017. 

3 

H.R. 195 was referred to the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. The Committee considered H.R. 195 

at a business meeting on July 26, 2017. The Act was ordered reported favorably en bloc by voice vote. Senators present for the vote 

were Johnson, Portman, Lankford, Daines, McCaskill, Tester, 

Heitkamp, Hassan and Harris. 

IV. SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OF THE ACT, AS REPORTED

Section 1. Short title 

This section establishes the short title of the Act as the ‘‘Federal 

Register Printing Savings Act of 2017.’’ 

Sec. 2. Restrictions on distribution of free printed copies of Federal 

Register to members of Congress and federal employees 

Subsection (a) prohibits members of Congress and any office of 

the United States Government from receiving printed copies of the 

Federal Register unless they request a copy of a specific issue or 

opt for a subscription no longer than one year. Subsection (b) establishes an effective date for the amendments made by this Act of 

January 1, 2018. 

V. EVALUATION OF REGULATORY IMPACT

Pursuant to the requirements of paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of 

the Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee has considered 

the regulatory impact of this Act and determined that the Act will 

have no regulatory impact within the meaning of the rules. The 

Committee agrees with the Congressional Budget Office’s statement that the Act contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 

mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

(UMRA) and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. 

VI. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE COST ESTIMATE

AUGUST 4, 2017. 

Hon. RON JOHNSON, 

Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 195, the Federal Register 

Printing Savings Act of 2017. 

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Matthew Pickford. 

Sincerely, 

KEITH HALL. 

Enclosure. 

H.R. 195—Federal Register Printing Savings Act of 2017 

H.R. 195 would amend federal law to prohibit the Government 

Publishing Office (GPO) from furnishing a printed copy of the Federal Register without charge to a Member of Congress or any employee of the U.S. government unless specifically requested. The 

Federal Register compiles and organizes thousands of rules, regulaVerDate Sep 11 2014 08:22 Nov 09, 2017 Jkt 079010 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\SR184.XXX SR184
4 

tions, executive orders, presidential documents, and notices generated by federal departments and agencies. 

Using information from the National Archives and Records Administration and GPO, CBO expects that implementing the bill 

would end the distribution of about 1,000 copies of the Federal Register that are distributed daily for free. The average Federal Register has 300 pages and costs $4.50 to produce and distribute. CBO 

estimates that eliminating those free copies of the Federal Register would reduce spending that is subject to appropriation by $1 million annually. Enacting the legislation would not affect direct 

spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not 

apply. 

CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 195 would not increase direct 

spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive 10- 

year periods beginning in 2028. 

H.R. 195 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would 

impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. 

On February 22, 2017, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for H.R. 

195 as ordered reported by the House Committee on Oversight and 

Government Reform on February 14, 2017. The two versions of legislation are identical, and CBO’s estimates of the budgetary effects 

are the same. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Matthew Pickford. The 

estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Assistant 

Director for Budget Analysis. 

VII. CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE ACT, AS REPORTED

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by the bill, as 

reported, are shown as follows (existing law proposed to be omitted 

is enclosed in brackets, new matter is printed in italic, and existing 

law in which no change is proposed is shown in roman): 

UNITED STATES CODE 

* * * * * * * 

TITLE 44—PUBLIC PRINTING AND DOCUMENTS 

* * * * * * * 

CHAPTER 15—FEDERAL REGISTER AND CODE OF 

FEDERAL REGULATIONS 

* * * * * * * 

SEC. 1506. ADMINISTRATIVE COMMITTEE OF THE FEDERAL REGISTER; 

ESTABLISHMENT AND COMPOSITION; POWERS AND DUTIES. 

øThe Administrative Committee¿ (a) COMPOSITION; DUTIES.— 

The Administrative Committee of the Federal Register shall consist 

of the Archivist of the United States or Acting Archivist, who shall 

be chairman, an officer of the Department of Justice designated by 

the Attorney General, and the Director of the Government Publishing Office or Acting Director of the Government Publishing OfVerDate Sep 11 2014 08:22 Nov 09, 2017 Jkt 079010 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\SR184.XXX SR184
5 

fice. The Director of the Federal Register shall act as secretary of 

the committee. The committee shall prescribe, with the approval of 

the President, regulations for carrying out this chapter. The regulations shall provide, among other things— 

(1) * * * 

(2) * * * 

(3) * * * 

(4) øthe number of copies¿ subject to subsection (b), the number of copies of the Federal Register, which shall be printed, reprinted, and compiled, the number which shall be distributed 

without charge to Members of Congress, officers and employees 

of the United States, or Federal agency, for official use, and 

the number which shall be available for distribution to the 

public; and 

(5) * * * 

(b) RESTRICTIONS ON DISTRIBUTION OF FREE PRINTED COPIES TO

MEMBERS OF CONGRESS AND OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES OF THE

UNITED STATES.— (1) PROHIBIT SUBSCRIPTION TO PRINTED COPIES WITHOUT REQUEST.—Under the regulations prescribed to carry out subsection (a)(4), the Director of the Government Publishing Office 

may not provide a printed copy of the Federal Register without 

charge to any Member of Congress or any other office of the 

United States during a year unless— 

(A) the Member or office requests a printed copy of a specific issue of the Federal Register; or 

(B) during that year or during the previous year, the 

Member or office requested a subscription to printed copies 

of the Federal Register for that year, as described in paragraph (2). 

(2) ADMINISTRATION OF SUBSCRIPTIONS.—The regulations 

prescribed to carry out subsection (a)(4) shall include— 

(A) provisions regarding notifications to offices of Members of Congress and other offices of the United States of 

the restrictions of paragraph (1); 

(B) provisions describing the process by which Members 

and other offices may request a specific issue of the Federal 

Register for purposes of paragraph (1)(A); and 

(C) provisions describing the process by which Members 

and other offices may request a subscription to the Federal 

Register for purposes of paragraph (1)(B), except that such 

regulations shall limit the period for such a subscription to 

not longer than 1 year. 

* * * * * * * 

Æ