IB 

Union Calendar No. 161 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 427 

[Report No. 114–214, Part I] 

To amend chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, to provide that major 

rules of the executive branch shall have no force or effect unless a 

joint resolution of approval is enacted into law. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 21, 2015 

Mr. YOUNG of Indiana (for himself, Mr. MASSIE, Mr. SIMPSON, Mr. BRADY

of Texas, Mr. DESJARLAIS, Mr. SMITH of Texas, Mr. SMITH of Nebraska, Mr. JONES, Mr. JENKINS of West Virginia, Mr. ROUZER, Mr. 

MURPHY of Pennsylvania, Mr. ROE of Tennessee, Mr. POSEY, Mr. SESSIONS, Mr. FRANKS of Arizona, Mr. STEWART, Mr. RIBBLE, Mr. WEBER

of Texas, Mr. ROTHFUS, Mr. TIPTON, Mr. YOHO, Mr. THORNBERRY, Mr. 

WESTMORELAND, Mr. TURNER, Mr. BRIDENSTINE, Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania, Mr. FLORES, Mr. PEARCE, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, Mr. 

CHAFFETZ, Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. MCCAUL, Mr. RICE of 

South Carolina, Mr. HANNA, Mr. STIVERS, Mr. DUNCAN of South Carolina, Mr. OLSON, Mr. BLUM, Mr. GRAVES of Missouri, Mr. WILLIAMS, 

Mr. HARPER, Mr. HUIZENGA of Michigan, Mr. LONG, Mr. BENISHEK, 

Mr. SALMON, Mrs. BLACK, Mr. MCKINLEY, Mr. GIBSON, Mr. JOLLY, Mr. 

POMPEO, Mr. LATTA, Mr. GOODLATTE, Mr. MULLIN, Mr. WALBERG, Mr. 

BUCSHON, Mr. PITTENGER, Mr. FINCHER, Mr. FARENTHOLD, Mr. 

HUELSKAMP, Mr. GOSAR, Mr. MCCLINTOCK, Mr. YOUNG of Alaska, Mr. 

COLE, Mr. FORTENBERRY, Mr. BOUSTANY, Mr. COSTELLO of Pennsylvania, Mr. CRENSHAW, Mr. VALADAO, Mr. BROOKS of Alabama, Mr. 

ROKITA, Mr. GIBBS, Mr. CULBERSON, Mr. CLAWSON of Florida, Mr. 

MESSER, Mr. FORBES, Mr. BARR, Mrs. NOEM, Mr. WEBSTER of Florida, 

Mr. HUNTER, Mr. DIAZ-BALART, Mr. CHABOT, Mrs. MCMORRIS RODGERS, Mr. GUTHRIE, Mr. HUDSON, Ms. JENKINS of Kansas, Mr. TIBERI, 

Mr. WENSTRUP, Mrs. LUMMIS, Mr. GARRETT, Mr. CRAWFORD, Mrs. 

BLACKBURN, Mr. NUGENT, Mr. SHIMKUS, Mr. FITZPATRICK, Mr. DUNCAN of Tennessee, Mr. SAM JOHNSON of Texas, Mr. LAMALFA, Mr. 

PALAZZO, Mr. FLEISCHMANN, Mr. MEADOWS, Mr. HENSARLING, Mr. 

GUINTA, Mr. GOHMERT, Mr. BYRNE, Mr. LOUDERMILK, Mr. MILLER of 


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Florida, Mrs. WALORSKI, Mr. ROSKAM, Mr. GROTHMAN, Mr. NUNNELEE, 

Mr. NUNES, Mr. CRAMER, Mr. YODER, Mrs. BROOKS of Indiana, Mr. 

ROGERS of Alabama, Mr. HARDY, Mr. SMITH of Missouri, Mr. GRIFFITH, 

Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN, Mrs. WAGNER, Mr. BABIN, Mr. COLLINS of New 

York, Mr. SCHOCK, Mr. HULTGREN, Mr. DESANTIS, Mr. WOMACK, Mr. 

KLINE, Mr. HECK of Nevada, Mr. MARINO, Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin, Mr. 

LAMBORN, Mr. MULVANEY, Mr. AMODEI, and Mr. MOONEY of West Virginia) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Rules and the 

Budget, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 

each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

JULY 21, 2015 

Additional sponsors: Mr. PAULSEN, Mr. SANFORD, Mr. BOST, Mr. ABRAHAM, 

Mr. RATCLIFFE, Mr. NEUGEBAUER, Mr. ROSS, Mr. REED, Mr. 

SCHWEIKERT, Mrs. LOVE, Mrs. ROBY, Mr. JOHNSON of Ohio, Mr. 

DUFFY, Ms. STEFANIK, Mr. HILL, Mrs. HARTZLER, Mr. ALLEN, Mr. 

GRAVES of Georgia, Mr. YOUNG of Iowa, Mr. BUCK, Mr. COLLINS of 

Georgia, Ms. MCSALLY, Mr. BARLETTA, Mr. BISHOP of Michigan, Mr. 

JORDAN, Mr. DOLD, Mr. CALVERT, Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia, Mr. 

WESTERMAN, Mr. KNIGHT, Mr. STUTZMAN, Mr. HURD of Texas, Mr. 

EMMER of Minnesota, Mr. WALDEN, Ms. HERRERA BEUTLER, Mr. LABRADOR, Mr. CARTER of Georgia, and Mr. NEWHOUSE

JULY 21, 2015 

Reported from the Committee on the Judiciary with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

JULY 21, 2015 

The Committees on Rules and the Budget discharged; committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be 

printed 

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on January 21, 2015] 

A BILL 

To amend chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, to provide 

that major rules of the executive branch shall have no 

force or effect unless a joint resolution of approval is 

enacted into law. 


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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Regulations from the 

5 Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act of 2015’’. 

6 SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 

7 The purpose of this Act is to increase accountability 

8 for and transparency in the Federal regulatory process. Sec9 tion 1 of article I of the United States Constitution grants 

10 all legislative powers to Congress. Over time, Congress has 

11 excessively delegated its constitutional charge while failing 

12 to conduct appropriate oversight and retain accountability 

13 for the content of the laws it passes. By requiring a vote 

14 in Congress, the REINS Act will result in more carefully 

15 drafted and detailed legislation, an improved regulatory 

16 process, and a legislative branch that is truly accountable 

17 to the American people for the laws imposed upon them. 

18 SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW OF AGENCY RULEMAKING. 

19 Chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, is amended 

20 to read as follows: 

21 ‘‘CHAPTER 8—CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW 

22 OF AGENCY RULEMAKING 

‘‘Sec. 

‘‘801. Congressional review. 

‘‘802. Congressional approval procedure for major rules. 

‘‘803. Congressional disapproval procedure for nonmajor rules. 

‘‘804. Definitions. 

‘‘805. Judicial review. 


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‘‘806. Exemption for monetary policy. 

‘‘807. Effective date of certain rules. 

1 ‘‘§ 801. Congressional review 

2 ‘‘(a)(1)(A) Before a rule may take effect, the Federal 

3 agency promulgating such rule shall submit to each House 

4 of the Congress and to the Comptroller General a report 

5 containing— 

6 ‘‘(i) a copy of the rule; 

7 ‘‘(ii) a concise general statement relating to the 

8 rule; 

9 ‘‘(iii) a classification of the rule as a major or 

10 nonmajor rule, including an explanation of the classi11 fication specifically addressing each criteria for a 

12 major rule contained within sections 804(2)(A), 

13 804(2)(B), and 804(2)(C); 

14 ‘‘(iv) a list of any other related regulatory ac15 tions intended to implement the same statutory provi16 sion or regulatory objective as well as the individual 

17 and aggregate economic effects of those actions; and 

18 ‘‘(v) the proposed effective date of the rule. 

19 ‘‘(B) On the date of the submission of the report under 

20 subparagraph (A), the Federal agency promulgating the 

21 rule shall submit to the Comptroller General and make 

22 available to each House of Congress— 

23 ‘‘(i) a complete copy of the cost-benefit analysis 

24 of the rule, if any; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) the agency’s actions pursuant to sections 

2 603, 604, 605, 607, and 609 of this title; 

3 ‘‘(iii) the agency’s actions pursuant to sections 

4 202, 203, 204, and 205 of the Unfunded Mandates 

5 Reform Act of 1995; and 

6 ‘‘(iv) any other relevant information or require7 ments under any other Act and any relevant Execu8 tive orders. 

9 ‘‘(C) Upon receipt of a report submitted under sub10 paragraph (A), each House shall provide copies of the report 

11 to the chairman and ranking member of each standing com12 mittee with jurisdiction under the rules of the House of Rep13 resentatives or the Senate to report a bill to amend the pro14 vision of law under which the rule is issued. 

15 ‘‘(2)(A) The Comptroller General shall provide a re16 port on each major rule to the committees of jurisdiction 

17 by the end of 15 calendar days after the submission or pub18 lication date. The report of the Comptroller General shall 

19 include an assessment of the agency’s compliance with pro20 cedural steps required by paragraph (1)(B) and an assess21 ment of whether the major rule imposes any new limits or 

22 mandates on private-sector activity. 

23 ‘‘(B) Federal agencies shall cooperate with the Comp24 troller General by providing information relevant to the 

25 Comptroller General’s report under subparagraph (A). 


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1 ‘‘(3) A major rule relating to a report submitted under 

2 paragraph (1) shall take effect upon enactment of a joint 

3 resolution of approval described in section 802 or as pro4 vided for in the rule following enactment of a joint resolu5 tion of approval described in section 802, whichever is later. 

6 ‘‘(4) A nonmajor rule shall take effect as provided by 

7 section 803 after submission to Congress under paragraph 

8 (1). 

9 ‘‘(5) If a joint resolution of approval relating to a 

10 major rule is not enacted within the period provided in sub11 section (b)(2), then a joint resolution of approval relating 

12 to the same rule may not be considered under this chapter 

13 in the same Congress by either the House of Representatives 

14 or the Senate. 

15 ‘‘(b)(1) A major rule shall not take effect unless the 

16 Congress enacts a joint resolution of approval described 

17 under section 802. 

18 ‘‘(2) If a joint resolution described in subsection (a) 

19 is not enacted into law by the end of 70 session days or 

20 legislative days, as applicable, beginning on the date on 

21 which the report referred to in section 801(a)(1)(A) is re22 ceived by Congress (excluding days either House of Congress 

23 is adjourned for more than 3 days during a session of Con24 gress), then the rule described in that resolution shall be 


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1 deemed not to be approved and such rule shall not take ef2 fect. 

3 ‘‘(c)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this 

4 section (except subject to paragraph (3)), a major rule may 

5 take effect for one 90-calendar-day period if the President 

6 makes a determination under paragraph (2) and submits 

7 written notice of such determination to the Congress. 

8 ‘‘(2) Paragraph (1) applies to a determination made 

9 by the President by Executive order that the major rule 

10 should take effect because such rule is— 

11 ‘‘(A) necessary because of an imminent threat to 

12 health or safety or other emergency; 

13 ‘‘(B) necessary for the enforcement of criminal 

14 laws; 

15 ‘‘(C) necessary for national security; or 

16 ‘‘(D) issued pursuant to any statute imple17 menting an international trade agreement. 

18 ‘‘(3) An exercise by the President of the authority 

19 under this subsection shall have no effect on the procedures 

20 under section 802. 

21 ‘‘(d)(1) In addition to the opportunity for review oth22 erwise provided under this chapter, in the case of any rule 

23 for which a report was submitted in accordance with sub24 section (a)(1)(A) during the period beginning on the date 

25 occurring— 


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1 ‘‘(A) in the case of the Senate, 60 session days, 

2 or 

3 ‘‘(B) in the case of the House of Representatives, 

4 60 legislative days, 

5 before the date the Congress is scheduled to adjourn a session 

6 of Congress through the date on which the same or suc7 ceeding Congress first convenes its next session, sections 802 

8 and 803 shall apply to such rule in the succeeding session 

9 of Congress. 

10 ‘‘(2)(A) In applying sections 802 and 803 for purposes 

11 of such additional review, a rule described under paragraph 

12 (1) shall be treated as though— 

13 ‘‘(i) such rule were published in the Federal Reg14 ister on— 

15 ‘‘(I) in the case of the Senate, the 15th ses16 sion day, or 

17 ‘‘(II) in the case of the House of Representa18 tives, the 15th legislative day, 

19 after the succeeding session of Congress first convenes; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(ii) a report on such rule were submitted to 

22 Congress under subsection (a)(1) on such date. 

23 ‘‘(B) Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to 

24 affect the requirement under subsection (a)(1) that a report 

25 shall be submitted to Congress before a rule can take effect. 


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1 ‘‘(3) A rule described under paragraph (1) shall take 

2 effect as otherwise provided by law (including other sub3 sections of this section). 

4 ‘‘§ 802. Congressional approval procedure for major 

5 rules 

6 ‘‘(a)(1) For purposes of this section, the term ‘joint res7 olution’ means only a joint resolution addressing a report 

8 classifying a rule as major pursuant to section 

9 801(a)(1)(A)(iii) that— 

10 ‘‘(A) bears no preamble; 

11 ‘‘(B) bears the following title (with blanks filled 

12 as appropriate): ‘Approving the rule submitted by 

13 lll relating to lll.’; 

14 ‘‘(C) includes after its resolving clause only the 

15 following (with blanks filled as appropriate): ‘That 

16 Congress approves the rule submitted by lll re17 lating to lll.’; and 

18 ‘‘(D) is introduced pursuant to paragraph (2). 

19 ‘‘(2) After a House of Congress receives a report 

20 classifying a rule as major pursuant to section 

21 801(a)(1)(A)(iii), the majority leader of that House (or his 

22 or her respective designee) shall introduce (by request, if ap23 propriate) a joint resolution described in paragraph (1)— 

24 ‘‘(A) in the case of the House of Representatives, 

25 within three legislative days; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) in the case of the Senate, within three ses2 sion days. 

3 ‘‘(3) A joint resolution described in paragraph (1) 

4 shall not be subject to amendment at any stage of pro5 ceeding. 

6 ‘‘(b) A joint resolution described in subsection (a) shall 

7 be referred in each House of Congress to the committees hav8 ing jurisdiction over the provision of law under which the 

9 rule is issued. 

10 ‘‘(c) In the Senate, if the committee or committees to 

11 which a joint resolution described in subsection (a) has been 

12 referred have not reported it at the end of 15 session days 

13 after its introduction, such committee or committees shall 

14 be automatically discharged from further consideration of 

15 the resolution and it shall be placed on the calendar. A vote 

16 on final passage of the resolution shall be taken on or before 

17 the close of the 15th session day after the resolution is re18 ported by the committee or committees to which it was re19 ferred, or after such committee or committees have been dis20 charged from further consideration of the resolution. 

21 ‘‘(d)(1) In the Senate, when the committee or commit22 tees to which a joint resolution is referred have reported, 

23 or when a committee or committees are discharged (under 

24 subsection (c)) from further consideration of a joint resolu25 tion described in subsection (a), it is at any time thereafter 


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1 in order (even though a previous motion to the same effect 

2 has been disagreed to) for a motion to proceed to the consid3 eration of the joint resolution, and all points of order 

4 against the joint resolution (and against consideration of 

5 the joint resolution) are waived. The motion is not subject 

6 to amendment, or to a motion to postpone, or to a motion 

7 to proceed to the consideration of other business. A motion 

8 to reconsider the vote by which the motion is agreed to or 

9 disagreed to shall not be in order. If a motion to proceed 

10 to the consideration of the joint resolution is agreed to, the 

11 joint resolution shall remain the unfinished business of the 

12 Senate until disposed of. 

13 ‘‘(2) In the Senate, debate on the joint resolution, and 

14 on all debatable motions and appeals in connection there15 with, shall be limited to not more than 2 hours, which shall 

16 be divided equally between those favoring and those oppos17 ing the joint resolution. A motion to further limit debate 

18 is in order and not debatable. An amendment to, or a mo19 tion to postpone, or a motion to proceed to the consideration 

20 of other business, or a motion to recommit the joint resolu21 tion is not in order. 

22 ‘‘(3) In the Senate, immediately following the conclu23 sion of the debate on a joint resolution described in sub24 section (a), and a single quorum call at the conclusion of 

25 the debate if requested in accordance with the rules of the 


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1 Senate, the vote on final passage of the joint resolution shall 

2 occur. 

3 ‘‘(4) Appeals from the decisions of the Chair relating 

4 to the application of the rules of the Senate to the procedure 

5 relating to a joint resolution described in subsection (a) 

6 shall be decided without debate. 

7 ‘‘(e) In the House of Representatives, if any committee 

8 to which a joint resolution described in subsection (a) has 

9 been referred has not reported it to the House at the end 

10 of 15 legislative days after its introduction, such committee 

11 shall be discharged from further consideration of the joint 

12 resolution, and it shall be placed on the appropriate cal13 endar. On the second and fourth Thursdays of each month 

14 it shall be in order at any time for the Speaker to recognize 

15 a Member who favors passage of a joint resolution that has 

16 appeared on the calendar for at least 5 legislative days to 

17 call up that joint resolution for immediate consideration 

18 in the House without intervention of any point of order. 

19 When so called up a joint resolution shall be considered as 

20 read and shall be debatable for 1 hour equally divided and 

21 controlled by the proponent and an opponent, and the pre22 vious question shall be considered as ordered to its passage 

23 without intervening motion. It shall not be in order to re24 consider the vote on passage. If a vote on final passage of 

25 the joint resolution has not been taken by the third ThursVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:20 Jul 21, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H427.RH H427

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1 day on which the Speaker may recognize a Member under 

2 this subsection, such vote shall be taken on that day. 

3 ‘‘(f)(1) If, before passing a joint resolution described 

4 in subsection (a), one House receives from the other a joint 

5 resolution having the same text, then— 

6 ‘‘(A) the joint resolution of the other House shall 

7 not be referred to a committee; and 

8 ‘‘(B) the procedure in the receiving House shall 

9 be the same as if no joint resolution had been received 

10 from the other House until the vote on passage, when 

11 the joint resolution received from the other House 

12 shall supplant the joint resolution of the receiving 

13 House. 

14 ‘‘(2) This subsection shall not apply to the House of 

15 Representatives if the joint resolution received from the Sen16 ate is a revenue measure. 

17 ‘‘(g) If either House has not taken a vote on final pas18 sage of the joint resolution by the last day of the period 

19 described in section 801(b)(2), then such vote shall be taken 

20 on that day. 

21 ‘‘(h) This section and section 803 are enacted by Con22 gress— 

23 ‘‘(1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of 

24 the Senate and House of Representatives, respectively, 

25 and as such is deemed to be part of the rules of each 


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1 House, respectively, but applicable only with respect 

2 to the procedure to be followed in that House in the 

3 case of a joint resolution described in subsection (a) 

4 and superseding other rules only where explicitly so; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(2) with full recognition of the Constitutional 

7 right of either House to change the rules (so far as 

8 they relate to the procedure of that House) at any 

9 time, in the same manner and to the same extent as 

10 in the case of any other rule of that House. 

11 ‘‘§ 803. Congressional disapproval procedure for 

12 nonmajor rules 

13 ‘‘(a) For purposes of this section, the term ‘joint resolu14 tion’ means only a joint resolution introduced in the period 

15 beginning on the date on which the report referred to in 

16 section 801(a)(1)(A) is received by Congress and ending 60 

17 days thereafter (excluding days either House of Congress is 

18 adjourned for more than 3 days during a session of Con19 gress), the matter after the resolving clause of which is as 

20 follows: ‘That Congress disapproves the nonmajor rule sub21 mitted by the lll relating to lll, and such rule 

22 shall have no force or effect.’ (The blank spaces being appro23 priately filled in). 


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1 ‘‘(b)(1) A joint resolution described in subsection (a) 

2 shall be referred to the committees in each House of Con3 gress with jurisdiction. 

4 ‘‘(2) For purposes of this section, the term submission 

5 or publication date means the later of the date on which— 

6 ‘‘(A) the Congress receives the report submitted 

7 under section 801(a)(1); or 

8 ‘‘(B) the nonmajor rule is published in the Fed9 eral Register, if so published. 

10 ‘‘(c) In the Senate, if the committee to which is referred 

11 a joint resolution described in subsection (a) has not re12 ported such joint resolution (or an identical joint resolu13 tion) at the end of 15 session days after the date of introduc14 tion of the joint resolution, such committee may be dis15 charged from further consideration of such joint resolution 

16 upon a petition supported in writing by 30 Members of the 

17 Senate, and such joint resolution shall be placed on the cal18 endar. 

19 ‘‘(d)(1) In the Senate, when the committee to which 

20 a joint resolution is referred has reported, or when a com21 mittee is discharged (under subsection (c)) from further con22 sideration of a joint resolution described in subsection (a), 

23 it is at any time thereafter in order (even though a previous 

24 motion to the same effect has been disagreed to) for a motion 

25 to proceed to the consideration of the joint resolution, and 


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1 all points of order against the joint resolution (and against 

2 consideration of the joint resolution) are waived. The mo3 tion is not subject to amendment, or to a motion to post4 pone, or to a motion to proceed to the consideration of other 

5 business. A motion to reconsider the vote by which the mo6 tion is agreed to or disagreed to shall not be in order. If 

7 a motion to proceed to the consideration of the joint resolu8 tion is agreed to, the joint resolution shall remain the unfin9 ished business of the Senate until disposed of. 

10 ‘‘(2) In the Senate, debate on the joint resolution, and 

11 on all debatable motions and appeals in connection there12 with, shall be limited to not more than 10 hours, which 

13 shall be divided equally between those favoring and those 

14 opposing the joint resolution. A motion to further limit de15 bate is in order and not debatable. An amendment to, or 

16 a motion to postpone, or a motion to proceed to the consid17 eration of other business, or a motion to recommit the joint 

18 resolution is not in order. 

19 ‘‘(3) In the Senate, immediately following the conclu20 sion of the debate on a joint resolution described in sub21 section (a), and a single quorum call at the conclusion of 

22 the debate if requested in accordance with the rules of the 

23 Senate, the vote on final passage of the joint resolution shall 

24 occur. 


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1 ‘‘(4) Appeals from the decisions of the Chair relating 

2 to the application of the rules of the Senate to the procedure 

3 relating to a joint resolution described in subsection (a) 

4 shall be decided without debate. 

5 ‘‘(e) In the Senate the procedure specified in subsection 

6 (c) or (d) shall not apply to the consideration of a joint 

7 resolution respecting a nonmajor rule— 

8 ‘‘(1) after the expiration of the 60 session days 

9 beginning with the applicable submission or publica10 tion date, or 

11 ‘‘(2) if the report under section 801(a)(1)(A) was 

12 submitted during the period referred to in section 

13 801(d)(1), after the expiration of the 60 session days 

14 beginning on the 15th session day after the succeeding 

15 session of Congress first convenes. 

16 ‘‘(f) If, before the passage by one House of a joint reso17 lution of that House described in subsection (a), that House 

18 receives from the other House a joint resolution described 

19 in subsection (a), then the following procedures shall apply: 

20 ‘‘(1) The joint resolution of the other House shall 

21 not be referred to a committee. 

22 ‘‘(2) With respect to a joint resolution described 

23 in subsection (a) of the House receiving the joint reso24 lution— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the procedure in that House shall be 

2 the same as if no joint resolution had been re3 ceived from the other House; but 

4 ‘‘(B) the vote on final passage shall be on 

5 the joint resolution of the other House. 

6 ‘‘§ 804. Definitions 

7 ‘‘For purposes of this chapter— 

8 ‘‘(1) The term ‘Federal agency’ means any agen9 cy as that term is defined in section 551(1). 

10 ‘‘(2) The term ‘major rule’ means any rule, in11 cluding an interim final rule, that the Administrator 

12 of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs of 

13 the Office of Management and Budget finds has re14 sulted in or is likely to result in— 

15 ‘‘(A) an annual effect on the economy of 

16 $100,000,000 or more; 

17 ‘‘(B) a major increase in costs or prices for 

18 consumers, individual industries, Federal, State, 

19 or local government agencies, or geographic re20 gions; or 

21 ‘‘(C) significant adverse effects on competi22 tion, employment, investment, productivity, in23 novation, or on the ability of United States24 based enterprises to compete with foreign-based 

25 enterprises in domestic and export markets. 


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1 ‘‘(3) The term ‘nonmajor rule’ means any rule 

2 that is not a major rule. 

3 ‘‘(4) The term ‘rule’ has the meaning given such 

4 term in section 551, except that such term does not 

5 include— 

6 ‘‘(A) any rule of particular applicability, 

7 including a rule that approves or prescribes for 

8 the future rates, wages, prices, services, or allow9 ances therefore, corporate or financial structures, 

10 reorganizations, mergers, or acquisitions thereof, 

11 or accounting practices or disclosures bearing on 

12 any of the foregoing; 

13 ‘‘(B) any rule relating to agency manage14 ment or personnel; or 

15 ‘‘(C) any rule of agency organization, pro16 cedure, or practice that does not substantially af17 fect the rights or obligations of non-agency par18 ties. 

19 ‘‘(5) The term ‘submission date or publication 

20 date’, except as otherwise provided in this chapter, 

21 means— 

22 ‘‘(A) in the case of a major rule, the date 

23 on which the Congress receives the report sub24 mitted under section 801(a)(1); and 


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1 ‘‘(B) in the case of a nonmajor rule, the 

2 later of— 

3 ‘‘(i) the date on which the Congress re4 ceives the report submitted under section 

5 801(a)(1); and 

6 ‘‘(ii) the date on which the nonmajor 

7 rule is published in the Federal Register, if 

8 so published. 

9 ‘‘§ 805. Judicial review 

10 ‘‘(a) No determination, finding, action, or omission 

11 under this chapter shall be subject to judicial review. 

12 ‘‘(b) Notwithstanding subsection (a), a court may de13 termine whether a Federal agency has completed the nec14 essary requirements under this chapter for a rule to take 

15 effect. 

16 ‘‘(c) The enactment of a joint resolution of approval 

17 under section 802 shall not be interpreted to serve as a 

18 grant or modification of statutory authority by Congress 

19 for the promulgation of a rule, shall not extinguish or affect 

20 any claim, whether substantive or procedural, against any 

21 alleged defect in a rule, and shall not form part of the record 

22 before the court in any judicial proceeding concerning a 

23 rule except for purposes of determining whether or not the 

24 rule is in effect. 


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•HR 427 RH

1 ‘‘§ 806. Exemption for monetary policy 

2 ‘‘Nothing in this chapter shall apply to rules that con3 cern monetary policy proposed or implemented by the 

4 Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System or the 

5 Federal Open Market Committee. 

6 ‘‘§ 807. Effective date of certain rules 

7 ‘‘Notwithstanding section 801— 

8 ‘‘(1) any rule that establishes, modifies, opens, 

9 closes, or conducts a regulatory program for a com10 mercial, recreational, or subsistence activity related to 

11 hunting, fishing, or camping; or 

12 ‘‘(2) any rule other than a major rule which an 

13 agency for good cause finds (and incorporates the 

14 finding and a brief statement of reasons therefore in 

15 the rule issued) that notice and public procedure 

16 thereon are impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to 

17 the public interest, 

18 shall take effect at such time as the Federal agency promul19 gating the rule determines.’’. 

20 SEC. 4. BUDGETARY EFFECTS OF RULES SUBJECT TO SEC21 TION 802 OF TITLE 5, UNITED STATES CODE. 

22 Section 257(b)(2) of the Balanced Budget and Emer23 gency Deficit Control Act of 1985 is amended by adding 

24 at the end the following new subparagraph: 

25 ‘‘(E) BUDGETARY EFFECTS OF RULES SUB26 JECT TO SECTION 802 OF TITLE 5, UNITED


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•HR 427 RH

1 STATES CODE.—Any rules subject to the congres2 sional approval procedure set forth in section 

3 802 of chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, 

4 affecting budget authority, outlays, or receipts 

5 shall be assumed to be effective unless it is not 

6 approved in accordance with such section.’’. 

7 SEC. 5. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE STUDY OF 

8 RULES. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General of the 

10 United States shall conduct a study to determine, as of the 

11 date of the enactment of this Act— 

12 (1) how many rules (as such term is defined in 

13 section 804 of title 5, United States Code) were in ef14 fect; 

15 (2) how many major rules (as such term is de16 fined in section 804 of title 5, United States Code) 

17 were in effect; and 

18 (3) the total estimated economic cost imposed by 

19 all such rules. 

20 (b) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

21 of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the 

22 United States shall submit a report to Congress that con23 tains the findings of the study conducted under subsection 

24 (a). 


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asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with BILLS
Union Calendar No. 161 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 427 

[Report No. 114–214, Part I] 

A BILL 

To amend chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, 

resolution of approval is enacted into law. branch shall have no force or effect unless a joint to provide that major rules of the executive 

JULY 21, 2015 

Reported from the Committee on the Judiciary with an 

amendment 

JULY 21, 2015 

The Committees on Rules and the Budget discharged; 

the State of the Union and ordered to be printed committed to the Committee of the Whole House on 


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