FACT SHEET

WHAT SMALL ENTITIES

SHOULD KNOW ABOUT 

REGULATORY FLEXIBILITY

ACT AND THE SMALL

BUSINESS REGULATORY

ENFORCEMENT FAIRNESS

ACT 
Why should I be

interested in

RFA/SBREFA?

EPA has an ongoing commitment to minimize the burden of our

regulations on small entities to the extent we can while still meeting

our statutory requirements. The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), as

amended by Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act

(SBREFA), provides small entities with an expanded opportunity to

participate in the development of certain regulations. 

What is

SBREFA?

SBREFA was signed into law on March 29, 1996, and contains five

distinct sections:

• Subtitle A–Regulatory Compliance Simplification: Among

other things, requires the agency to publish Small Entity

Compliance Guides that are written in plain language and

explain the actions a small entity must take to comply with a

rule or group of rules.

• Subtitle B–Regulatory Enforcement Reforms: Requires

agencies to support the rights of small entities in enforcement

actions, specifically providing for the reduction, and in certain

cases, the waiver of civil penalties for violations by small

entities.

• Subtitle C–Equal Access to Justice: Provides small

businesses with expanded authority to go to court to be

awarded attorneys' fees and costs when an agency has been

found to be excessive in enforcement of federal regulations. 

• Subtitle D–Regulatory Flexibility Act Amendments:

Provides small entities with expanded opportunities to

participate in the development of certain regulations. 

• Subtitle E–Congressional Review of Agency Rulemaking:

Agencies generally must provide Congress and the General

Accounting Office with copies of all final rules and supporting

analyses. Congress may decide not to allow a rule to take

effect.

How does

SBREFA affect

EPA

rulemaking?

SBREFA established certain formal procedural and analytical

requirements (outlined below) for rules with the potential to impose a

significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. 

But EPA also considers the concerns of small entities in the more

frequent cases where impacts on small entities are more modest,

even though SBREFA doesn’t require it.

What does

RFA/SBREFA

require for

proposed rules?

Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis. Generally, the RFA requires

EPA to prepare an Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (IRFA) for

each proposed rule unless the rule will not have a significant

economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. A

regulatory flexibility analysis examines the type and number of small

entities potentially subject to the rule, recordkeeping and compliance

requirements, and significant regulatory alternatives, among other

things. 
Small Business Advocacy Review Panel. When an IRFA is

required, EPA must also convene a Small Business Advocacy

Review Panel before proposing a rule. EPA’s Small Business

Advocacy Chair convenes each Panel, which includes

representatives from the Small Business Administration, the Office of

Management and Budget, and EPA. A Panel conducts its own

outreach to Small Entity Representatives likely to be subject to the

rule and prepares a report to the Administrator of EPA on ways to

reduce the potential impact of the rule on small entities. Each Panel’s

report becomes part of the rulemaking record for the proposed rule.

What does RFA/

SBREFA require

for final rules?

Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis. When EPA issues a rule that

may have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of

small entities, we must prepare a Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis

(FRFA). The elements of a FRFA are similar to those of an IRFA,

outlined above. In addition, each FRFA must summarize the

significant issues raised by public comments on the IRFA, assess

these issues, and describe any changes made in response to the

comments.

 

Small Entity Compliance Guide. When a FRFA is required, EPA

must also publish Small Entity Compliance Guides that are written in

plain language and explains the actions a small entity must take to

comply with a rule or group of rules.

What is the

progress to

date?

• EPA has completed 30 SBAR Panels in cooperation with SBA

and OMB. In each case, the Panel recommended changes to

the rule that would reduce impacts on small entities.

• EPA maintains a website dedicated to RFA/SBREFA issues:

www.epa.gov/sbrefa. The primary purpose of the site is to

provide public access to information and documents produced

for, or directly related to, the Agency's implementation of

SBREFA.

• Small Entity Compliance Guides are available on the

RFA/SBREFA website.

• In March 1998, EPA delivered to Congress reports on SBREFA

Section 223 - Penalty Reduction Program for Small Entities and

SBREFA Section 213 - Informal Guidance Program. These

reports are also available from the SBAC staff or from the

RFA/SBREFA website.

• To date, EPA has submitted approximately 5,400 documents to

Congress under the Congressional Review Act.
Where can I get

more

information?

Several EPA documents are available that can provide more

information on the RFA/SBREFA, the Agency’s small entity

compliance assistance efforts and the elements of a regulatory

flexibility analysis. These documents and further assistance with any

RFA/SBREFA questions are available from the SBAC, SBAC Staff, or

from the RFA/SBREFA website, listed below.

Small Business Advocacy Chair

Alexander Cristofaro

 

Small Business Advocacy Chair Staff

 Lanelle Wiggins, Team Leader

 (202) 566-2372; wiggins.lanelle@epa.gov Lakeshia Walker

 (202) 564-6571; walker.lakeshia@epa.gov

 Caryn Muellerleile 

 (202) 564-2855; muellerleile.caryn@epa.gov 

 Nathaniel Jutras

 (202) 564-0301; jutras.nathaniel@epa.gov

RFA/SBREFA Website

www.epa.gov/sbrefa