I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 8928 

To provide for certain reforms pertaining to Chevron deference. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 2, 2024 

Mr. PFLUGER (for himself, Mr. GUTHRIE, Mr. DUNCAN, Mr. ALFORD, Mr. 

GRIFFITH, Mr. ZINKE, Mrs. MILLER of West Virginia, Mr. FRY, and Mr. 

NEWHOUSE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Oversight 

and Accountability, 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 

A BILL 

To provide for certain reforms pertaining to Chevron 

deference. 

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 ‘‘Returning Power to 

5 the People Act of 2024’’. 

6 SEC. 2. GAO REPORT ON CHEVRON CASES. 

7 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

8 of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 


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1 shall submit to Congress a report identifying matters 

2 wherein Chevron deference was implicated. The report 

3 shall compile a list of the statutes and rules implicated 

4 in each such matter that are in effect as of the date of 

5 the report. The analysis will consider and report on the 

6 private party interests that were or would be impacted as 

7 a result of the court according such deference. 

8 SEC. 3. AGENCY PREDICTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY. 

9 Each Federal agency shall conduct a review of any 

10 matter to which the agency was a party since the decision 

11 was issued in Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources 

12 Defense Council, Inc., 467 U.S. 837 wherein the agency 

13 was accorded Chevron deference. The agency shall identify 

14 the statute or rule implicated, the interpretation of the 

15 agency, and what alternative interpretations were asserted 

16 by another party. The agency shall reassess the interpreta17 tion of the agency in a written, published memorandum 

18 supporting, reversing, or modifying such interpretation. 

19 SEC. 4. LEVELING THE PLAYING FIELD. 

20 In any civil action before a Federal court, the court 

21 may not show greater deference to the interpretation of 

22 a statute by one party to the civil action. Instead, the 

23 court shall issue its own interpretation pursuant to the 

24 principles of statutory interpretation. 


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1 SEC. 5. PROPER DELEGATION. 

2 No agency may issue a rule except to the extent that 

3 the authority to do so has been explicitly conferred by stat4 ute. To the extent that no such authority has been con5 ferred, the agency shall assume that no such authority has 

6 been conferred. 

7 SEC. 6. AGENCY EMPLOYEE INTERPRETATION ACCOUNT8 ABILITY. 

9 Each agency shall evaluate officers and employees to 

10 identify any officer or employee who substantially and per11 sonally contributes to the interpretation of a statute or 

12 rule. Any such officer or employee shall be considered to 

13 be exercising duties reserved for members of the excepted 

14 service. 

15 SEC. 7. OVERCRIMINALIZATION REDUCTION. 

16 No agency may make a rule if any provision of law 

17 imposes a criminal penalty for an offense and an element 

18 of such offense involves a violation of such rule unless the 

19 rule also includes a specified mens rea. In the case of any 

20 such rule in effect as of the date of enactment of this Act, 

21 no person may be prosecuted for such an offense. 

22 SEC. 8. CONGRESSIONAL DIRECTION IN CIVIL PENALTIES. 

23 No agency may collect any administrative fine or civil 

24 monetary penalty for the violation of a rule, except to the 

25 extent that the statute or the rule provides for a mens 

26 rea standard for any violation thereof. 


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1 SEC. 9. ACCESS TO INDEPENDENT COURTS. 

2 Any determination by a Federal agency in a pro3 ceeding before that agency shall be subject to direct appeal 

4 to a Federal district court unless a statute explicitly speci5 fies an administrative process that must be exhausted. 

6 SEC. 10. FAIRNESS IN ADMINISTRATIVE ADJUDICATION. 

7 In the case of any proceeding before an agency, if 

8 an appeal may not be taken to a Federal district court 

9 or a Federal Court of Appeals until the final exhaustion 

10 of all administrative remedies, any appeal thereafter shall 

11 be reviewed de novo and the record of proceedings before 

12 the agency shall, at any party’s request, be supplemented 

13 or set aside for a trial de novo. 

14 SEC. 11. TRANSPARENCY IN AGENCY ACTION. 

15 Any final agency action may only rely on pre-pub16 lished, publicly available and accessible materials in the 

17 form of rules, agency guidance, memorandum or other 

18 types of agency policy documents. If a court determines 

19 that an agency action is not clear and accessible to a mem20 ber of the general public on a website or similar database 

21 prior to the decision being made, the agency action relying 

22 on such inaccessible policy guidance shall be considered 

23 void. 

24 SEC. 12. DEFINITIONS. 

25 In this Act— 


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1 (1) terms used have the meanings given such 

2 terms in section 551 of title 5, United States Code; 

3 (2) the term ‘‘matter’’ means a case before a 

4 Federal court, a proceeding before an agency, or an 

5 agency decision; and 

6 (3) the term ‘‘Chevron deference’’ means def7 erence accorded by a court to the interpretation of 

8 a Federal statute by a Federal agency pursuant to 

9 the decision in Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Re10 sources Defense Council, Inc., 467 U.S. 837. 

Æ 


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