II 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1067 

To require the periodic review and automatic termination of Federal 

regulations. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 23, 2015 

Mr. BLUNT (for himself, Mr. ROBERTS, Mr. TILLIS, and Mr. HELLER) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

A BILL 

To require the periodic review and automatic termination 

of Federal regulations. 

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 ‘‘Regulatory Review and 

5 Sunset Act of 2015’’. 

6 SEC. 2. PURPOSES. 

7 The purposes of this Act are— 

8 (1) to require agencies to regularly review sig9 nificant rules to determine whether the rules should 


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1 be continued without change, modified, consolidated 

2 with another rule, or terminated; 

3 (2) to require agencies to consider the com4 ments of the public, the regulated community, and 

5 Congress regarding the actual costs and burdens of 

6 rules reviewed under this Act, and whether the rules 

7 are obsolete, unnecessary, duplicative, conflicting, or 

8 otherwise inconsistent; 

9 (3) to require that any rules continued in effect 

10 under this Act meet all the legal requirements that 

11 would apply to the issuance of a new rule, including 

12 any applicable Federal cost-benefit and risk assess13 ment requirements; 

14 (4) to provide for the review of significant rules 

15 and other rules through a sunset review process and 

16 to provide for the repeal of or other change in such 

17 rules in accordance with chapters 5 and 7 of title 5, 

18 United States Code; 

19 (5) to provide for a petition process that allows 

20 the public and appropriate committees of Congress 

21 to request that other rules that are not significant 

22 be reviewed in the same manner as significant rules; 

23 and 


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1 (6) to require the Administrator to coordinate 

2 and be responsible for sunset reviews conducted by 

3 agencies. 

4 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

5 In this Act: 

6 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis7 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Office of In8 formation and Regulatory Affairs in the Office of 

9 Management and Budget. 

10 (2) AGENCY.—The term ‘‘agency’’ has the 

11 meaning given that term in section 551(1) of title 5, 

12 United States Code. 

13 (3) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEE OF CONGRESS.— 

14 The term ‘‘appropriate committee of Congress’’ 

15 means, with respect to a rule, each standing com16 mittee of Congress having authority under the Rules 

17 of the House of Representatives or the Senate to re18 port a bill to amend the provision of law under 

19 which the rule is issued. 

20 (4) APPROPRIATE FEDERAL BANKING AGEN21 CY.—The term ‘‘appropriate Federal banking agen22 cy’’ has the meaning given that term in section 3(q) 

23 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (12 U.S.C. 

24 1813(q)). 


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1 (5) COVERED RULE.—The term ‘‘covered rule’’ 

2 means a rule that— 

3 (A) is determined by the Administrator to 

4 be a significant rule; or 

5 (B) is any other rule designated by an 

6 agency or the Administrator for sunset review 

7 under this Act. 

8 (6) MAJOR RULE.—The term ‘‘major rule’’ 

9 means any rule that the Administrator finds has re10 sulted in or is likely to result in— 

11 (A) an annual effect on the economy of 

12 $100,000,000 or more; 

13 (B) a major increase in costs or prices for 

14 consumers, individual industries, Federal, 

15 State, or local government agencies, or geo16 graphic regions; or 

17 (C) significant adverse effects on competi18 tion, employment, investment, productivity, in19 novation, or the ability of United States-based 

20 enterprises to compete with foreign-based enter21 prises in domestic and export markets. 

22 (7) RULE.—The term ‘‘rule’’— 

23 (A) means— 

24 (i) any agency statement of general 

25 applicability and future effect, including 


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1 agency guidance documents, designed to 

2 implement, interpret, or prescribe law or 

3 policy, or describing the procedures or 

4 practices of an agency, or intended to as5 sist in such actions; and 

6 (ii) each set of rules— 

7 (I) designated in the Code of 

8 Federal Regulations as a part; and 

9 (II) that do not appear in the 

10 Code of Federal Regulations and are 

11 comparable to a part of that Code 

12 under guidelines established by the 

13 Administrator; and 

14 (B) does not include— 

15 (i) regulations or other agency state16 ments— 

17 (I) issued in accordance with for18 mal rulemaking provisions of sections 

19 556 and 557 of title 5, United States 

20 Code, or in accordance with other 

21 statutory formal rulemaking proce22 dures required for such regulations or 

23 statements; 


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1 (II) that are limited to agency or2 ganization, management, or personnel 

3 matters; 

4 (III) issued with respect to a 

5 military or foreign affairs function of 

6 the United States; or 

7 (IV) that the Administrator cer8 tifies in writing are necessary for the 

9 enforcement of the Federal criminal 

10 laws; 

11 (ii) regulations, statements, or other 

12 agency actions that are reviewed and usu13 ally modified each year (or more fre14 quently), or are reviewed regularly and 

15 usually modified based on changing eco16 nomic or seasonal conditions; or 

17 (iii) regulations or other agency ac18 tions that grant an approval, license, per19 mit, registration, or similar authority or 

20 that grant or recognize an exemption or re21 lieve a restriction, or any agency action 

22 necessary to permit new or improved appli23 cations of technology or to allow the manu24 facture, distribution, sale, or use of a sub25 stance or product. 


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1 (8) SIGNIFICANT RULE.—The term ‘‘significant 

2 rule’’ means a rule that the Administrator deter3 mines— 

4 (A) has resulted in or is likely to result in 

5 an annual effect on the economy of 

6 $100,000,000 or more; 

7 (B) is a major rule; or 

8 (C) was issued pursuant to a significant 

9 regulatory action, as that term is defined in Ex10 ecutive Order 12866 (5 U.S.C. 601 note; relat11 ing to regulatory planning and review), as in ef12 fect on September 30, 1993. 

13 (9) SUNSET REVIEW.—The term ‘‘sunset re14 view’’ means a review of a rule under this Act. 

15 SEC. 4. DESIGNATION OF RULES FOR SUNSET REVIEW. 

16 (a) COVERED RULES.—A covered rule shall be sub17 ject to sunset review in accordance with this Act. 

18 (b) PUBLIC PETITIONS.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any person adversely af20 fected by a rule that is not a significant rule may 

21 submit a petition to the agency that has jurisdiction 

22 over the rule requesting that the agency designate 

23 the rule for sunset review, which shall— 

24 (A) be in writing, but is not otherwise re25 quired to be in any particular form; and 


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1 (B) identify the rule for which sunset re2 view is requested with reasonable specificity and 

3 state on its face that the petitioner seeks sunset 

4 review of the rule. 

5 (2) RESPONSE REQUIRED FOR NONCOMPLYING

6 PETITIONS.—If an agency determines that a petition 

7 submitted under paragraph (1) does not meet the 

8 requirements of this subsection, the agency shall 

9 provide a response to the petitioner not later than 

10 30 days after the date on which the agency received 

11 the petition, which shall— 

12 (A) notify the petitioner of the problem; 

13 and 

14 (B) provide information on how to formu15 late a petition that meets those requirements. 

16 (3) DECISION WITHIN 90 DAYS.—Not later than 

17 90 days after the date on which an agency receives 

18 a petition under paragraph (1) that meets the re19 quirements of this subsection, the agency shall 

20 transmit a response to the petitioner stating whether 

21 the petition was granted or denied, except that the 

22 agency may extend such period by a total of not 

23 more than 30 days. 

24 (4) PETITIONS DEEMED GRANTED FOR SUB25 STANTIAL INEXCUSABLE DELAY.—A petition subVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:35 May 06, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1067.IS S1067

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1 mitted under paragraph (1) is deemed to have been 

2 granted by an agency, and such agency is deemed to 

3 have designated the rule for sunset review, if a court 

4 finds there is a substantial and inexcusable delay, 

5 beyond the period specified in paragraph (3), in no6 tifying the petitioner of the determination of the 

7 agency to grant or deny the petition. 

8 (5) PUBLIC LOG.—Each agency shall maintain 

9 a public log of petitions submitted under paragraph 

10 (1), which shall include the status or disposition of 

11 each petition. 

12 (c) CONGRESSIONAL REQUESTS.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—An appropriate committee of 

14 Congress, or a majority of the majority party mem15 bers or a majority of nonmajority party members of 

16 the committee, may request in writing that the Ad17 ministrator designate any rule that is not a signifi18 cant rule for sunset review. 

19 (2) DESIGNATION BY ADMINISTRATOR.—Not 

20 later than 30 days after the date on which the Ad21 ministrator receives a request under paragraph (1), 

22 the Administrator shall designate the rule for sunset 

23 review, unless the Administrator determines that it 

24 would not be in the public interest to conduct a sun25 set review of the rule. 


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1 (3) NOTICE OF DENIAL.—If the Administrator 

2 denies a request under paragraph (1), the Adminis3 trator shall transmit to the committee of Congress 

4 making the request a notice stating the reasons for 

5 the denial. 

6 (d) PUBLICATION OF NOTICE OF DESIGNATION FOR

7 SUNSET REVIEW.—After designating a rule under sub8 section (b) or (c) for sunset review, the agency or the Ad9 ministrator, as applicable, shall promptly publish a notice 

10 of that designation in the Federal Register. 

11 SEC. 5. CRITERIA FOR SUNSET REVIEW. 

12 (a) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘applica13 ble requirements’’ includes any requirement for— 

14 (1) cost-benefit analysis; and 

15 (2) standardized risk analysis and risk assess16 ment. 

17 (b) COMPLIANCE WITH OTHER LAWS.—In order for 

18 any rule subject to sunset review to continue without 

19 change or to be modified or consolidated in accordance 

20 with this Act, the rule shall be authorized by law and meet 

21 all applicable requirements that would apply if it were 

22 issued as a new rule pursuant to section 553 of title 5, 

23 United States Code, or other statutory rulemaking proce24 dures required for that rule. 


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1 (c) GOVERNING LAW.—If there is a conflict between 

2 applicable requirements and an Act under which a rule 

3 was issued, the conflict shall be resolved in the same man4 ner as the conflict would be resolved if the agency were 

5 issuing a new rule. 

6 SEC. 6. SUNSET REVIEW PROCEDURES. 

7 (a) FUNCTIONS OF THE ADMINISTRATOR.— 

8 (1) NOTICE OF RULES SUBJECT TO REVIEW.— 

9 (A) INVENTORY AND FIRST LIST.—Not 

10 later than 6 months after the date of enactment 

11 of this Act, the Administrator shall conduct an 

12 inventory of rules in effect on the date of enact13 ment of this Act and publish a first list of cov14 ered rules, which shall— 

15 (i) specify the particular group to 

16 which each significant rule is assigned 

17 under paragraph (2), and state the review 

18 deadline for all significant rules in each 

19 such group in accordance with section 

20 7(a)(1); and 

21 (ii) include other rules subject to sun22 set review for any other reason, and state 

23 the review deadline for each such rule in 

24 accordance with section 7(a)(1). 


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1 (B) SUBSEQUENT LISTS.—After publica2 tion of the first list under subparagraph (A), 

3 the Administrator shall publish an updated list 

4 of covered rules at least annually, specifying the 

5 review deadline for each rule on the list. 

6 (2) GROUPING OF SIGNIFICANT RULES IN FIRST

7 LIST.— 

8 (A) STAGGERED REVIEW.—To permit or9 derly and prioritized sunset reviews, the Admin10 istrator shall— 

11 (i) assign each significant rule in ef12 fect on the date of enactment of this Act 

13 to 1 of 4 groups established by the Admin14 istrator; and 

15 (ii) specify for each such group an ini16 tial review deadline in accordance with sec17 tion 7(a)(1). 

18 (B) PRIORITIZATIONS.—In determining 

19 which rules shall be given priority in time in the 

20 assignment under subparagraph (A)(i), the Ad21 ministrator shall— 

22 (i) consult with appropriate agencies; 

23 and 

24 (ii) prioritize rules based on— 


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1 (I) the grouping of related rules 

2 under paragraph (3); 

3 (II) the extent of the cost of each 

4 rule and on the regulated community 

5 and the public, with priority in time 

6 given to those rules that impose the 

7 greatest cost; 

8 (III) consideration of the views of 

9 regulated persons, including State and 

10 local governments; 

11 (IV) whether a particular rule 

12 has recently been subject to cost-ben13 efit analysis and risk assessment, with 

14 priority in time given to those rules 

15 that have not been subject to such 

16 analysis and assessment; 

17 (V) whether a particular rule was 

18 issued under a statutory provision 

19 that provides relatively greater discre20 tion to an official in issuing the rule, 

21 with priority in time given to those 

22 rules that were issued under provi23 sions that provide relatively greater 

24 discretion; 


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1 (VI) the burden of reviewing each 

2 rule on the reviewing agency; and 

3 (VII) the need for orderly proc4 essing and the timely completion of 

5 the sunset reviews of rules in effect on 

6 the date of enactment of this Act. 

7 (3) GROUPING OF RELATED RULES.—The Ad8 ministrator shall— 

9 (A) group related rules under paragraph 

10 (2) (and designate other rules) for simultaneous 

11 sunset review based upon subject matter simi12 larity, functional interrelationships, and other 

13 relevant factors to ensure comprehensive and 

14 coordinated review of redundant, overlapping, 

15 and conflicting rules and requirements; 

16 (B) ensure simultaneous sunset reviews of 

17 covered rules without regard to whether the 

18 rules were issued by the same agency; and 

19 (C) designate any other rule for sunset re20 view that is necessary for a comprehensive sun21 set review whether or not the other rule is oth22 erwise a covered rule. 

23 (4) GUIDANCE.—The Administrator shall pro24 vide timely guidance to agencies on the conduct of 

25 sunset reviews and the preparation of sunset review 


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1 notices and reports required under this Act to en2 sure— 

3 (A) uniform, complete, and timely sunset 

4 reviews; and 

5 (B) notice and opportunity for public com6 ment under section 8(a). 

7 (5) REVIEW AND EVALUATION OF REPORTS.— 

8 Not later than 90 days after receiving a preliminary 

9 report under subsection (b)(2), the Administrator 

10 shall— 

11 (A) review and evaluate each preliminary 

12 and final report submitted by an agency under 

13 paragraphs (2) and (3) of subsection (b); and 

14 (B) transmit comments to the head of the 

15 agency regarding— 

16 (i) the quality of the analysis in the 

17 report, including whether the agency has 

18 properly applied section 5; 

19 (ii) the consistency of the proposed 

20 action of the agency with actions of other 

21 agencies; and 

22 (iii) whether the rule should be contin23 ued without change, modified, consolidated 

24 with another rule, or terminated. 

25 (b) AGENCY SUNSET REVIEW PROCEDURE.— 


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1 (1) SUNSET REVIEW NOTICE.—Not less than 30 

2 months before the review deadline under section 7(a) 

3 for a covered rule issued by an agency, the agency 

4 shall— 

5 (A) publish a sunset review notice in ac6 cordance with section 8(a) in the Federal Reg7 ister and, to the extent reasonable and prac8 ticable, in other publications or media that are 

9 designed to reach those persons most affected 

10 by the covered rule; and 

11 (B) request the views of the Administrator 

12 and the appropriate committees of Congress on 

13 whether to continue without changing, modi14 fying, consolidating, or terminating the covered 

15 rule. 

16 (2) PRELIMINARY REPORT.—In reviewing a cov17 ered rule, the agency shall— 

18 (A) consider public comments and other 

19 recommendations generated by a sunset review 

20 notice under paragraph (1); and 

21 (B) not less than 1 year before the review 

22 deadline under section 7(a) for the covered rule, 

23 publish in the Federal Register, in accordance 

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1 trator and the appropriate committees of the 

2 Congress a preliminary report. 

3 (3) FINAL REPORT.—The agency shall— 

4 (A) consider the public comments and 

5 other recommendations generated by the pre6 liminary report under paragraph (2) for a cov7 ered rule; 

8 (B) consult with the appropriate commit9 tees of Congress before issuing a final report; 

10 and 

11 (C) not less than 90 days before the review 

12 deadline of the covered rule, publish in the Fed13 eral Register, in accordance with subsection 

14 (c)(2) or (d) of section 8, and transmit a final 

15 report to the Administrator and the appropriate 

16 committees of Congress. 

17 (4) OPEN PROCEDURES REGARDING SUNSET

18 REVIEW.—In any sunset review conducted under this 

19 Act, the agency conducting the review shall make a 

20 written record describing the subject of all contacts 

21 the agency or Administrator made with non-govern22 mental persons outside the agency relating to the re23 view, which shall be made available, upon request, to 

24 the public. 


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1 (c) EFFECTIVENESS OF AGENCY RECOMMENDA2 TION.—If a final report under subsection (b)(3)— 

3 (1) recommends that a covered rule should be 

4 continued without change, the covered rule shall be 

5 continued; and 

6 (2) recommends that a covered rule should be 

7 modified, consolidated with another rule, or termi8 nated, the rule may be modified, so consolidated, or 

9 terminated in accordance with section 8(d). 

10 (d) PRESERVATION OF INDEPENDENCE OF FEDERAL

11 BANK REGULATORY AGENCIES.—The head of any appro12 priate Federal banking agency, the Federal Housing Fi13 nance Board, the National Credit Union Administration, 

14 and the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight 

15 shall have the authority with respect to that agency that 

16 would otherwise be granted under subsection (a) to the 

17 Administrator. 

18 SEC. 7. REVIEW DEADLINES FOR COVERED RULES. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this Act, the re20 view deadline of a covered rule is as follows: 

21 (1) EXISTING SIGNIFICANT RULES.— 

22 (A) IN GENERAL.—For a significant rule 

23 in effect on the date of enactment of this Act, 

24 the initial review deadline is the last day of the 

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1 ning on the date of enactment of this Act, as 

2 specified by the Administrator under section 

3 6(a)(2)(A). 

4 (B) OTHER SIGNIFICANT RULES.—For a 

5 significant rule that is not assigned to such a 

6 group specified under section 6(a)(2)(A) on the 

7 date that is 6 months after the date of enact8 ment of this Act, the initial review deadline is 

9 the last day of the 4-year period beginning on 

10 the date of enactment of this Act. 

11 (2) NEW SIGNIFICANT RULES.—For a signifi12 cant rule that first takes effect after the date of en13 actment of this Act, the initial review deadline is the 

14 last day of the 10-year period beginning on the date 

15 on which the rule takes effect. 

16 (3) RULES COVERED PURSUANT TO PUBLIC PE17 TITION OR CONGRESSIONAL REQUEST.—For a rule 

18 subject to sunset review pursuant to a public peti19 tion under section 4(b) or a congressional request 

20 under section 4(c), the initial review deadline is the 

21 last day of the 3-year period beginning on— 

22 (A) the date on which the agency or Ad23 ministrator so designates the rule for sunset re24 view; or 


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1 (B) the date of issuance of a final court 

2 order that the agency is deemed to have des3 ignated the rule for sunset review. 

4 (4) RELATED RULE DESIGNATED FOR RE5 VIEW.—For a rule that the Administrator designates 

6 under section 6(a)(3) for sunset review because it is 

7 related to another covered rule and that is grouped 

8 with that other rule for simultaneous review, the ini9 tial review deadline is the same as the review dead10 line for that other rule. 

11 (b) TEMPORARY EXTENSION.—The review deadline 

12 under subsection (a) for a covered rule may be extended 

13 by the Administrator for not more than 6 months by pub14 lishing notice thereof in the Federal Register that de15 scribes the reasons why the temporary extension is nec16 essary to respond to or prevent an emergency situation. 

17 (c) DETERMINATIONS WHERE RULES HAVE BEEN

18 AMENDED.—For purposes of this Act, if various provi19 sions of a covered rule were issued at different times, the 

20 rule as a whole shall be treated as if it were issued on 

21 the later of— 

22 (1) the date of issuance of the provision of the 

23 rule that was issued first; or 


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1 (2) the date on which the most recent review 

2 and revision of the rule under this Act was com3 pleted. 

4 SEC. 8. SUNSET REVIEW NOTICES AND AGENCY REPORTS. 

5 (a) SUNSET REVIEW NOTICES.—The sunset review 

6 notice required under section 6(b)(1) for a covered rule 

7 shall— 

8 (1) request comments regarding whether the 

9 rule should be continued without change, modified, 

10 consolidated with another rule, or terminated; 

11 (2) if applicable, request comments regarding 

12 whether the rule meets the applicable Federal cost13 benefit and risk assessment criteria; and 

14 (3) solicit comments about the past implemen15 tation and effects of the rule, including— 

16 (A) the direct and indirect costs incurred 

17 as a result of the rule, including the net reduc18 tion in the value of private property (whether 

19 real, personal, tangible, or intangible), and 

20 whether the incremental benefits of the rule ex21 ceeded the incremental costs of the rule, both 

22 generally and regarding each of the specific in23 dustries and sectors the rule covers; 

24 (B) whether the rule as a whole, or any 

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1 necessary, whether by change of technology, the 

2 marketplace, or otherwise; 

3 (C) the extent to which the rule or infor4 mation required to comply with the rule dupli5 cated, conflicted, or overlapped with require6 ments under rules of other agencies; 

7 (D) in the case of a rule addressing a risk 

8 to health or safety or the environment, what the 

9 perceived risk was at the time of issuance and 

10 to what extent the risk predictions were accu11 rate; 

12 (E) whether the rule unnecessarily im13 peded domestic or international competition or 

14 unnecessarily intruded on free market forces, 

15 and whether the rule unnecessarily interfered 

16 with opportunities or efforts to transfer to the 

17 private sector duties carried out by the Federal 

18 Government; 

19 (F) whether, and to what extent, the rule 

20 imposed unfunded mandates on, or otherwise 

21 affected, State and local governments; 

22 (G) whether compliance with the rule re23 quired substantial capital investment and 

24 whether terminating the rule on the next review 


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1 deadline would create an unfair advantage to 

2 those who are not in compliance with the rule; 

3 (H) whether the rule constituted the least 

4 cost method of achieving its objective consistent 

5 with the criteria of the Act under which the 

6 rule was issued, and to what extent the rule 

7 provided flexibility to those who were subject to 

8 the rule; 

9 (I) whether the rule was worded simply 

10 and clearly, including clear identification of 

11 those who were subject to the rule; 

12 (J) whether the rule created negative unin13 tended consequences; 

14 (K) the extent to which information re15 quirements under the rule can be reduced; and 

16 (L) the extent to which the rule has con17 tributed positive benefits, particularly health, 

18 safety, or environmental benefits. 

19 (b) PRELIMINARY REPORTS ON SUNSET REVIEWS.— 

20 The preliminary report required under section 6(b)(2) on 

21 the sunset review of a covered rule shall contain— 

22 (1) a request for public comments; 

23 (2) specific requests for factual findings and 

24 recommended legal conclusions regarding the appli25 cation of section 6 to the rule, the continued need 


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1 for the rule, and whether the rule duplicates func2 tions of another rule; 

3 (3) a request for comments on whether the rule 

4 should be continued without change, modified, con5 solidated with another rule, or terminated; and 

6 (4) if consolidation or modification of the rule 

7 is recommended, suggestions for the proposed text of 

8 the consolidated or modified rule. 

9 (c) FINAL REPORTS ON SUNSET REVIEWS.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—The final report required 

11 under section 6(b)(3) on the sunset review of a cov12 ered rule shall— 

13 (A) contain the factual findings and legal 

14 conclusions of the agency conducting the review 

15 regarding the application of section 6 to the 

16 rule and the proposed recommendation of the 

17 agency as to whether the rule should be contin18 ued without change, modified, consolidated with 

19 another rule, or terminated; 

20 (B) in the case of a rule that the agency 

21 proposes to continue without change, so state; 

22 (C) in the case of a rule that the agency 

23 proposes to modify or consolidate with another 

24 rule, contain— 


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1 (i) a notice of proposed rulemaking 

2 under section 553 of title 5, United States 

3 Code, or under other statutory rulemaking 

4 procedures required for that rule; and 

5 (ii) the text of the rule as so modified 

6 or consolidated; and 

7 (D) in the case of a rule that the agency 

8 proposes to terminate, contain a notice of pro9 posed rulemaking for termination consistent 

10 with subparagraph (C)(i). 

11 (2) PUBLICATION.—A final report under para12 graph (1)(B) shall be published in the Federal Reg13 ister. 

14 (d) RULEMAKING.— 

15 (1) PUBLICATION.—A final report under sub16 paragraph (C) or (D) of subsection (c)(1) shall be 

17 published in the Federal Register, which shall con18 stitute publication of the notice required under sub19 section (c)(1)(C)(i). 

20 (2) REQUIREMENT.—After publication of a 

21 final report under subparagraph (C) or (D) of sub22 section (c)(1), the agency that conducted the sunset 

23 review of the covered rule shall conduct the rule24 making that is required in the final report. 


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1 (e) LEGISLATIVE RECOMMENDATIONS.—If the head 

2 of an agency determines that a rule in a final report under 

3 subparagraph (C) or (D) of subsection (c)(1) cannot be 

4 changed, modified, or consolidated with another rule with5 out legislative action, the head of the agency shall include 

6 in the final report a description of what legislative changes 

7 are required to implement the recommendations in the 

8 final report with regard to the rule. 

9 SEC. 9. DESIGNATION OF AGENCY REGULATORY REVIEW 

10 OFFICERS. 

11 The head of each agency shall designate an officer 

12 of the agency as the Regulatory Review Officer of the 

13 agency, who shall— 

14 (1) be responsible for the implementation of 

15 this Act by the agency; and 

16 (2) report directly to the head of the agency 

17 and the Administrator with respect to that responsi18 bility. 

19 SEC. 10. RELATIONSHIP TO THE ADMINISTRATIVE PROCE20 DURE ACT. 

21 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to supersede 

22 the provisions of chapter 5, 6, or 7 of title 5, United States 

23 Code. 


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1 SEC. 11. EFFECT OF TERMINATION OF A COVERED RULE. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

3 (b), if a covered rule is terminated under this Act— 

4 (1) this Act shall not be construed to prevent 

5 the President or an agency from exercising any au6 thority that otherwise exists to implement the stat7 ute under which the rule was issued; 

8 (2) in an agency proceeding or court action be9 tween an agency and a non-agency party, the rule 

10 shall be given no conclusive legal effect, but may be 

11 submitted as evidence of prior agency practice and 

12 procedure; and 

13 (3) this Act shall not be construed to prevent 

14 the continuation or institution of any enforcement 

15 action that is based on a violation of the rule that 

16 occurred before the effectiveness of the rule termi17 nated. 

18 (b) EFFECT ON DEADLINES.— 

19 (1) DEFINITION.—In this subsection, the term 

20 ‘‘deadline’’ means any date certain for fulfilling any 

21 obligation or exercising any authority established by 

22 or under any Federal rule, or by or under any court 

23 order implementing any Federal rule. 

24 (2) EFFECT.—Notwithstanding subsection (a), 

25 any deadline for, relating to, or involving any action 

26 dependent upon, any rule terminated under this Act 


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1 is suspended until the agency that issued the rule 

2 issues a new rule on the same matter, unless other3 wise provided by a law. 

4 SEC. 12. JUDICIAL REVIEW. 

5 (a) PUBLIC PETITION.—A denial or substantial inex6 cusable delay in granting or denying a public petition 

7 under section 4(b) shall be considered a final agency ac8 tion subject to review under section 702 of title 5, United 

9 States Code. 

10 (b) CONGRESSIONAL REQUEST.—A denial of a con11 gressional request under section 4(c) shall not be subject 

12 to judicial review. 

13 (c) TIME LIMITATION ON FILING A CIVIL ACTION.— 

14 Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, an action 

15 seeking judicial review of a final agency action under this 

16 Act may not be brought— 

17 (1) in the case of a final agency action denying 

18 a public petition under section 4(b) or continuing 

19 without change, modifying, consolidating, or termi20 nating a covered rule, more than 30 days after the 

21 date of that agency action; or 

22 (2) in the case of an action challenging a delay 

23 in deciding on a public petition under section 4(b), 

24 more than 1 year after the period applicable to the 

25 rule under section 4(b)(4). 


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1 (d) AVAILABILITY OF JUDICIAL REVIEW UNAF2 FECTED.—Except to the extent that there is a direct con3 flict with the provisions of this Act, nothing in this Act 

4 shall be construed to affect the availability or standard 

5 of judicial review for agency regulatory action. 

6 SEC. 13. SUNSET OF THIS ACT. 

7 This Act shall have no force or effect after the 10- 

8 year period beginning on the date of enactment of this 

9 Act. 

Æ 


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