I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 6107 

To amend title 5, United States Code, to require disclosure of conflicts 

of interest with respect to rulemaking, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 1, 2021 

Ms. JAYAPAL (for herself and Mr. CICILLINE) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition 

to the Committee on Oversight and Reform, 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 amend title 5, United States Code, to require disclosure 

of conflicts of interest with respect to rulemaking, and 

for other purposes. 

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 ‘‘Stop Corporate Cap5 ture Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DISCLOSURE OF CONFLICTS OF INTEREST. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 553 of title 5, United 

8 States Code, is amended— 


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1 (1) in subsection (c)— 

2 (A) by inserting after ‘‘(c)’’ the following: 

3 ‘‘NOTICE REQUIREMENT.—’’; 

4 (B) by striking ‘‘After notice required’’ 

5 and inserting the following: 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—After notice required’’; and 

7 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(2) SUBMISSIONS INCLUDING SCIENTIFIC, 

9 ECONOMIC, OR TECHNICAL MATERIALS.—In the case 

10 of any submission by an interested person that in11 cludes a scientific, economic, or technical study, or 

12 the nonpublic results of any scientific research, the 

13 interested person shall disclose to the agency, the 

14 following: 

15 ‘‘(A) What funds were received by the per16 son who conducted the study or research. 

17 ‘‘(B) The entity that provided the funds 

18 referred to in subparagraph (A). 

19 ‘‘(C) Any entity that was allowed to review 

20 or revise the study or research, and the extent 

21 of that review or revision. 

22 ‘‘(D) Any financial relationship between 

23 the person who conducted the study or re24 search, and any party that would be affected by 

25 the proposed rule.’’; 


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1 (2) in subsection (c), in the first sentence, by 

2 inserting ‘‘, subject to subsections (f) and (h),’’ after 

3 ‘‘the agency shall’’; and 

4 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(f) With respect to any submission by an interested 

6 person under subsection (c) or any other submission by 

7 an interested person relating to a proposed rule or final 

8 rule that incorporates or includes a scientific, economic, 

9 or technical study, or any other result of scientific re10 search not published in a publicly available peer-reviewed 

11 publication, the interested person, in making that submis12 sion, shall disclose— 

13 ‘‘(1) the source of the funding for that study or 

14 research, as applicable; 

15 ‘‘(2) any entity that sponsored the study or re16 search; 

17 ‘‘(3) the extent to which the findings of the 

18 study or research were reviewed by a party that may 

19 be affected by the rulemaking to which the submis20 sion relates; 

21 ‘‘(4) the identity of any party identified under 

22 paragraph (3); and 

23 ‘‘(5) the nature of any financial relationship, in24 cluding a consulting agreement, the support of any 

25 expert witness, and the funding of research, between 


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1 any person that conducted the study or research and 

2 any interested person with respect to the rulemaking 

3 to which the submission relates.’’. 

4 (b) APPLICATION.—Section 553(f) of title 5, United 

5 States Code, as amended by subsection (a), shall apply 

6 with respect to submissions made by interested persons 

7 on and after the date of enactment of this Act. 

8 SEC. 3. INCREASING DISCLOSURES RELATING TO STUDIES 

9 AND RESEARCH. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 553 of title 5, United 

11 States Code, as amended by section 1 of this Act, is 

12 amended by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(g) With respect to a study or research that is sub14 mitted by an interested person to an agency under sub15 section (c), the agency shall ensure that the study or re16 search is available to the public, unless disclosure is pro17 hibited under section 552 of this title. 

18 ‘‘(h)(1) If a study or research submitted by an inter19 ested person to an agency under subsection (c) presents 

20 a conflict described in paragraph (2), the agency shall dis21 close the conflict to the public by publication in the Fed22 eral Register and on the agency website, unless disclosure 

23 is prohibited under section 552 this title. 

24 ‘‘(2) A conflict described in this paragraph means a 

25 study or research for which— 


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1 ‘‘(A) not less than 10 percent of the funding for 

2 the study or research is from an entity that is regu3 lated by the agency; or 

4 ‘‘(B) an entity that is regulated by the agency 

5 exercises editorial control over the study or research. 

6 ‘‘(i) With respect to a rulemaking under this section, 

7 an agency shall include in the notice of proposed rule8 making required under subsection (b) and in the final rule 

9 published under subsection (d) a description of how the 

10 agency considered scientific evidence, including any study 

11 or research.’’. 

12 (b) APPLICATION.—Subsections (g), (h), and (i) of 

13 section 553 of title 5, United States Code, as added by 

14 subsection (a), shall apply with respect to submissions 

15 made by interested persons on and after the date of enact16 ment of this Act. 

17 SEC. 4. DISCLOSURE OF INTER-GOVERNMENTAL RULE 

18 CHANGES. 

19 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

20 (1) the term ‘‘Administrator’’ means the Ad21 ministrator of the Office; 

22 (2) the terms ‘‘agency’’, ‘‘regulatory action’’, 

23 have the meanings given those terms in section 3 of 

24 the Executive Order; 


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1 (3) the term ‘‘Executive Order’’ means Execu2 tive Order 12866 (5 U.S.C. 601 note; relating to 

3 regulatory planning and review); and 

4 (4) the term ‘‘Office’’ means the Office of In5 formation and Regulatory Affairs. 

6 (b) REQUIREMENT.—With respect to any regulatory 

7 action that an agency provides to the Office under section 

8 6(a)(3) of the Executive Order, the agency shall— 

9 (1) not later than the date on which the agency 

10 publishes the general notice of proposed rulemaking 

11 required under section 553(b) of title 5, United 

12 States Code, with respect to the action, place in the 

13 rulemaking docket— 

14 (A) the substance of any changes between 

15 the text of the draft regulatory action that the 

16 agency provided to the Office under section 

17 6(a)(3)(B)(i) of the Executive Order and the 

18 text published in that general notice with re19 spect to the action; and 

20 (B) a statement regarding whether any 

21 change described in subparagraph (A) was 

22 made at the request of— 

23 (i) the Office; 

24 (ii) another agency; or 

25 (iii) a Member of Congress; and 


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1 (2) not later than the date on which the agency 

2 publishes the regulatory action in the Federal Reg3 ister, place in the rulemaking docket— 

4 (A) the substance of any changes between 

5 the text of the regulatory action that the agency 

6 provided to the Office under section 

7 6(a)(3)(B)(i) of the Executive Order and the 

8 text of the regulatory action that the agency 

9 published in the Federal Register; and 

10 (B) a statement regarding whether any 

11 change described in subparagraph (A) was 

12 made at the request of— 

13 (i) the Office; 

14 (ii) another agency; or 

15 (iii) a Member of Congress. 

16 SEC. 5. JUSTIFICATION OF WITHDRAWN RULES. 

17 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

18 (1) the term ‘‘Administrator’’ means the Ad19 ministrator of the Office; 

20 (2) the terms ‘‘agency’’ and ‘‘regulatory action’’ 

21 have the meanings given those terms in section 3 of 

22 the Executive Order; 

23 (3) the term ‘‘Executive Order’’ means Execu24 tive Order 12866 (5 U.S.C. 601 note; relating to 

25 regulatory planning and review); and 


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1 (4) the term ‘‘Office’’ means the Office of In2 formation and Regulatory Affairs. 

3 (b) REQUIREMENT.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—If an agency withdraws a 

5 regulatory action after providing the action to the 

6 Office under section 6(a)(3) of the Executive Order 

7 (or, if the agency does not provide the regulatory ac8 tion to the Office under that section, after pub9 lishing the general notice of proposed rulemaking 

10 with respect to the action under section 553(b) of 

11 title 5, United States Code), the agency shall publish 

12 in the Federal Register and on the website of the 

13 agency a statement regarding the decision by the 

14 agency to withdraw the action. 

15 (2) CONTENTS.—A statement required under 

16 paragraph (1) with respect to a decision by an agen17 cy to withdraw a regulatory action shall include, at 

18 a minimum— 

19 (A) a detailed explanation of the reasons 

20 that the agency withdrew the action; and 

21 (B) an explanation regarding whether the 

22 decision by the agency to withdraw the action 

23 was based, in whole or in part, on a request by, 

24 or input from— 

25 (i) the Office; 


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1 (ii) another agency; 

2 (iii) a Member of Congress; 

3 (iv) a State, local, or tribal govern4 ment; or 

5 (v) an organization, a corporation, a 

6 member of the public, or another inter7 ested party. 

8 SEC. 6. NEGOTIATED RULEMAKING. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter III of chapter 5 of 

10 title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

11 (1) in section 561, in the first sentence, by in12 serting ‘‘between agencies and Federal, State, local, 

13 or tribal governments. This subchapter shall apply 

14 only to information negotiations between Federal, 

15 State, local, or tribal governments’’ after ‘‘informal 

16 rulemaking process’’; 

17 (2) in section 563— 

18 (A) in subsection (a)— 

19 (i) in paragraph (2), by inserting 

20 ‘‘Federal, State, local, or tribal govern21 ment’’ after ‘‘identifiable’’; and 

22 (ii) in paragraph (3), by striking 

23 ‘‘persons who’’ and inserting ‘‘representa24 tives of Federal, State, local, and tribal 

25 governments that’’; and 


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1 (B) in subsection (b)— 

2 (i) in paragraph (1)— 

3 (I) in subparagraph (A)— 

4 (aa) by striking ‘‘persons 

5 who’’ and inserting ‘‘Federal, 

6 State, local, or tribal govern7 ments that’’; and 

8 (bb) by striking ‘‘, including 

9 residents of rural areas’’; and 

10 (II) in subparagraph (B)— 

11 (aa) by striking ‘‘with such 

12 persons’’ and inserting ‘‘with rep13 resentatives of those govern14 ments’’; and 

15 (bb) by striking ‘‘to such 

16 persons’’ and inserting ‘‘to those 

17 governments’’; and 

18 (ii) in paragraph (2), in the second 

19 sentence— 

20 (I) by striking ‘‘persons who’’ 

21 and inserting ‘‘representatives of Fed22 eral, State, local, or tribal govern23 ments that’’; and 

24 (II) by striking ‘‘, including resi25 dents of rural areas’’; 


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1 (3) in section 564— 

2 (A) in the section heading, by striking ‘‘; 

3 applications for membership on committees’’; 

4 (B) in subsection (a)— 

5 (i) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘the 

6 persons’’ and inserting ‘‘the representa7 tives of Federal, State, local, and tribal 

8 governments’’; 

9 (ii) in paragraph (6), by adding ‘‘and’’ 

10 at the end; 

11 (iii) in paragraph (7), by striking ‘‘; 

12 and’’ and inserting a period; and 

13 (iv) by striking paragraph (8); 

14 (C) by striking subsection (b); 

15 (D) by redesignating subsection (c) as sub16 section (b); and 

17 (E) in subsection (b), as so redesignated— 

18 (i) in the subsection heading, by strik19 ing ‘‘AND APPLICATIONS’’; and 

20 (ii) by striking ‘‘and applications’’; 

21 (4) in section 565(a)— 

22 (A) in paragraph (1), in the first sentence, 

23 by striking ‘‘and applications’’; and 

24 (B) in paragraph (2)— 

25 (i) by striking ‘‘and applications’’; and 


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1 (ii) by striking ‘‘publications,’’ and all 

2 that follows through the period at the end 

3 and inserting ‘‘publications.’’; and 

4 (5) in section 569(a), in the first sentence— 

5 (A) by striking ‘‘and encourage agency use 

6 of’’; and 

7 (B) by inserting ‘‘between Federal, State, 

8 local, and tribal governments’’ after ‘‘negotiated 

9 rulemaking’’. 

10 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

11 (1) BALANCED BUDGET ACT OF 1997.—Section 

12 4554(b)(1) of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (42 

13 U.S.C. 1395u note) is amended by striking ‘‘, using 

14 a negotiated rulemaking process under subchapter 

15 III of chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code’’. 

16 (2) ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION

17 ACT OF 1965.—The Elementary and Secondary Edu18 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.) is 

19 amended— 

20 (A) in section 1601 (20 U.S.C. 6571)— 

21 (i) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘sub22 sections (b) through (d)’’ and insert ‘‘sub23 section (b)’’; 

24 (ii) by striking subsections (b) and 

25 (c); and 


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1 (iii) by redesignating subsections (d) 

2 and (e) as subsections (b) and (c), respec3 tively; 

4 (B) by repealing section 1602 (20 U.S.C. 

5 6572); and 

6 (C) in section 8204(c)(1) (20 U.S.C. 

7 7824(c)(1)), by striking ‘‘using a negotiated 

8 rulemaking process to develop regulations for 

9 implementation no later than the 2017–2018 

10 academic year, shall define’’ and inserting 

11 ‘‘shall, for implementation no later than the 

12 2017–2018 academic year, define’’. 

13 (3) HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND AC14 COUNTABILITY ACT OF 1996.—Section 216(b) of the 

15 Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act 

16 of 1996 (42 U.S.C. 1320a–7b note) is amended— 

17 (A) in the subsection heading, by striking 

18 ‘‘NEGOTIATED’’; 

19 (B) by striking ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

20 Chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code, stand21 ards’’ and inserting the following: 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health 

23 and Human Services (in this subsection referred to 

24 as the ‘Secretary’) shall establish standards’’; 


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1 (C) by striking paragraphs (2) through 

2 (9); 

3 (D) by redesignating subparagraph (B) of 

4 paragraph (1) as paragraph (2) and adjusting 

5 the margins accordingly; and 

6 (E) in paragraph (2), as so redesignated, 

7 by striking ‘‘subparagraph (A)’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘paragraph (1)’’. 

9 (4) HIGHER EDUCATION ACT OF 1965.—The 

10 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et 

11 seq.) is amended— 

12 (A) in section 207 (20 U.S.C. 1022f)— 

13 (i) by striking subsection (c); and 

14 (ii) by redesignating subsection (d) as 

15 subsection (c); 

16 (B) in section 422(g)(1) (20 U.S.C. 

17 1072(g)(1))— 

18 (i) in subparagraph (B), by adding 

19 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

20 (ii) in subparagraph (C), by striking 

21 ‘‘; and’’ and inserting a period; and 

22 (iii) by striking subparagraph (D); 

23 (C) in section 487A(b)(3)(B) (20 U.S.C. 

24 1094a(b)(3)(B)), by striking ‘‘in the negotiated 

25 rulemaking process’’; 


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1 (D) in section 491(l)(4)(A) (20 U.S.C. 

2 1098(l)(4)(A)), by striking ‘‘, not later than two 

3 years after the completion of the negotiated 

4 rulemaking process required under section 492 

5 resulting from the amendments to this Act 

6 made by the Higher Education Opportunity 

7 Act,’’; and 

8 (E) in section 492 (20 U.S.C. 1098a)— 

9 (i) in the section heading, by striking 

10 ‘‘NEGOTIATED’’; and 

11 (ii) by amending subsection (b) to 

12 read as follows: 

13 ‘‘(b) ISSUANCE OF REGULATIONS.—After obtaining 

14 the advice and recommendations described in subsection 

15 (a)(1), the Secretary shall issue final regulations within 

16 the 360-day period described in section 437(e) of the Gen17 eral Education Provisions Act (12 U.S.C. 1232(e)).’’. 

18 (5) HOUSING ACT OF 1949.—Section 515(r)(3) 

19 of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1485) is 

20 amended by striking ‘‘in accordance with’’ and all 

21 that follows through the period at the end and in22 serting ‘‘under the rulemaking authority contained 

23 in section 553 of title 5, United States Code.’’. 

24 (6) MAGNUSON-STEVENS FISHERY CONSERVA25 TION AND MANAGEMENT ACT.—Section 305(g) of 


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1 the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 

2 Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1855(g)) is amended— 

3 (A) by striking paragraphs (2) and (3); 

4 (B) in paragraph (1)— 

5 (i) by striking ‘‘(A)’’; and 

6 (ii) by redesignating subparagraph 

7 (B) as paragraph (2) and adjusting the 

8 margins accordingly; and 

9 (C) in paragraph (2), as so redesignated, 

10 by striking the second sentence. 

11 (7) MANDATORY PRICE REPORTING ACT OF

12 2010.—Section 2(b) of the Mandatory Price Report13 ing Act of 2010 (Public Law 111–239; 124 Stat. 

14 2501) is amended— 

15 (A) by striking ‘‘WHOLESALE PORK CUTS’’ 

16 and all that follows through ‘‘chapter 3’’ and 

17 inserting ‘‘WHOLESALE PORK CUTS.—Chapter 

18 3’’; and 

19 (B) by striking paragraphs (2), (3), and 

20 (4) (7 U.S.C. 1635k note). 

21 (8) PATIENT PROTECTION AND AFFORDABLE

22 CARE ACT.—Section 5602 of the Patient Protection 

23 and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 254b note) is 

24 amended— 


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1 (A) in the section heading, by striking 

2 ‘‘NEGOTIATED’’; 

3 (B) by striking subsections (b) through 

4 (h); 

5 (C) in subsection (a)— 

6 (i) by redesignating paragraph (2) as 

7 subsection (b) and adjusting the margins 

8 accordingly; and 

9 (ii) in paragraph (1)— 

10 (I) by striking ‘‘(1) IN GEN11 ERAL.—’’; and 

12 (II) by redesignating subpara13 graphs (A) and (B) as paragraphs (1) 

14 and (2), respectively; and 

15 (D) in subsection (b), as so redesignated, 

16 by striking ‘‘paragraph (1)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub17 section (a)’’. 

18 (9) PRICE-ANDERSON AMENDMENTS ACT OF

19 1988.—The Price-Anderson Amendments Act of 

20 1988 (Public Law 100–408; 102 Stat. 1066) is 

21 amended— 

22 (A) by striking subsection (b); and 

23 (B) in subsection (a)— 

24 (i) by striking ‘‘(1) PURPOSE.—’’; and 


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1 (ii) by redesignating paragraph (2) as 

2 subsection (b) and adjusting the margins 

3 accordingly. 

4 (10) SOCIAL SECURITY ACT.—Title XVIII of 

5 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.) is 

6 amended— 

7 (A) in section 1834(l)(1) (U.S.C. 

8 1395m(l)(1)), by striking ‘‘through a negotiated 

9 rulemaking process described in title 5, United 

10 States Code, and’’; and 

11 (B) in section 1856(a) (42 U.S.C. 1395w– 

12 26(a)); 

13 (i) by striking paragraphs (2) through 

14 (9); 

15 (ii) in paragraph (1)— 

16 (I) by striking ‘‘(A) IN GEN17 ERAL.—’’; 

18 (II) by striking ‘‘and using a ne19 gotiated rulemaking process under 

20 subchapter III of chapter 5 of title 

21 5’’; and 

22 (III) by redesignating subpara23 graph (B) as paragraph (2) and ad24 justing the margins accordingly; and 


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1 (iii) in paragraph (2), as so redesig2 nated, by striking ‘‘subparagraph (A)’’ and 

3 inserting ‘‘paragraph (1)’’. 

4 (11) TITLE 5.—The table of sections for sub5 chapter III of chapter 5 of title 5, United States 

6 Code, is amended by striking the item relating to 

7 section 564 and inserting the following: 

‘‘564. Publication of notice’’. 

8 (12) TITLE 49.—Section 31136(g)(1) of title 

9 49, United States Code, is amended— 

10 (A) by striking ‘‘shall—’’ and all that fol11 lows through ‘‘issue’’ and inserting ‘‘shall 

12 issue’’; 

13 (B) by striking ‘‘; or’’ and inserting a pe14 riod; and 

15 (C) by striking subparagraph (B). 

16 (13) TOXIC SUBSTANCES CONTROL ACT.—Sec17 tion 8(a) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (15 

18 U.S.C. 2607(a)) is amended by striking paragraph 

19 (6). 

20 (14) UNITED STATES HOUSING ACT OF 1937.— 

21 Section 9 of the United States Housing Act of 1937 

22 (42 U.S.C. 1437g) is amended by repealing sub23 section (f). 

24 SEC. 7. STREAMLINING OIRA REVIEW. 

25 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 


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1 (1) the term ‘‘Administrator’’ means the Ad2 ministrator of the Office; 

3 (2) the terms ‘‘agency’’, ‘‘regulatory action’’, 

4 and ‘‘significant regulatory action’’ have the mean5 ings given those terms in section 3 of the Executive 

6 Order; 

7 (3) the term ‘‘Executive Order’’ means Execu8 tive Order 12866 (5 U.S.C. 601 note; relating to 

9 regulatory planning and review); and 

10 (4) the term ‘‘Office’’ means the Office of In11 formation and Regulatory Affairs. 

12 (b) PROHIBITIONS.—With respect to a regulatory ac13 tion of an agency that may be subject to review by the 

14 Office under section 6(b) of the Executive Order, the Of15 fice may not engage in communications or meetings with 

16 the agency before the date on which the agency submits 

17 the regulatory action to the Office under section 6(a)(3) 

18 of the Executive Order. 

19 (c) TIME PERIOD FOR OIRA REVIEW.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para21 graph (2), the Office shall complete a review of a 

22 significant regulatory action under section 6(b) of 

23 the Executive Order not more than 45 days after the 

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1 ulatory action under section 6(a)(3) of the Executive 

2 Order. 

3 (2) EXTENSION.—The Office may extend the 

4 45-day period described in paragraph (1) by a single 

5 45-day period if the Office provides the agency with, 

6 and makes publicly available, a written justification 

7 for the extension. 

8 (3) PUBLICATION OF REGULATORY ACTION.—If 

9 the Office waives review of a significant regulatory 

10 action of an agency under section 6(b)(2) of the Ex11 ecutive Order without a request for further consider12 ation or does not notify the agency in writing of the 

13 results of the review under section 6(b) of the Exec14 utive Order within the time frame described in para15 graph (1) or (2), the agency may publish the signifi16 cant regulatory action in the Federal Register. 

17 SEC. 8. PENALIZING PUBLIC COMPANIES THAT SUBMIT 

18 FALSE INFORMATION TO AGENCIES. 

19 Section 553 of title 5, United States Code, as amend20 ed by section 3 of this Act, is amended by adding at the 

21 end the following: 

22 ‘‘(j) Any entity required to file an annual report 

23 under section 13 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 

24 (15 U.S.C. 78m) that uses any false writing or document 

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1 tious, or fraudulent statement or entry with respect to a 

2 rulemaking under this section shall be fined a minimum 

3 of $250,000 for their first violation; fines shall double per 

4 violation for each subsequent violation. 

5 ‘‘(k) Any entity required to file an annual report pur6 suant to section 13 of the Securities Exchange Act of 

7 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78m), shall include in a submission 

8 under subsection (c)(2) the annual report filed in the year 

9 previous to such submission.’’. 

10 SEC. 9. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE OFFICE OF THE PUBLIC 

11 ADVOCATE. 

12 Section 401 of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 

13 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended by adding at the end the fol14 lowing: 

15 ‘‘(d)(1)(A) There is established in the Office of Gov16 ernment Ethics an office to be known as the ‘Office of 

17 the Public Advocate’. 

18 ‘‘(B) The Office of the Public Advocate shall be under 

19 the supervision of an official to be known as the ‘National 

20 Public Advocate’, who shall— 

21 ‘‘(i) be appointed by the President, by and with 

22 the advice and consent of the Senate; 

23 ‘‘(ii) report to the Director of the Office of Gov24 ernment Ethics; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) be entitled to compensation at the same 

2 rate as the highest rate of basic pay established for 

3 the Senior Executive Service under section 5382 of 

4 title 5, United States Code; 

5 ‘‘(iv) have a background in customer service, 

6 consumer protection, and administrative law; 

7 ‘‘(v) have experience representing the public in 

8 cases involving rules (as defined in section 551 of 

9 title 5, United States Code); 

10 ‘‘(vi) not have worked as an officer or employee 

11 in any Federal agency during the 2-year period pre12 ceding appointment under this subparagraph; and 

13 ‘‘(vii) agree not to accept an offer of employ14 ment with a Federal agency for not less than 5 

15 years after ceasing to serve as the National Public 

16 Advocate. 

17 ‘‘(2) The duties of the Office of the Public Advocate 

18 shall include— 

19 ‘‘(A) assisting individuals in resolving conflicts 

20 with agencies; 

21 ‘‘(B) assisting agencies in soliciting public par22 ticipation in the rulemaking process; 

23 ‘‘(C) assisting individuals in participating in the 

24 rulemaking process; 


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1 ‘‘(D) identifying areas in which the public has 

2 problems in dealing with agencies and proposing 

3 changes to mitigate those problems; 

4 ‘‘(E) conducting research on social equity im5 pacts of the rulemaking process; 

6 ‘‘(F) developing and coordinating social equity 

7 definitions across the executive branch; 

8 ‘‘(G) performing a social equity assessment for 

9 rules when requested by the public through com10 ments submitted through the process described in 

11 section 553 of title 5, United States Code; and 

12 ‘‘(H) facilitating means by which individuals 

13 and populations that have not traditionally been in14 vited into the rulemaking process may be better in15 cluded in the rulemaking process, including by rec16 ommending and implementing new outreach plans, 

17 partnering with community-based organizations to 

18 propagate information about rules changes, and en19 suring rules change information is written in clear, 

20 accessible language that is accessible in multiple lan21 guages. 

22 ‘‘(3) Not later than 180 days after the date on which 

23 the National Public Advocate is appointed under this sub24 section or 180 days after the date of enactment of this 

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1 cate shall propose regulations to carry out this sub2 section.’’. 

3 SEC. 10. ACTIONS BY PRIVATE PERSONS. 

4 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the terms ‘‘agen5 cy’’ and ‘‘rule’’ have the meanings given those terms in 

6 section 551 of title 5, United States Code. 

7 (b) ACTIONS.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—A person may bring a civil 

9 action for the person and for the United States Gov10 ernment, in the name of the Government, against 

11 any person, including the United States Government 

12 and any other governmental instrumentality or agen13 cy to the extent permitted by the Eleventh Amend14 ment to the Constitution of the United States, for— 

15 (A) a violation of a final rule issued by an 

16 agency; or 

17 (B) the failure of the head of an agency to 

18 comply with any requirement under this Act; or 

19 (C) a violation of Section 8 of this Act. 

20 (2) NOTICE.—A copy of the complaint and 

21 written disclosure of substantially all material evi22 dence and information the person possesses shall be 

23 served on the Government pursuant to rule 4(d)(4) 

24 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The Gov25 ernment may elect to intervene and proceed with the 


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1 action within 60 days after it receives both the com2 plaint and the material evidence and information. 

3 (3) PARTY CONDUCTING THE ACTION.—Before 

4 the expiration of the 60-day period under paragraph 

5 (2), the Government shall— 

6 (A) proceed with the action, in which case 

7 the action shall be conducted by the Govern8 ment; or 

9 (B) notify the court that it declines to pro10 ceed with the action, in which case the person 

11 bringing the action shall have the right to con12 duct the action. 

13 (4) AWARD TO PLAINTIFF.— 

14 (A) GOVERNMENT PROCEEDS WITH AC15 TION.—If the Government proceeds with an ac16 tion brought by a person under this subsection, 

17 the person shall receive at least 15 percent but 

18 not more than 25 percent of the proceeds of the 

19 action or settlement of the claim, depending 

20 upon the extent to which the person substan21 tially contributed to the prosecution of the ac22 tion. Any payment to a person under this sub23 paragraph shall be made from the proceeds. 

24 The person may also receive an amount for rea25 sonable expenses that the court finds to have 


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1 been necessarily incurred, plus reasonable attor2 ney’s fees and costs. The expenses, fees, and 

3 costs may be awarded against the defendant. 

4 (B) GOVERNMENT DOES NOT PROCEED

5 WITH ACTION.—If the Government does not 

6 proceed with an action under this subsection, 

7 the person bringing the action or settling the 

8 claim shall receive an amount which the court 

9 decides is reasonable for collecting the civil pen10 alty and damages. The amount may not be less 

11 than 25 percent and not more than 30 percent 

12 of the proceeds of the action or settlement and 

13 shall be paid out of the proceeds. The person 

14 shall also receive an amount for reasonable ex15 penses that the court finds to have been nec16 essarily incurred, plus reasonable attorney’s 

17 fees and costs. The expenses, fees, and costs 

18 may be awarded against the defendant. 

19 SEC. 11. SCOPE OF REVIEW. 

20 Section 706 of title 5, United States Code, is amend21 ed— 

22 (1) in the first sentence of the matter preceding 

23 paragraph (1)— 

24 (A) by striking ‘‘agency action.’’ and in25 serting ‘‘agency action. If a statute that an 


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1 agency administers is silent or ambiguous, and 

2 an agency has followed the procedures in sec3 tion 553 or 554 of this title, as applicable, a re4 viewing court shall defer to the agency’s reason5 able or permissible interpretation of that stat6 ute.’’; and 

7 (B) by striking ‘‘To the extent necessary’’ 

8 and inserting: 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—To the extent necessary’’; and 

10 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(b) UNREASONABLE DELAY.—For purposes of sub12 section (a)(1), unreasonable delay shall include— 

13 ‘‘(1) when an agency has not issued a notice of 

14 proposed rulemaking before the date that is 1 year 

15 of the date of enactment of the legislation man16 dating the rulemaking, where no deadline for the 

17 rulemaking was specified in the enacted law; 

18 ‘‘(2) when an agency has not issued a final 

19 version of a proposed rule before the date that is 1 

20 year of the date on which the proposed rule was 

21 published in the Federal Register; and 

22 ‘‘(3) when an agency has not implemented a 

23 final rule before the date that is 1 year of the imple24 mentation date published in the Federal Register or, 

25 if no implementation date was provided, before the 


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1 date that is 1 year of the date on which the final 

2 rule was published in the Federal Register.’’. 

3 SEC. 12. EXPANDING RULEMAKING NOTIFICATIONS. 

4 Section 553 of title 5, United States Code, as amend5 ed by section 8 of this Act, is amended by adding at the 

6 end the following: 

7 ‘‘(l)(1) Not later than 2 business days after the date 

8 on which an agency publishes a notice of proposed rule9 making or a final rule under this section, the agency shall 

10 notify interested parties of the publication. 

11 ‘‘(2) The Director of the Government Publishing Of12 fice shall establish a process under which an agency shall 

13 notify interested parties under paragraph (1) through 

14 email or postal mail.’’. 

15 SEC. 13. PUBLIC PETITIONS. 

16 Section 553(e) of title 5, United States Code, is 

17 amended— 

18 (1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘Each agency’’; 

19 and 

20 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(2) If, during a 60-day period, an agency re22 ceives more than 100,000 signatures on a single pe23 tition under paragraph (1), the agency shall, not 

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1 cy receives the petition, provide a written response 

2 that includes— 

3 ‘‘(A) an explanation of whether the agency 

4 has engaged or is engaging in the requested 

5 issuance, amendment, or repeal of a rule; and 

6 ‘‘(B) if the agency has not engaged in the 

7 requested issuance, amendment, or repeal of a 

8 rule, a written explanation for not engaging in 

9 the requested issuance, amendment, or repeal.’’. 

10 SEC. 14. AMENDMENT TO CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW ACT. 

11 Section 801(b) of title 5, United States Code, is 

12 amended— 

13 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘(1)’’; and 

14 (2) by striking paragraph (2). 

15 SEC. 15. REINSTATEMENT OF DISAPPROVED RULES. 

16 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

17 (1) the term ‘‘covered rule’’ means a rule for 

18 which a joint resolution of disapproval was enacted 

19 under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, be20 fore the date of enactment of this Act; and 

21 (2) the term ‘‘Federal agency’’ has the meaning 

22 given the term ‘‘agency’’ in section 551(1) of title 5, 

23 United States Code. 

24 (b) FAST TRACK REINSTATEMENT.—A Federal agen25 cy may reinstate a covered rule by publishing the covered 


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1 rule in the Federal Register during the 1-year period be2 ginning on the date of enactment of this Act. 

3 (c) REINSTATEMENT AFTER 1-YEAR PERIOD.—After 

4 the end of the 1-year period beginning on the date of en5 actment of this Act, a Federal agency may reinstate a cov6 ered rule using the rulemaking procedures described in 

7 section 553 of title 5, United States Code. 

8 SEC. 16. COST-BENEFIT ANALYSIS. 

9 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the terms ‘‘agen10 cy’’ and ‘‘regulation’’ have the meanings given those terms 

11 in section 3 of Executive Order 12866 (5 U.S.C. 601 note; 

12 relating to regulatory planning and review). 

13 (b) REQUIREMENT.—If an agency is performing a 

14 cost-benefit or regulatory impact analysis in the course of 

15 issuing a regulation, the agency shall— 

16 (1) take into account the benefits of the regula17 tion to the public, including the nonquantifiable ben18 efits of the regulation; and 

19 (2) adopt a regulation that prioritizes benefits 

20 to the public, including nonquantifiable benefits. 

21 SEC. 17. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

22 It is the sense of Congress that— 

23 (1) agency economic analyses of regulatory ac24 tions commonly underestimate the benefits of regu25 latory actions that protect public health and safety 


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1 and overestimate the costs of regulatory action to in2 dustry; and 

3 (2) an agency should primarily consider the 

4 statutory direction of Congress when taking regu5 latory action. 

6 SEC. 18. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) SOCIAL EQUITY IMPACTS.—The term ‘‘so9 cial equity impacts’’ shall mean any impacts of a 

10 proposed regulation, whether intended or unin11 tended, that might reasonably be expected to dis12 proportionately affect a group or population of per13 sons who share a common characteristic that is part 

14 of a protected class or set of protected classes, based 

15 on the regulation’s plain language, stated intention, 

16 and based on credible statistical projections and data 

17 on the impacts of similar regulations, laws and poli18 cies. 

19 (2) SOCIAL EQUITY ASSESSMENT.—The term 

20 ‘‘social equity assessment’’ shall mean a written and 

21 publicly available report that shall specifically con22 sider any social equity impacts, positive or negative, 

23 that the proposed policy might have on a group or 

24 population of persons who share a common char25 acteristic that renders them part of a protected 


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1 class, where that group or population was previously 

2 subjected to discriminatory or exclusionary practices 

3 by the agency promulgating the regulation or where 

4 credible demographic evidence demonstrates signifi5 cant disparities experienced by different populations 

6 within a protected class. 

Æ 


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