I 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3181 

To establish a moratorium on regulatory rulemaking actions and to repeal 

all rules that became effective after October 1, 1991, and are in effect 

as of the date of the enactment of this Act, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 13, 2011 

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the 

Committee on the Judiciary, 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 establish a moratorium on regulatory rulemaking actions 

and to repeal all rules that became effective after October 

1, 1991, and are in effect as of the date of the enactment 

of this Act, 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 the Regulation 

5 Invasion Please Act of 2011’’ or ‘‘STRIP Act of 2011’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. MORATORIUM ON REGULATIONS. 

2 Except as provided in section 3, a Federal agency 

3 may not take any regulatory rulemaking action until the 

4 end of the moratorium period. 

5 SEC. 3. EMERGENCY EXCEPTIONS; EXCLUSIONS. 

6 (a) EMERGENCY EXCEPTION.—Section 2 shall not 

7 apply to a regulatory rulemaking action, and section 5(d) 

8 shall not apply to a rule, if— 

9 (1) the head of a Federal agency otherwise au10 thorized to take the action submits a written request 

11 to the Administrator of the Office of Information 

12 and Regulatory Affairs within the Office of Manage13 ment and Budget and submits a copy of such re14 quest to the Congress; 

15 (2) the Administrator of the Office of Informa16 tion and Regulatory Affairs within the Office of 

17 Management and Budget finds in writing that a 

18 waiver for the action or rule is— 

19 (A) necessary because of an imminent 

20 threat to health or safety or other emergency; 

21 or 

22 (B) necessary for the enforcement of crimi23 nal laws; and 

24 (3) the head of the Federal agency publishes 

25 the finding and waiver in the Federal Register. 


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1 (b) EXCLUSIONS.—The head of an agency shall pub2 lish in the Federal Register any action excluded because 

3 of a certification under section 6(4)(B). 

4 (c) CIVIL RIGHTS EXCEPTION.—Section 2 shall not 

5 apply to a regulatory rulemaking action, and section 5(d) 

6 shall not apply to a rule, to establish or enforce any statu7 tory rights against discrimination on the basis of age, 

8 race, religion, gender, national origin, or handicapped or 

9 disability status except such rulemaking actions or rules 

10 that establish, lead to, or otherwise rely on the use of a 

11 quota or preference based on age, race, religion, gender, 

12 national origin, or handicapped or disability status. 

13 SEC. 4. REVIEW OF RULES. 

14 (a) REVIEW AND REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later 

15 than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 

16 the Director of the Office of Management and Budget 

17 shall— 

18 (1) conduct a review of each rule that became 

19 effective after October 1, 1991, and is in effect as 

20 of the date of the enactment of this Act; and 

21 (2) submit to Congress and make available to 

22 the public a report on such review. 

23 (b) MATTERS COVERED.—The report under sub24 section (a) shall include the following: 


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1 (1) An estimate of the total annual costs and 

2 benefits (including quantifiable and nonquantifiable 

3 effects) of each rule covered by the review, to the ex4 tent feasible. 

5 (2) A recommendation whether each rule should 

6 continue and, where applicable, recommendations for 

7 reform of a rule. 

8 (3) The total number of minor and major rules 

9 that became effective after October 1, 1991, and are 

10 in effect as of the date of the enactment of this Act. 

11 (c) UNIFORM STANDARD.—The Director of Office of 

12 Management and Budget shall apply a uniform standard 

13 for figures and cost summaries in the report required 

14 under subsection (a). 

15 SEC. 5. SUNSET PREVENTION PROCEEDINGS. 

16 (a) DESIGNATION OF FEDERAL AGENCY REGU17 LATORY REVIEW OFFICER.—The head of each Federal 

18 agency shall designate an officer of the agency as the 

19 ‘‘Regulatory Review Officer’’ who shall be responsible for 

20 testifying before a committee of the House of Representa21 tives or the Senate with regard to a request to prevent 

22 the repeal of a rule under subsection (c). 

23 (b) REQUEST FOR COMMITTEE HEARING.—The Reg24 ulatory Review Officer may submit a request for a hear25 ing, with regard to a rule reviewed under section 4, to 


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1 the relevant committee of jurisdiction in the House of Rep2 resentatives and the Senate 60 days after the report is 

3 submitted pursuant to section 4(a)(2). 

4 (c) REQUEST TO PREVENT REPEAL OF A RULE.— 

5 During a hearing described in subsection (b), the Regu6 latory Review Officer may request that a rule not be re7 pealed. Such request shall include a description of the re8 port submitted pursuant to section 4(a)(2), with respect 

9 to such rule. 

10 (d) REPEAL OF RULES.—Except as provided in sec11 tion 3, one year after the date of the enactment of this 

12 Act, all rules shall be repealed, unless otherwise specifi13 cally authorized by law and enacted after the date of the 

14 enactment of this Act. 

15 SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS. 

16 For purposes of this Act: 

17 (1) FEDERAL AGENCY.—The term ‘‘Federal 

18 agency’’ means any agency as that term is defined 

19 in section 551(1) of title 5, United States Code. 

20 (2) MAJOR RULE.—The term ‘‘major rule’’ has 

21 the meaning given that term in section 804 of title 

22 5, United States Code. 

23 (3) MORATORIUM PERIOD.—The term ‘‘morato24 rium period’’ means the period of time— 


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1 (A) beginning on the day after the date of 

2 the enactment of this Act; and 

3 (B) ending on the later of— 

4 (i) 14 days after the day on which the 

5 Director of the Office of Management and 

6 Budget publishes the report pursuant to 

7 section 4; or 

8 (ii) two years after the date of the en9 actment of this Act. 

10 (4) REGULATORY RULEMAKING ACTION.— 

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘regulatory 

12 rulemaking action’’ means any rulemaking on 

13 any rule normally published in the Federal Reg14 ister, including— 

15 (i) the issuance of any substantive 

16 rule, interpretative rule, statement of agen17 cy policy, notice of inquiry, advance notice 

18 of proposed rulemaking, or notice of pro19 posed rulemaking, and 

20 (ii) any other action taken in the 

21 course of the process of rulemaking (except 

22 a cost benefit analysis or risk assessment, 

23 or both). 

24 (B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘regulatory 

25 rulemaking action’’ does not include— 


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1 (i) any agency action that the head of 

2 the agency and the Administrator of the 

3 Office of Information and Regulatory Af4 fairs within the Office of Management and 

5 Budget certify in writing is limited to re6 pealing, narrowing, or streamlining a rule, 

7 regulation, or administrative process or 

8 otherwise reducing regulatory burdens 

9 (meaning, Federal agencies could reduce or 

10 eliminate regulations on their own, during 

11 the moratorium); 

12 (ii) any agency action that the head of 

13 the agency and the Administrator of the 

14 Office of Information and Regulatory Af15 fairs within the Office of Management and 

16 Budget certify in writing is limited to mat17 ters relating to military or foreign affairs 

18 functions, statutes implementing inter19 national trade agreements, including all 

20 agency actions required by the Uruguay 

21 Round Agreements Act, or agency manage22 ment, personnel, or public property, loans, 

23 grants, benefits, or contracts; 

24 (iii) any agency action that the head 

25 of the agency and the Administrator of the 


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1 Office of Information and Regulatory Af2 fairs within the Office of Management and 

3 Budget certify in writing is limited to a 

4 routine administrative function of the 

5 agency; 

6 (iv) any agency action that— 

7 (I) is taken by an agency that su8 pervises and regulates insured deposi9 tory institutions, affiliates of such in10 stitutions, credit unions, or govern11 ment sponsored housing enterprises; 

12 and 

13 (II) the head of the agency cer14 tifies would meet the standards for an 

15 exception or exclusion described in 

16 this Act; or 

17 (v) any agency action that the head of 

18 the agency certifies is limited to inter19 preting, implementing, or administering 

20 the internal revenue laws of the United 

21 States. 

22 (5) RULE.—The term ‘‘rule’’— 

23 (A) means the whole or a part of an agen24 cy statement of general or particular applicaVerDate Mar 15 2010 04:14 Oct 14, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3181.IH H3181

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1 bility and future effect designed to implement, 

2 interpret, or prescribe law or policy; and 

3 (B) does not include— 

4 (i) the approval or prescription, on a 

5 case-by-case or consolidated case basis, for 

6 the future of rates, wages, corporation, or 

7 financial structures or reorganizations 

8 thereof, prices, facilities, appliances, serv9 ices or allowances therefore, or of valu10 ations, costs, or accounting, or practices 

11 bearing on any of the foregoing; 

12 (ii) any action taken in connection 

13 with the safety of aviation; 

14 (iii) any action taken in connection 

15 with the implementation of monetary pol16 icy or to ensure the safety and soundness 

17 of federally insured depository institutions, 

18 any affiliate of such an institution, credit 

19 unions, or government sponsored housing 

20 enterprises or to protect the Federal de21 posit insurance funds; 

22 (iv) the granting an application for a 

23 license, registration, or similar authority, 

24 granting or recognizing an exemption, 

25 granting a variance or petition for relief 


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1 from a regulatory requirement, or other 

2 action relieving a restriction (including any 

3 agency which establishes, modifies, or con4 ducts a regulatory program for a rec5 reational or subsistence activity, including 

6 hunting, fishing, and camping, if a Federal 

7 law prohibits the recreational or subsist8 ence activity in the absence of the agency 

9 action); or 

10 (v) taking any action necessary to per11 mit new or improved applications of tech12 nology or allow the manufacture, distribu13 tion, sale, or use of a substance or product. 

14 (6) RULEMAKING.—The term ‘‘rulemaking’’ 

15 means agency process for formulating, amending, or 

16 repealing a rule. 

17 (7) LICENSE.—The term ‘‘license’’ means the 

18 whole or part of an agency permit, certificate, ap19 proval, registration, charter, membership, statutory 

20 exemption, or other form of permission. 

21 (8) IMMINENT THREAT TO HEALTH OR SAFE22 TY.—The term ‘‘imminent threat to health or safe23 ty’’ means the existence of any condition, cir24 cumstance, or practice reasonably expected to cause 

25 death, serious illness, or severe injury to humans, or 


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1 substantial endangerment to private property during 

2 the moratorium period. 

3 SEC. 7. LIMITATION ON CIVIL ACTIONS. 

4 No private right of action may be brought against 

5 any Federal agency for a violation of this Act. This prohi6 bition shall not affect any private right of action or remedy 

7 otherwise available under any other law. 

Æ 


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