106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1074
AN ACT
To provide Governmentwide accounting of regu-
latory costs and benefits, and for other purposes.
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1074
AN ACT
To provide Governmentwide accounting of regulatory costs
and benefits, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Regulatory Right-to-
Know Act of 1999’’.
SEC. 2. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are to—
(1) promote the public right-to-know about the
costs and benefits of Federal regulatory programs
and rules;
(2) increase Government accountability; and
(3) improve the quality of Federal regulatory
programs and rules.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Except as otherwise pro-
vided in this section, the definitions under section
551 of title 5, United States Code, shall apply to
this Act.
(2) BENEFIT.—The term ‘‘benefit’’ means the
reasonably identifiable significant favorable effects,
quantifiable and nonquantifiable, including social,
health, safety, environmental, and economic effects,
that are expected to result from implementation of,
or compliance with, a rule.
(3) COST.—The term ‘‘cost’’ means the reason-
ably identifiable significant adverse effects, quantifi-
able and nonquantifiable, including social, health,
safety, environmental, and economic effects, that are
expected to result from implementation of, or com-
pliance with, a rule.
(4) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means
the Director of the Office of Management and Budg-
et.
(5) MAJOR RULE.—The term ‘‘major rule’’ has
the meaning that term has under section 804(2) of
title 5, United States Code.
(6) NONMAJOR
RULE.—The term ‘‘nonmajor
rule’’ means any rule, as that term is defined in sec-
tion 804(3) of title 5, United States Code, other
than a major rule.
(7) PAPERWORK.—The term ‘‘paperwork’’ has
the meaning given the term ‘‘collection of informa-
tion’’ under section 3502 of title 44, United States
Code.
(8) PROGRAM
COMPONENT.—The term ‘‘pro-
gram component’’ means a set of related rules.
SEC. 4. ACCOUNTING STATEMENT.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than February 5, 2001,
and on the first Monday in February of each year there-
after, the President, acting through the Director of the
Office of Management and Budget, shall prepare and sub-
mit to the Congress an accounting statement and associ-
ated report containing an estimate of the total annual
costs and benefits of Federal regulatory programs, includ-
ing rules and paperwork—
(1) in the aggregate;
(2) by agency, agency program, and program
component; and
(3) by major rule.
(b) ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.—In addition to the
information required under subsection (a), the Director
shall include in each accounting statement under sub-
section (a) the following information:
(1) An analysis of impacts of Federal rules and
paperwork on Federal, State, local, and tribal gov-
ernment, the private sector, small business, wages,
consumer prices, economic growth as well as on pub-
lic health, public safety, the environment, consumer
protection, equal opportunity, and other public policy
goals.
(2) An identification and analysis of overlaps,
duplications, and potential inconsistencies among
Federal regulatory programs.
(3) Recommendations to reform inefficient or
ineffective regulatory programs or program compo-
nents, including recommendations for addressing
market failures that are not adequately addressed by
existing regulatory programs or program compo-
nents.
(c) NET BENEFITS AND COSTS.—To the extent fea-
sible, the Director shall, in estimates contained in any sub-
mission under subsection (a), quantify the net benefits or
net costs of—
(1) each program component covered by the
submission;
(2) each major rule covered by the submission;
and
(3) each option for which costs and benefits
were included in any regulatory impact analysis
issued for any major rule covered by the submission.
(d) SUMMARY OF REGULATORY ACTIVITY.—The Di-
rector shall include in each submission under subsection
(a) a table stating the number of major rules and the
number of nonmajor rules issued by each agency in the
preceding fiscal year.
(e) YEARS
COVERED
BY
ACCOUNTING
STATE-
MENT.—Each accounting statement submitted under this
section shall, at a minimum—
(1) cover expected costs and benefits for the fis-
cal year for which the statement is submitted and
each of the 4 fiscal years following that fiscal year;
(2) cover previously expected costs and benefits
for each of the 2 fiscal years preceding the fiscal
year for which the statement is submitted, or the
most recent revision of such costs and benefits; and
(3) with respect to each major rule, include the
estimates of costs and benefits for each of the fiscal
years referred to in paragraphs (1) and (2) that
were included in the regulatory impact analysis that
was prepared for the major rule.
(f) DELAYED APPLICATION OF CERTAIN REQUIRE-
MENTS.—
(1) APPLICATION AFTER FIRST STATEMENT.—
The following requirements shall not apply to the
first accounting statement submitted under this sec-
tion:
(A) The requirement under subsection
(a)(2) to include estimates with respect to pro-
gram components.
(B) The requirement under subsection
(b)(2).
(2) 
APPLICATION
AFTER
SECOND
STATE-
MENT.—The requirement under subsection (b)(1) to
include analyses of impacts on wages, consumer
prices, economic growth, public health, public safety,
the environment, consumer protection, equal oppor-
tunity, and other public policy goals shall not apply
to the first and second accounting statements sub-
mitted under this section.
SEC. 5. NOTICE AND COMMENT.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Before submitting an accounting
statement and the associated report to Congress under
section 4, and before preparing final guidelines under sec-
tion 6, the Director of the Office of Management and
Budget shall—
(1) provide public notice and an opportunity of
at least 60 days for submission of comments on the
statement and report or guidelines, respectively; and
(2) consult with the Director of the Congres-
sional Budget Office on the statement and report or
guidelines, respectively.
(b) APPENDIX.—After consideration of the com-
ments, the Director shall include an appendix to the report
or guidelines, respectively, addressing the public comments
and peer review comments under section 7.
(c) AVAILABILITY OF PEER REVIEW COMMENTS.—
To ensure openness, the Director shall make all final peer
review comments available in their entirety to the public.
SEC. 6. GUIDELINES FROM THE OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT
AND BUDGET.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 270 days after the
date of enactment of this Act, the Director of the Office
of Management and Budget, in consultation with the
Council of Economic Advisers, shall issue guidelines to
agencies to standardize—
(1) most plausible measures of costs and bene-
fits;
(2) the means of gathering information used to
prepare accounting statements under this Act, in-
cluding information required for impact analyses re-
quired under section 4(b)(1); and
(3) the format of information provided for ac-
counting statements, including summary tables.
(b) REVIEW.—The Director shall review submissions
from the agencies to ensure consistency with the guide-
lines under this section.
SEC. 7. PEER REVIEW.
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Office of
Management and Budget shall arrange for two or more
persons that have nationally recognized expertise in regu-
latory analysis and regulatory accounting and that are
independent of and external to the Government, to provide
peer review of each accounting statement and associated
report under section 4 and the guidelines under section
6 before the statement, report, or guidelines are final.
(b) WRITTEN COMMENTS.—The peer review under
this section shall provide written comments to the Director
in a timely manner. The Director shall use the peer review
comments in preparing the final statements, associated re-
ports, and guidelines.
(c) FACA.—Peer review under this section shall not
be subject to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5
U.S.C. App.).
(d) BALANCE AND INDEPENDENCE.—The Director
shall ensure that—
(1) the persons that provide peer review under
subsection (a) are fairly balanced with respect to the
points of view represented;
(2) no person that provides peer review under
subsection (a) has a conflict of interest that is rel-
evant to the functions to be performed in the review;
and
(3) the comments provided by those persons—
(A) are not inappropriately influenced by
any special interest; and
(B) are the result of independent judg-
ment.
SEC. 8. SPECIAL RULES RELATING TO CERTAIN FEDERAL
BANKING AGENCIES AND MONETARY POLICY.
(a) TRANSFER OF AUTHORITY AND DUTIES OF DI-
RECTOR.—The head of each Federal banking agency (as
that term is defined in section 3(z) of the Federal Deposit
Insurance Act (12 U.S.C. 1813(z)) and the National Cred-
it Union Administration, and not the Director, shall exer-
cise all authority and carry out all duties otherwise vested
under this Act in the Director with respect to that agency,
other than the authority and duty to submit accounting
statements and reports under section 4(a). The head of
each such agency shall submit to the Director all estimates
and other information required by this Act to be included
in such statements and reports with respect to that agen-
cy.
(b) EXCLUSION OF MONETARY POLICY.—No provi-
sion of this Act shall apply to any matter relating to mone-
tary policy that is proposed or promulgated by the Board
of Governors of the Federal Reserve System or the Fed-
eral Open Market Committee.
Passed the House of Representatives July 26, 1999.
Attest:
Clerk.