IIB
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4924
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
JULY 25, 2000
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Governmental Affairs
AN ACT
To establish a 3-year pilot project for the General Accounting
Office to report to Congress on economically significant
rules of Federal agencies, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Truth in Regulating
Act of 2000’’.
SEC. 2. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are to—
(1) increase the transparency of important reg-
ulatory decisions;
(2) promote effective congressional oversight to
ensure that agency rules fulfill statutory require-
ments in an efficient, effective, and fair manner; and
(3) increase the accountability of Congress and
the agencies to the people they serve.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act, the term—
(1) ‘‘agency’’ has the meaning given such term
under section 3502(1) of title 44, United States
Code, except that such term shall not include an
independent regulatory agency, as that term is de-
fined in section 3502(5) of such title;
(2) ‘‘economically significant rule’’ means any
proposed or final rule, including an interim or direct
final rule, that may have an annual effect on the
economy of $100,000,000 or more or adversely af-
fect in a material way the economy, a sector of the
economy, productivity, competition, jobs, the envi-
ronment, public health or safety, or State, local, or
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tribal governments or communities, or for which an
agency has prepared an initial or final regulatory
flexibility analysis pursuant to section 603 or 604 of
title 5, United States Code; and
(3) ‘‘independent evaluation’’ means a sub-
stantive evaluation of the agency’s data, method-
ology, and assumptions used in developing the eco-
nomically significant rule, including—
(A) an explanation of how any strengths or
weaknesses in those data, methodology, and as-
sumptions support or detract from conclusions
reached by the agency; and
(B) the implications, if any, of those
strengths or weaknesses for the rulemaking.
SEC. 4. PILOT PROJECT FOR REPORT ON RULES.
(a) IN GENERAL.—
(1) REQUEST FOR REVIEW.—When an agency
publishes an economically significant rule, a chair-
man or ranking member of a committee of jurisdic-
tion of either House of Congress may request the
Comptroller General of the United States to review
the rule.
(2) REPORT.—The Comptroller General shall
submit a report on each economically significant rule
selected under paragraph (4) to the committees of
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jurisdiction in each House of Congress not later
than 180 calendar days after a committee request is
received, or in the case of a committee request for
review of a notice of proposed rulemaking or an in-
terim final rulemaking, by the end of the period for
submission of comment regarding the rulemaking, if
practicable. The report shall include an independent
evaluation of the economically significant rule by the
Comptroller General.
(3) INDEPENDENT
EVALUATION.—The inde-
pendent evaluation of the economically significant
rule by the Comptroller General under paragraph
(2) shall include—
(A) an evaluation of an agency’s analysis
of the potential benefits of the rule, including
any beneficial effects that cannot be quantified
in monetary terms and the identification of the
persons or entities likely to receive the benefits;
(B) an evaluation of an agency’s analysis
of the potential costs of the rule, including any
adverse effects that cannot be quantified in
monetary terms and the identification of the
persons or entities likely to bear the costs;
(C) an evaluation of an agency’s analysis
of alternative approaches set forth in the notice
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of proposed rulemaking and in the rulemaking
record, as well as of any regulatory impact
analysis, federalism assessment, or other anal-
ysis or assessment prepared by the agency or
required for the economically significant rule;
and
(D) a summary of the results of the eval-
uation of the Comptroller General and the im-
plications of those results.
(4) PROCEDURES
FOR
PRIORITIES
OF
RE-
QUESTS.—The Comptroller General shall have dis-
cretion to develop procedures for determining the
priority and number of requests for review under
paragraph (1) for which a report will be submitted
under paragraph (2).
(b) AUTHORITY OF COMPTROLLER GENERAL.—Each
agency shall promptly cooperate with the Comptroller
General in carrying out this Act. Nothing in this Act is
intended to expand or limit the authority of the General
Accounting Office.
SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Gen-
eral Accounting Office to carry out this Act $5,200,000
for each of fiscal years 2001 through 2003.
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SEC. 6. EFFECTIVE DATE AND DURATION OF PILOT
PROJECT.
(a) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This Act shall take effect 90
days after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(b) DURATION
OF
PILOT
PROJECT.—The pilot
project under this Act shall continue for a period of 3
years, if in each fiscal year, or portion thereof included
in that period, a specific annual appropriation not less
than $5,200,000 or the pro-rated equivalent thereof shall
have been made for the pilot project.
(c) REPORT.—Before the conclusion of the 3-year pe-
riod, the Comptroller General shall submit to Congress a
report reviewing the effectiveness of the pilot project and
recommending whether or not Congress should perma-
nently authorize the pilot project.
Passed the House of Representatives July 25, 2000.
Attest:
JEFF TRANDAHL,
Clerk.