I 
117TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 8408 
To require a time limitation on covered agency mask mandate requirements, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 18, 2022 
Mr. ELLZEY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Com-
mittees on Homeland Security, Energy and Commerce, and Rules, 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 com-
mittee concerned 
A BILL 
To require a time limitation on covered agency mask 
mandate requirements, 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 ‘‘Federal Mask Mandate 
Limitations Act’’. 
SEC. 2. MASK MANDATE INFORMATION REQUIREMENT. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—If the head of a Federal agency 
issues a requirement for an individual to wear a mask or 
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facial covering on commercial aircraft, airports, trains, 
public maritime vessels including ferries, and all forms of 
public transportation defined in section 5302 of title 49, 
United States Code, such head shall publish in the Federal 
Register a list of information on which the decision to im-
plement the requirement was based, including a data, sci-
entific, and cost-benefit analysis and the economic impact 
of such requirement. 
(b) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—Upon the imple-
mentation of a requirement described in subsection (a), 
the head of the covered agency concerned shall submit to 
Congress and the chairman and ranking member of the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, the 
Committee on Energy and Commerce, and the Committee 
on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives 
and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor-
tation and the Committee on Homeland Security and Gov-
ernmental Affairs of the Senate a report containing— 
(1) a copy of the information described in sub-
section (a); and 
(2) the proposed effective date of the require-
ment concerned. 
SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW OF MASK REQUIRE-
MENTS. 
(a) CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW.— 
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(1)(A)(i) Before a requirement may take effect, 
the Federal agency promulgating such requirement 
shall publish in the Federal Register a list of infor-
mation on which the requirement is based, including 
data, scientific and economic studies, and cost-ben-
efit analyses, and identify how the public can access 
such information online, and shall submit to each 
House of the Congress and to the Comptroller Gen-
eral a report containing— 
(I) a copy of the requirement; 
(II) a concise general statement relating to 
the requirement; 
(III) a list of any other related regulatory 
actions intended to implement the same statu-
tory provision or regulatory objective as well as 
the individual and aggregate economic effects of 
those actions; and 
(IV) the proposed effective date of the re-
quirement. 
(ii) On the date of the submission of the report 
under clause (i), the Federal agency promulgating 
the requirement shall submit to the Comptroller 
General and make available to each House of Con-
gress— 
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(I) a complete copy of the cost-benefit 
analysis of the requirement, if any, including an 
analysis of any jobs added or lost, differen-
tiating between public and private sector jobs; 
(II) the agency’s actions pursuant to sec-
tions 603, 604, 605, 607, and 609 of title 5, 
United States Code; 
(III) the agency’s actions pursuant to sec-
tions 202, 203, 204, and 205 of the Unfunded 
Mandates Reform Act of 1995; and 
(IV) any other relevant information or re-
quirements under any other Act and any rel-
evant Executive orders. 
(iii) Upon receipt of a report submitted under 
clause (i), each House shall provide copies of the re-
port to the chairman and ranking member of each 
standing committee with jurisdiction under the rules 
of the House of Representatives or the Senate to re-
port a bill to amend the provision of law under 
which the requirement is issued. 
(B)(i) The Comptroller General shall provide a 
report on each requirement to the committees of ju-
risdiction by the end of 15 calendar days after the 
submission or publication date. The report of the 
Comptroller General shall include an assessment of 
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the agency’s compliance with procedural steps re-
quired by subparagraph (A)(ii) and an assessment of 
whether the requirement imposes any new limits or 
mandates on private-sector activity. 
(ii) Federal agencies shall cooperate with the 
Comptroller General by providing information rel-
evant to the Comptroller General’s report under 
clause (i). 
(C) A requirement relating to a report sub-
mitted under subparagraph (A) shall take effect 
upon enactment of a joint resolution of approval de-
scribed in subsection (b) or as provided for in the re-
quirement following enactment of a joint resolution 
of approval described in subsection (b), whichever is 
later. 
(D) If a joint resolution of approval relating to 
a requirement is not enacted within the period pro-
vided in paragraph (2)(B), then a joint resolution of 
approval relating to the same requirement may not 
be considered under this section in the same Con-
gress by either the House of Representatives or the 
Senate. 
(2)(A) A requirement shall not take effect un-
less the Congress enacts a joint resolution of ap-
proval described under subsection (b). 
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(B) If a joint resolution described in paragraph 
(1) is not enacted into law by the end of 70 session 
days or legislative days, as applicable, beginning on 
the date on which the report referred to in para-
graph (1)(A)(i) is received by Congress (excluding 
days either House of Congress is adjourned for more 
than 3 days during a session of Congress), then the 
requirement described in that resolution shall be 
deemed not to be approved and such requirement 
shall not take effect. 
(3)(A) Notwithstanding any other provision of 
this section (except subject to subparagraph (C)), a 
requirement may take effect for one 90-calendar-day 
period if the President makes a determination under 
subparagraph (B) and submits written notice of 
such determination to the Congress. 
(B) Subparagraph (A) applies to a determina-
tion made by the President by Executive order that 
the requirement should take effect because such re-
quirement is— 
(i) necessary because of an imminent 
threat to health or safety or other emergency; 
(ii) necessary for the enforcement of crimi-
nal laws; or 
(iii) necessary for national security; 
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(C) An exercise by the President of the author-
ity under this subsection shall have no effect on the 
procedures under subsection (b). 
(4)(A) In addition to the opportunity for review 
otherwise provided under this section, in the case of 
any requirement for which a report was submitted in 
accordance with paragraph (1)(A)(i) during the pe-
riod beginning on the date occurring— 
(i) in the case of the Senate, 60 session 
days; or 
(ii) in the case of the House of Representa-
tives, 60 legislative days, before the date the 
Congress is scheduled to adjourn a session of 
Congress through the date on which the same 
or succeeding Congress first convenes its next 
session, sections 802 shall apply to such re-
quirement in the succeeding session of Con-
gress. 
(B)(i) In applying subsection (b) for purposes 
of such additional review, a requirement described 
under subparagraph (A) shall be treated as 
though— 
(I) such requirement were published in the 
Federal Register on— 
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(aa) in the case of the Senate, the 
15th session day; or 
(bb) in the case of the House of Rep-
resentatives, the 15th legislative day, after 
the succeeding session of Congress first 
convenes; and 
(II) a report on such requirement were 
submitted to Congress under paragraph (1)(A) 
on such date. 
(ii) Nothing in this paragraph shall be con-
strued to affect the requirement under paragraph 
(1)(A) that a report shall be submitted to Congress 
before a requirement can take effect. 
(C) A requirement described under subpara-
graph (A) shall take effect as otherwise provided by 
law (including other subsections of this section). 
(b) CONGRESSIONAL APPROVAL PROCEDURE
FOR 
REQUIREMENTS.— 
(1)(A) For purposes of this section, the term 
‘joint resolution’ means only a joint resolution ad-
dressing a report classifying a requirement pursuant 
to subsection (a)(1)(A)(i)(III) that— 
(i) bears no preamble; 
(ii) bears the following title (with blanks 
filled as appropriate): ‘‘Approving the require-
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ment 
submitted 
by 
lll 
relating 
to 
lll.’’; 
(iii) includes after its resolving clause only 
the following (with blanks filled as appropriate): 
‘‘That Congress approves the requirement sub-
mitted by lll relating to lll.’’; and 
(iv) is introduced pursuant to subpara-
graph (B). 
(B) After a House of Congress receives a report 
classifying a requirement pursuant to subsection 
(a)(1)(A)(i)(III), the majority leader of that House 
(or his or her respective designee) shall introduce 
(by request, if appropriate) a joint resolution de-
scribed in subparagraph (A)— 
(i) in the case of the House of Representa-
tives, within 3 legislative days; and 
(ii) in the case of the Senate, within 3 ses-
sion days. 
(C) A joint resolution described in subpara-
graph (A) shall not be subject to amendment at any 
stage of proceeding. 
(2) A joint resolution described in paragraph 
(1) shall be referred in each House of Congress to 
the committees having jurisdiction over the provision 
of law under which the requirement is issued. 
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(3) In the Senate, if the committee or commit-
tees to which a joint resolution described in para-
graph (1) has been referred have not reported it at 
the end of 15 session days after its introduction, 
such committee or committees shall be automatically 
discharged from further consideration of the resolu-
tion and it shall be placed on the calendar. A vote 
on final passage of the resolution shall be taken on 
or before the close of the 15th session day after the 
resolution is reported by the committee or commit-
tees to which it was referred, or after such com-
mittee or committees have been discharged from fur-
ther consideration of the resolution. 
(4)(A) In the Senate, when the committee or 
committees to which a joint resolution is referred 
have reported, or when a committee or committees 
are discharged (under paragraph (3)) from further 
consideration of a joint resolution described in para-
graph (1), it is at any time thereafter in order (even 
though a previous motion to the same effect has 
been disagreed to) for a motion to proceed to the 
consideration of the joint resolution, and all points 
of order against the joint resolution (and against 
consideration of the joint resolution) are waived. The 
motion is not subject to amendment, or to a motion 
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to postpone, or to a motion to proceed to the consid-
eration of other business. A motion to reconsider the 
vote by which the motion is agreed to or disagreed 
to shall not be in order. If a motion to proceed to 
the consideration of the joint resolution is agreed to, 
the joint resolution shall remain the unfinished busi-
ness of the Senate until disposed of. 
(B) In the Senate, debate on the joint resolu-
tion, and on all debatable motions and appeals in 
connection therewith, shall be limited to not more 
than 2 hours, which shall be divided equally between 
those favoring and those opposing the joint resolu-
tion. A motion to further limit debate is in order and 
not debatable. An amendment to, or a motion to 
postpone, or a motion to proceed to the consider-
ation of other business, or a motion to recommit the 
joint resolution is not in order. 
(C) In the Senate, immediately following the 
conclusion of the debate on a joint resolution de-
scribed in paragraph (1), and a single quorum call 
at the conclusion of the debate if requested in ac-
cordance with the rules of the Senate, the vote on 
final passage of the joint resolution shall occur. 
(D) Appeals from the decisions of the Chair re-
lating to the application of the rules of the Senate 
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to the procedure relating to a joint resolution de-
scribed in paragraph (1) shall be decided without de-
bate. 
(5) In the House of Representatives, if any 
committee to which a joint resolution described in 
paragraph (1) has been referred has not reported it 
to the House at the end of 15 legislative days after 
its introduction, such committee shall be discharged 
from further consideration of the joint resolution, 
and it shall be placed on the appropriate calendar. 
On the second and fourth Thursdays of each month 
it shall be in order at any time for the Speaker to 
recognize a Member who favors passage of a joint 
resolution that has appeared on the calendar for at 
least 5 legislative days to call up that joint resolu-
tion for immediate consideration in the House with-
out intervention of any point of order. When so 
called up a joint resolution shall be considered as 
read and shall be debatable for 1 hour equally di-
vided and controlled by the proponent and an oppo-
nent, and the previous question shall be considered 
as ordered to its passage without intervening mo-
tion. It shall not be in order to reconsider the vote 
on passage. If a vote on final passage of the joint 
resolution has not been taken by the third Thursday 
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on which the Speaker may recognize a Member 
under this subsection, such vote shall be taken on 
that day. 
(6)(A) If, before passing a joint resolution de-
scribed in paragraph (1), one House receives from 
the other a joint resolution having the same text, 
then— 
(i) the joint resolution of the other House 
shall not be referred to a committee; and 
(ii) the procedure in the receiving House 
shall be the same as if no joint resolution had 
been received from the other House until the 
vote on passage, when the joint resolution re-
ceived from the other House shall supplant the 
joint resolution of the receiving House. 
(B) This subsection shall not apply to the 
House of Representatives if the joint resolution re-
ceived from the Senate is a revenue measure. 
(7) If either House has not taken a vote on 
final passage of the joint resolution by the last day 
of the period described in subsection (a)(2)(B), then 
such vote shall be taken on that day. 
(8) This section is enacted by Congress— 
(A) as an exercise of the rulemaking power 
of the Senate and House of Representatives, re-
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spectively, and as such are deemed to be part 
of the rules of each House, respectively, but ap-
plicable only with respect to the procedure to be 
followed in that House in the case of a joint 
resolution described in paragraph (1) and su-
perseding other rules only where explicitly so; 
and 
(B) with full recognition of the constitu-
tional right of either House to change the rules 
(so far as they relate to the procedure of that 
House) at any time, in the same manner and 
to the same extent as in the case of any other 
rule of that House. 
(c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section: 
(1) The term ‘‘Federal agency’’ means the De-
partment of Transportation, the Department of 
Homeland Security (including the Transportation 
Security Administration), and the Department of 
Health and Human Services. 
(2) The term ‘‘requirement’’ means any mask 
requirement described in section 2. 
(3) The term ‘‘submission or publication date’’, 
except as otherwise provided in this section, means 
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the date on which the Congress receives the report 
submitted under subsection (a)(1)(A). 
Æ 
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