Notice & Comment

Regulatory Reform Legislation, Where Do Things Stand?

Regulatory reform legislation has been a lively topic, and is likely to remain so. Next Tuesday, a panel featuring four senior House and Senate professional staff members will address “Congressional Interest in Regulatory Reform” during the 12th Annual Administrative Law Institute in Washington, D.C. And next Wednesday, the Hoover Institute and the ABA Section of Administrative Law & Regulatory Practice are jointly sponsoring a program on “The Second Hoover Commission’s 60th Anniversary: Lessons for Regulatory Reform”.

With these programs upcoming, and in other contexts, it may be helpful to have a roster of legislative proposals that have seen actual votes in the current Congress. Accordingly, below is a listing of regulatory reform bills that have passed the House of Representatives, or have been voted out of committee in the Senate. Perhaps others would like to comment on the content of specific proposals, or their prospects for eventual enactment.

A. Regulatory Process Reform Bills Passed by the House

H.R. 50: Unfunded Mandates Information and Transparency Act of 2015
Sponsor: Rep. Virginia Foxx [R-NC5]
Introduced: Jan 6, 2015
Passed House: Feb 4, 2015

H.R. 185: Regulatory Accountability Act of 2015
Sponsor: Rep. Bob Goodlatte [R-VA6]
Introduced: Jan 7, 2015
Passed House: Jan 13, 2015

H.R. 348: RAPID Act
Sponsor: Rep. Tom Marino [R-PA10]
Introduced: Jan 14, 2015
Passed House: Sep 25, 2015

H.R. 427: Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act of 2015
Sponsor: Rep. Todd Young [R-IN9]
Introduced: Jan 21, 2015
Passed House: Jul 28, 2015

H.R. 527: Small Business Regulatory Flexibility Improvements Act of 2015
Sponsor: Rep. Steve Chabot [R-OH1]
Introduced: Jan 26, 2015
Passed House: Feb 5, 2015

H.R. 653: FOIA Act
Sponsor: Rep. Darrell Issa [R-CA49]
Introduced: Feb 2, 2015
Passed House: Jan 11, 2016

H.R. 712: Sunshine for Regulations and Regulatory Decrees and Settlements Act of 2016
Sponsor: Rep. Doug Collins [R-GA9]
Introduced: Feb 4, 2015
Passed House: Jan 7, 2016

Title II is H.R. 1759: All Economic Regulations are Transparent Act (ALERT Act)

H.R. 1155: SCRUB Act of 2016
Sponsor: Rep. Jason Smith [R-MO8]
Introduced: Feb 27, 2015
Passed House: Jan 7, 2016

B. Individual Agencies’ Reform Bills Passed by the House:

FCC:

H.R. 2583: Federal Communications Commission Process Reform Act of 2015
Sponsor: Rep. Greg Walden [R-OR2]
Introduced: May 29, 2015
Passed House: Nov 16, 2015

FDA:

H.R. 1599: Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act of 2015
Sponsor: Rep. Mike Pompeo [R-KS4]
Introduced: Mar 25, 2015
Passed House: Jul 23, 2015

EPA:

H.R. 1734: Improving Coal Combustion Residuals Regulation Act of 2015
Sponsor: Rep. David McKinley [R-WV1]
Introduced: Apr 13, 2015
Passed House: Jul 22, 2015

H.R. 1732: Regulatory Integrity Protection Act of 2015
Sponsor: Rep. Bill Shuster [R-PA9]
Introduced: Apr 13, 2015
Passed House: May 12, 2015

H.R. 1644: STREAM Act
Sponsor: Rep. Alex Mooney [R-WV2]
Introduced: Mar 26, 2015
Passed House: Jan 12, 2016

H.R. 1029: EPA Science Advisory Board Reform Act of 2015
Sponsor: Rep. Frank Lucas [R-OK3]
Introduced: Feb 24, 2015
Passed House: Mar 17, 2015

H.R. 1030: Secret Science Reform Act of 2015
Sponsor: Rep. Lamar Smith [R-TX21]
Introduced: Feb 24, 2015
Passed House: Mar 18, 2015

Note: Senate counterpart has been reported out of committee:

S. 544: Secret Science Reform Act of 2015
Sponsor: Sen. John Barrasso [R-WY]
Introduced: Feb 24, 2015
Reported by Committee: Apr 28, 2015

H.R. 2042: Ratepayer Protection Act of 2015
Sponsor: Rep. Ed Whitfield [R-KY1]
Introduced: Apr 28, 2015
Passed House: Jun 24, 2015

CFPB:

H.R. 1737: Reforming CFPB Indirect Auto Financing Guidance Act
Sponsor: Rep. Frank Guinta [R-NH1]
Introduced: Apr 13, 2015
Passed House: Nov 18, 2015

H.R. 37: Promoting Job Creation and Reducing Small Business Burdens Act
Sponsor: Rep. Michael Fitzpatrick [R-PA8]
Introduced: Jan 6, 2015
Passed House: Jan 14, 2015

SEC:

H.R. 1525: Disclosure Modernization and Simplification Act of 2015
Sponsor: Rep. Scott Garrett [R-NJ5]
Introduced: Mar 23, 2015
Passed House: Oct 6, 2015

H.R. 1090: Retail Investor Protection Act
Sponsor: Rep. Ann Wagner [R-MO2]
Introduced: Feb 25, 2015
Passed House: Oct 27, 2015

HHS:

H.R. 2507: Increasing Regulatory Fairness Act of 2015
Sponsor: Rep. Kevin Brady [R-TX8]
Introduced: May 21, 2015
Passed House: Jun 17, 2015

C. Regulatory Process Reform Bills Reported out of Senate committees (but none passed to date):

S. 1607: Independent Agency Regulatory Analysis Act of 2015
Sponsor: Sen. Robert “Rob” Portman [R-OH]
Introduced: Jun 18, 2015
Reported by Committee: Oct 7, 2015

S. 1817: Smarter Regs Act of 2015
Sponsor: Sen. Heidi Heitkamp [D-ND]
Introduced: Jul 21, 2015
Reported by Committee: Oct 7, 2015

S. 1818: Principled Rulemaking Act of 2015
Sponsor: Sen. James Lankford [R-OK]
Introduced: Jul 21, 2015
Reported by Committee: Oct 7, 2015

S. 1820: Early Participation in Regulations Act of 2015
Sponsor: Sen. James Lankford [R-OK]
Introduced: Jul 21, 2015
Reported by Committee: Oct 7, 2015

S. 337: FOIA Improvement Act of 2015
Sponsor: Sen. John Cornyn [R-TX]
Introduced: Feb 2, 2015
Reported by Committee: Feb 5, 2015

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