Following up on my post about a Congressional hearing on regulatory reform before the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Subcommittee on Regulatory Affairs and Federal Management (RAFM), two new bills were introduced on May 13.

Both bills grew out of that hearing (video & written testimony available on the HSGAC website). The Early Participation in Regulations Act of 2019 was sponsored by Senator James Lankford (R-OK), who serves as the Chairman of the RAFM Subcommittee. The Setting Manageable Analysis Requirements in Text (SMART) Act was introduced by Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), who serves as the Ranking Member of the RAFM Subcommittee.

Susan Dudley wrote a recent Forbes piece about the hearing and the two bills. As she explains: “The bills would 1) engage public input earlier in the regulatory development process and 2) provide for retrospective review of regulations to evaluate whether they are achieving their objectives.” Both bills are limited adjustments to the existing rulemaking process, rather than sweeping overhauls. Neither chamber is in session this week, but both bills are worth watching over the summer and in to the fall.