The Congressional Review Act (CRA) establishes procedures for Congress to overturn final rules issued by federal agencies. After an agency's rule is reported to Congress, members of Congress have 60 days to introduce a joint resolution disapproving of the rule. When signed into law, these resolutions of disapproval (RDs) overturn the rule in question and bar agencies from issuing a "substantially similar" rule. The CRA offers two unique mechanisms: the Senate "fast-track" procedures and the "lookback" period. For an in-depth discussion of these mechanics and more, see our Regulatory Insight A Lookback at the Law: How Congress Uses the CRA.
This dashboard allows users to explore the set of final rules published in the Federal Register in 2024, and how various lookback dates could affect the set of rules available for congressional review at the beginning of the next session of Congress. View Dashboard.
Commentary:
Will History Repeat Itself? Forecasting CRA Use in a Second Trump Administration. Steve Balla and Sarah Hay, May 3, 2024. What policy areas are most likely to be challenged if Trump wins a second term in the 2024 presidential election?
Tight Budgets Constrain Some Regulatory Agencies, but Not All
Each year we examine the President’s proposed Budget of the United States to identify the outlays and staffing devoted to developing and enforcing federal regulations. This “regulators’ budget” report covers agencies whose regulations primarily affect private-sector activities, and expressly excludes budget and staffing associated with regulations that govern taxation, entitlement, procurement, subsidy, and credit functions.
Review Necessary to Ensure FDA’s Food Transport Rule Actually Drives Results
On February 5, 2014, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published a proposed rule regarding the Sanitary Transportation of Human and Animal Food, which it hopes will help to ensure that food will not become contaminated during the transportation process.
