[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3279 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 3279
To require the Director of the Office of Management and Budget to
establish a limit for the total amount of additional unfunded
regulatory costs that may be imposed in a fiscal year, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 8, 2025
Mr. Fallon (for himself, Mr. Comer, and Ms. Foxx) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and
Government Reform, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary,
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 committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the Director of the Office of Management and Budget to
establish a limit for the total amount of additional unfunded
regulatory costs that may be imposed in a fiscal year, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Renewing Efficiency in Government by
Budgeting Act of 2025'' or the ``REG Budgeting Act of 2025''.
SEC. 2. REGULATORY BUDGETING.
(a) Limit for the Amount of Additional Unfunded Regulatory Costs
That May Be Imposed Each Fiscal Year.--
(1) Establishment.--
(A) Omb limit.--On or before September 30 of each
fiscal year, the Director shall establish--
(i) a limit on the amount of additional
unfunded regulatory costs that may be imposed
collectively by the heads of all agencies in
the next fiscal year; and
(ii) as part of the limit established under
clause (i), a limit on the amount of additional
unfunded regulatory costs that may be imposed
individually by the head of each agency in the
next fiscal year.
(B) Proposed agency limits.--Not later than 90 days
before the date on which the Director establishes a
limit for the head of an agency under subparagraph
(A)(ii), the head of each agency shall submit to the
Director--
(i) a proposed limit on the amount of
additional unfunded regulatory costs that may
be imposed by the head of that agency in the
next fiscal year; and
(ii) detailed information that describes
the bases and reasoning for the proposed limit
(including any costs described under subsection
(b)(1)(B)(ii)).
(C) Additional matters related to limit.--The
Director may require as part of a limit under
subparagraph (A) that cumulative unfunded regulatory
costs be reduced, including for the purpose of
offsetting any additional unfunded regulatory costs
that may be imposed by the heads of agencies during the
fiscal year for which the limit is established.
(D) Congressional approval; implementation of
default limit pending required congressional
approval.--
(i) In general.--The Director may not
implement a limit established under
subparagraph (A) that allows the head of an
agency to impose a net increase in additional
unfunded regulatory costs during the fiscal
year to which the limit applies unless and
until Congress approves such limit by joint
resolution.
(ii) Limit to be implemented before
congressional approval.--Following the
Director's submission to Congress under
paragraph (2) of a limit described in clause
(i), and until Congress approves such limit,
the Director shall implement in lieu of such
limit a limit that allows no net increase in
additional unfunded regulatory costs to be
imposed during the applicable fiscal year.
(2) Reports.--
(A) Agency-wide limit.--Not later than 7 days after
establishing a limit under paragraph (1)(A)(i), the
Director shall--
(i) submit to the appropriate congressional
committees a report that identifies the limit
established and contains a reasoned statement
of the basis and purpose of establishing such
limit (including an identification of any cost
taken into account in establishing the limit
pursuant to subsection (b)(1)(B)(i)); and
(ii) publish the report on the website
designated under subparagraph (D).
(B) Agency-specific limit.--Not later than 7 days
after establishing a limit under paragraph (1)(A)(ii)
with respect to an agency, the Director shall--
(i) submit a report that identifies the
limit established and contains a reasoned
statement of the basis and purpose of
establishing such limit (including an
identification of any cost taken into account
in establishing the limit pursuant to
subsection (b)(1)(B)(i)) to--
(I) the appropriate congressional
committees; and
(II) each standing committee with
jurisdiction under the rules of the
House of Representatives or the Senate
to report a bill to amend the
provisions of law under which the head
of the agency is authorized to
promulgate rules; and
(ii) publish the report on the website
designated under subparagraph (D).
(C) Prohibition on promulgating certain rules until
submission of report to appropriate congressional
committees.--
(i) In general.--The head of an agency may
not finalize a rule that imposes an additional
unfunded regulatory cost until the Director
submits to the appropriate congressional
committees the reports required by subparagraph
(A)(i) and subparagraph (B)(i) for the fiscal
year in which the rule would be finalized.
(ii) Exception.--The prohibition under
clause (i) shall not apply to any rule with
respect to which the President issues an
Executive Order stating that the rule should
take effect because the rule is--
(I) necessary--
(aa) because of an
emergency, including an
imminent threat to health or
safety;
(bb) for the enforcement of
criminal laws; or
(cc) for national security;
or
(II) being issued pursuant to a law
implementing an international trade
agreement.
(D) Designation of website.--Not later than 90 days
after the date of the enactment of this subsection, the
Director shall designate a website through which the
Director will publish reports in accordance with
subparagraphs (A) and (B).
(b) Rules Resulting in Limit Being Exceeded.--
(1) Congressional approval.--
(A) Prohibition on rule taking effect.--If the
promulgation of any individual rule would result in a
limit established under subsection (a)(1)(A) being
exceeded, notwithstanding any requirement established
by the Director pursuant to subsection (a)(1)(C), the
rule may not go into effect during the fiscal year in
which the rule is promulgated unless and until Congress
approves such rule during such fiscal year by joint
resolution.
(B) Accounting for certain costs imposed under
rules promulgated but not approved.--In the case that a
rule is prohibited from going into effect during the
fiscal year in which the rule is promulgated because
Congress does not approve such rule under subparagraph
(A), such rule may go into effect during any proceeding
fiscal year if--
(i) the head of the agency identifies under
subsection (a)(1)(B)(ii) the amount of
additional unfunded regulatory costs that would
be imposed in such fiscal year if such rule
takes effect in that fiscal year;
(ii) the Director takes into account any
such costs in establishing the limits for that
fiscal year under subsection (a)(1)(A); and
(iii) in the case that such limits allow
for the head of an agency to impose a net
increase in additional unfunded regulatory
costs during the fiscal year to which the limit
applies, Congress approves such limits under
subsection (a)(1)(D).
(2) Notification.--In the case that the head of an agency
determines that finalizing a rule may result in the amount of
additional unfunded regulatory costs imposed by the head of the
agency during that fiscal year to exceed a limit established
under subsection (a)(1)(A), notwithstanding any requirement
established by the Director pursuant to subsection (a)(1)(C),
the head of the agency--
(A) shall submit, before promulgating a general
notice of a final rule with respect to such rule, a
notification to the Director that includes--
(i) a justification for exceeding such
limit as a result of such rule;
(ii) by how much the limit will be exceeded
as a result of such rule;
(iii) an identification of any requirement
established by the Director pursuant to
subsection (a)(1)(C) to avoid exceeding such
limit as a result of such rule; and
(iv) whether the head of the agency
identified or considered any alternatives to
such rule, or the establishment of additional
requirements by the Director pursuant to
subsection (a)(1)(C), that would have resulted
in the imposition of a lesser amount of
additional unfunded regulatory costs, and if
so, how much less such amount would have been;
and
(B) may not promulgate such rule until the head of
the agency receives from the Director a notification
under paragraph (3)(C) with respect to such rule.
(3) Determination by director.--After receiving a
notification under paragraph (2), the Director shall--
(A) determine whether finalizing such rule during
that fiscal year will result in a limit established
under subsection (a)(1)(A) being exceeded,
notwithstanding any requirement established by the
Director pursuant to subsection (a)(1)(C);
(B) determine whether the Director agrees with the
determination of the head of the agency that such rule
should be finalized notwithstanding such limit; and
(C) submit a written notification to the head of
the agency on the determinations made under
subparagraphs (A) and (B) of this paragraph.
(4) Report to congress.--In the case that the Director
determines under paragraph (3)(B) that the Director agrees with
a determination by the head of an agency to finalize a rule
that will result, notwithstanding any requirement established
by the Director pursuant to subsection (a)(1)(C), in a limit
established under subsection (a)(1)(A) being exceeded, not
later than 7 days after the Director submits a notification to
the head of an agency under paragraph (3)(C) of this subsection
with respect to such determination, the Director shall submit
to the appropriate congressional committees, each standing
committee with jurisdiction under the rules of the House of
Representatives or the Senate to report a bill to amend the
provision of law under which the rule is to be promulgated, and
the Comptroller General, a notification regarding such
determination by the Director that includes--
(A) the information provided by the head of the
agency to the Director under paragraph (2)(A) with
respect to such rule; and
(B) a reasoned statement of the basis and purpose
of such determination.
(c) Statement Regarding Additional Unfunded Regulatory Costs.--In
publishing a general notice of a final rule, the head of an agency
shall include in such notice a statement that includes--
(1) whether the rule will result in the amount of
additional unfunded regulatory costs imposed by the agency
during the fiscal year in which the rule is finalized to exceed
a limit established under subsection (a)(1)(A), notwithstanding
any requirement established by the Director pursuant to
subsection (a)(1)(C); and
(2) in the case that the rule will result in the amount of
additional unfunded regulatory costs imposed by the agency
during the fiscal year in which the rule is finalized to exceed
a limit established under subsection (a)(1)(A), notwithstanding
any requirement established by the Director pursuant to
subsection (a)(1)(C)--
(A) by how much the limit will be exceeded as a
result of the rule;
(B) a justification for exceeding such limit as a
result of the rule;
(C) an identification of any requirement
established by the Director pursuant to subsection
(a)(1)(C) to avoid exceeding such limit as a result of
such rule;
(D) whether the agency identified or considered any
alternatives to the rule, or any requirement
established by the Director pursuant to subsection
(a)(1)(C) that would have resulted in the imposition of
a lesser amount of additional unfunded regulatory
costs, and if so, how much less such amount would have
been;
(E) that the head of the agency submitted a
notification to the Director under subsection (b)(2);
and
(F) the determinations made by the Director under
subsection (b)(3) with respect to such rule.
(d) Judicial Review.--
(1) In general.--A person that is aggrieved by agency
action regarding a rule that is prohibited under the provisions
of this section from being finalized or taking effect is
entitled to judicial review of whether the agency complied with
this section.
(2) Scope of review.--Chapter 7 of title 5, United States
Code, shall govern the scope of judicial review under paragraph
(1).
(3) Jurisdiction.--Each court that has jurisdiction to
review a rule for compliance with section 553 of title 5,
United States Code, or under any other provision of law, shall
have jurisdiction to review a claim brought under paragraph
(1).
(4) Relief available.--In granting relief in an action
under this section, a court shall order the agency that
finalized or treated as in effect the rule that is under review
to take remedial action consistent with chapter 7 of title 5,
United States Code.
(e) Associate Administrator for Regulatory Budgeting.--
(1) Establishment of position.--Section 3503 of title 44,
United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the
following new subsection:
``(c) Associate Administrator for Regulatory Budgeting.--
``(1) Establishment.--There is established an Associate
Administrator for Regulatory Budgeting within the Office of
Information and Regulatory Affairs of the Office of Management
and Budget, who is responsible for the oversight and
coordination of the implementation of section 2 of the REG
Budgeting Act of 2025.
``(2) Appointment and pay.--The position of Associate
Administrator established under paragraph (1) shall be
appointed by the President, shall be a position in the excepted
service, and shall be compensated at the rate of basic pay for
level IV of the Executive Schedule (section 5315 of title
5).''.
(2) First appointment of associate administrator for
regulatory budgeting.--Not later than 30 days after the date of
the enactment of thi