U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville on Tuesday joined U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) and more than two dozen Republican colleagues to reintroduce legislation to increase oversight of the federal rulemaking process. The Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act would require federal agencies that propose major changes to rules and policies to obtain approval from Congress.
“Under the Constitution, Congress is supposed to write our laws,” said Sen. Tuberville. “But the Biden administration keeps trying to run the country out of the White House. I’m not going to stand for that. This legislation would ensure that any regulation with a major impact on our country would go through Congress like the Constitution says.”
“For too long, an ever-growing federal bureaucracy has piled regulations and red tape on the backs of the American people without any approval by Americans’ elected representatives,” said Sen. Paul. “By making Congress more accountable for the most costly and intrusive federal rules, the REINS Act would give Kentuckians and citizens throughout the country a greater voice in determining whether these major rules are in America’s best interests.”
U.S. Representative Kat Cammack (R-Florida) introduced the bill in the U.S. House of Representatives along with 182 cosponsors.
“The regulatory regime has gone unchecked for decades, and it’s time we return power to the American people, not the nameless, faceless bureaucrats in Washington,” said Rep. Cammack.
U.S. Senator Katie Britt is also a cosponsor of the REINS Act.
The bill defines a “major” rule as one that the Office of Management and Budget determines may result in an economic impact of $100 million or greater each year. Specifically, the bill describes the applicable rules as those that cause “a major increase in costs or prices” for American consumers, government agencies, regions, or industries, or “significant adverse effects” on the economy.
Under the REINS Act, once major rules are drafted, they must then be affirmatively approved by both chambers of Congress and then signed by the President, satisfying the bicameralism and presentment requirements of the Constitution. Currently, regulations ultimately take effect unless Congress specifically disapproves.
The REINS Act was included in the Republican debt ceiling bill in the House – the Save, Limit, Grow Act. That bill was rejected by the Whitehouse and Congressional Democrats. It was not included in the bipartisan debt ceiling bill that ultimately passed Congress and was signed by the President. The REINS Act will need Democratic support to clear the Senate, given Democratic control of the body. It also would likely need the signature of President Joe Biden to become law. The REINS Act has been introduced in previous Congresses.
Under the U.S. Constitution, only Congress can pass laws and write legislation. Congress, however, has ceded much of its constitutional law-making authority to executive branch agencies over the last 100-plus years, isolating themselves from the minutia of government and the blame. At the same time, this delegation of responsibility to the executive branch has made the President more and more powerful. Democrats are unlikely to pass legislation that will limit the power of a Democratic President, and it is similarly unprecedented for a Republican-controlled Congress to pass legislation such as the REINS Act that would in any way curtail the power of a Republican President.
Tuberville was elected to the Senate in the 2020 election.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email brandonmreporter@gmail.com.
