Statement of Administration Policy: H.R. 115 – Midnight Rules Relief Act

STATEMENT OF ADMINISTRATION POLICY

(House Rules)
(Rep. Biggs, R-AZ, and 5 cosponsors)

The Administration opposes H.R. 115, the Midnight Rules Relief Act. Through amendments to the Congressional Review Act (CRA), this bill would enable Congress to nullify years of expert work across the Executive Branch without careful consideration.

The CRA provides a streamlined mechanism for Congress to disapprove of federal agency rules while requiring procedural safeguards that help ensure careful consideration and debate before rules are disapproved. This bill would greatly weaken those safeguards by allowing Congress to bundle dozens or even hundreds of agency rules into a single resolution, eliminating the individual consideration the law now requires. This would allow Congress to disapprove of federal rules without meaningful debate and could result in the disapproval of rules that have majority congressional support if paired with other rules that lack that support. The fact that Congress waited until after the election to consider this bill indicates that it is not a genuine attempt to improve the CRA but rather meant to undo regulations issued by the Biden-Harris Administration that would improve the health, safety, and welfare of the American people.

If the President were presented with H.R. 115, he would veto it.