Regulatory Overhaul Bill Forces Every Existing Federal Rule to Expire in Five Years Unless Congress Re-Approves It

The “Reclaim the Reins Act” is a massive shakeup of how federal agencies make and keep rules. Essentially, it takes the existing Congressional Review Act (CRA)—the process Congress uses to review new regulations—and turns the dial up to 11. It’s all about putting Congress in the driver’s seat for almost every administrative action, from new rules to old ones.

The New Paperwork Mountain: Mandatory Transparency

If you thought government reports were detailed before, buckle up. Under this bill, any agency submitting a new rule (under Section 801(a)(1)(A)) now has to include a staggering amount of detail. We’re talking about comprehensive estimates of the rule’s total budget impact, a full analysis of direct and indirect costs, and a breakdown of how many jobs—both public and private—will be added or lost in every affected industry. Agencies also have to justify their constitutional authority for the rule and list every study, piece of data, and related regulatory action. They’re even required to estimate the rule’s effect on inflation. For the average agency staffer, this isn't just more work; it’s a fundamental shift in how they have to justify their decisions, potentially slowing down the process significantly.

Revenue Rules Need Explicit Approval

Here’s where Congress gets real power: if a major new rule is determined to increase government revenues—think fees, charges, or anything that brings money into the Treasury—it cannot take effect unless Congress passes a specific resolution of approval. If they don't pass that resolution within 60 session days, the rule is automatically dead. This is a huge procedural hurdle. It means that even if an agency writes a perfectly legal, well-justified rule aimed at, say, closing a tax loophole or collecting overdue fees, a busy or divided Congress can kill it simply by doing nothing. This shifts the default position from 'rule takes effect unless Congress disapproves' to 'revenue rule fails unless Congress explicitly approves.'

The Clock Starts Ticking on Every Existing Rule

This is the most critical part of the bill and the one that affects the most people: the mandatory sunset review for existing rules. Starting six months after the bill passes, and every year for the next four years, agencies must select at least 20% of their existing rules for review. They have to submit them to Congress just like they would a brand-new rule. The kicker? If Congress doesn’t pass a joint resolution approving an existing rule within five years of this law’s enactment, that rule automatically expires and loses all legal force. Imagine a rule that sets safety standards for construction sites, or one that ensures clean drinking water, or even a rule governing how your student loan payments are calculated—if Congress fails to act on any of these within five years, they vanish. This creates massive uncertainty for regulated industries and the public, as vital, long-standing protections could disappear through legislative gridlock or simple inaction.

Expanding the Regulatory Net

Finally, the bill broadens what counts as a “rule” that Congress can review. It now explicitly includes agency guidance documents, interpretive rules, and general statements of policy. If you’re a small business that relies on a specific piece of agency guidance to understand compliance, that document is now subject to the same approval and sunset process as a formal regulation. While this increases transparency, it also means that the informal advice agencies give out—the kind that helps people navigate complex compliance without hiring expensive lawyers—now faces the same political risk of expiration. It essentially ties the hands of agencies trying to offer practical, timely help.