Congressional Review Act

The Congressional Review Act (CRA) is a 1996 statute that gives Congress a fast-track way to disapprove regulations issued by federal agencies. Agencies must submit each new rule to Congress, which then has a limited period to pass a joint resolution of disapproval.

In the Senate, a resolution is privileged: it cannot be filibustered, so it needs only a simple majority, and debate is limited to ten hours. Because the resolution is a joint resolution, it must pass both chambers and be signed by the president, who can veto it, so in practice it works when the White House and Congress share a party. If a rule is disapproved, it has no force and the agency cannot issue a "substantially the same" rule without new authorization.

The law was used successfully only once in its first two decades, in 2001 against an ergonomics rule. In 2017 Republicans used it to overturn 16 rules from the late Obama administration, and it has been used in similar ways since. A "lookback" window lets Congress review rules finalized near the end of the previous administration. Supporters say it restores congressional oversight of the administrative state; critics say it can block rules on technical grounds and disregard expertise. Its use is a recurring part of deregulation efforts.