Submitted
Rep. Victoria Spartz (R-Ind.) reintroduced on Wednesday bicameral legislation, the Sunshine for Regulatory Decrees and Settlements Act, with Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) to end the practice of “sue-and-settle,” a method employed by the executive branch that subverts the Administrative Procedure Act and comes with a serious cost to taxpayers.
Spartz
“Our Founding Fathers understood the importance of checks and balances and the dangers of abuse of power,” Rep. Spartz said. “Unfortunately, the executive branch has been taking advantage of the ineffective legislative branch. The Sunshine for Regulatory Decrees and Settlements Act brings transparency to sue-and-settle techniques employed by activist federal agencies.”
The practice of “sue-and-settle” involves closed-door negotiations between federal agencies and allied special interest groups resulting in mutually agreed upon settlements which force the agency into a time-limited rulemaking process. The Sunshine for Regulatory Decrees and Settlements Act resolves this problem by requiring public notices, courts to consider public input and regulatory statutes, the Attorney General to certify on proper agency’s authority and funding, and reporting to Congress to improve transparency and legislative oversight. It also establishes timeframes for public input.
This legislation is cosponsored in the House by Reps. Michael Cloud (R-Texas), Rick Crawford (R-Ark.), John Moolenaar (R-Mich.), Chris Stewart (R-Utah), and Tom Tiffany (R-Wis.), and in the Senate by Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.).