What is the Congressional Review Act?

It was referred to in the previous post, It's what limits the ability of President Obama to implement his agenda through bureaucratic procedures in the last months of his presidency. So here's more about it:

Links:

- Wikipedia: Congressional Review Act.
- GAO: Congressional Review Act.

It was passed in 1996 not long after the Republican Party won control of the US House of Representatives as part of the Contract with America. It was an attempt to strengthen legislative control of the executive branch - specifically the rule making process.

Here's what Wikipedia offers about it.

The law empowers Congress to review, by means of an expedited legislative process, new federal regulations issued by government agencies and, by passage of a joint resolution, to overrule a regulation. Congress is given 60 legislative days to disapprove, after which the rule will go into effect. For the regulation to be invalidated, the Congressional resolution of disapproval either must be signed by the President, or must be passed over the President's veto by two-thirds of both Houses of Congress. The law requires that any agency promulgating a covered rule must submit a report to each House of Congress and to the Comptroller General that contains a copy of the rule, a concise general statement describing the rule (including whether it is a major rule), and the proposed effective date of the rule. A covered rule cannot take effect if the report is not submitted.

For context:

- United States House of Representatives elections, 1994.
- Contract with America.
- Rulemaking.
- A Guide to the Rulemaking Process.