[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 350 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







104th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 350

   To amend chapter 6 of title 5, United States Code, to modify the 
   judicial review of regulatory flexibility analyses, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

             February 2 (legislative day, January 30), 1995

   Mr. Bond introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend chapter 6 of title 5, United States Code, to modify the 
   judicial review of regulatory flexibility analyses, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Regulatory Flexibility Amendments 
Act of 1995''.

SEC. 2. JUDICIAL REVIEW OF REGULATORY FLEXIBILITY ANALYSES.

    (a) Amendment.--Section 611 of title 5, United States Code, is 
amended to read as follows:
``Sec. 611. Judicial review
    ``(a)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), not later than 1 year 
after the effective date of a final rule with respect to which an 
agency--
            ``(A) certified, pursuant to section 605(b) of this title, 
        that such rule would not have a significant economic impact on 
        a substantial number of small entities; or
            ``(B) prepared final regulatory flexibility analysis 
        pursuant to section 604 of this title,
an affected small entity may petition for the judicial review of such 
certification or analysis in accordance with the terms of this 
subsection. A court having jurisdiction to review such rule for 
compliance with the provisions of section 553 of this title or under 
any other provision of law shall have jurisdiction to review such 
certification or analysis.
    ``(2)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), in the case where 
a provision of law requires that an action challenging a final agency 
regulation be commenced before the expiration of the 1-year period 
provided in paragraph (1), such lesser period shall apply to a petition 
for the judicial review under this subsection.
    ``(B) In the case where an agency delays the issuance of a final 
regulatory flexibility analysis pursuant to section 608(b) of this 
title, a petition for judicial review under this subsection shall be 
filed not later than--
            ``(i) 1 year; or
            ``(ii) in the case where a provision of law requires that 
        an action challenging a final agency regulation be commenced 
        before the expiration of the 1-year period provided in 
        paragraph (1), the number of days specified in such provision 
        of law,
after the date the analysis is made available to the public.
    ``(3) For purposes of this subsection, the term `affected small 
entity' means a small entity that is or will be adversely affected by 
the final rule.
    ``(4) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to affect the 
authority of any court to stay the effective date of any rule or 
provision thereof under any other provision of law.
    ``(5)(A) In the case where the agency certified that such rule 
would not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of 
small entities, the court may order the agency to prepare a final 
regulatory flexibility analysis pursuant to section 604 of this title 
if the court determines, on the basis of the rulemaking record, that 
the certification was arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, or 
otherwise not in accordance with law.
    ``(B) In the case where the agency prepared a final regulatory 
flexibility analysis, the court may order the agency to take corrective 
action consistent with the requirements of section 604 of this title if 
the court determines, on the basis of the rulemaking record, that the 
final regulatory flexibility analysis was prepared by the agency 
without complying with section 604 of this title.
    ``(6) If, by the end of the 90-day period beginning on the date of 
the order of the court pursuant to paragraph (5) (or such longer period 
as the court may provide), the agency fails, as appropriate--
            ``(A) to prepare the analysis required by section 604 of 
        this title; or
            ``(B) to take corrective action consistent with the 
        requirements of section 604 of this title,
the court may stay the rule or grant such other relief as it deems 
appropriate.
    ``(7) In making any determination or granting any relief authorized 
by this subsection, the court shall take due account of the rule of 
prejudicial error.
    ``(b) In an action for the judicial review of a rule, any 
regulatory flexibility analysis for such rule (including an analysis 
prepared or corrected pursuant to subsection (a)(5)) shall constitute 
part of the whole record of agency action in connection with such 
review.
    ``(c) Nothing in this section bars judicial review of any other 
impact statement or similar analysis required by any other law if 
judicial review of such statement or analysis is otherwise provided by 
law.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect on the date of enactment of this Act, except that the 
judicial review authorized by section 611(a) of title 5, United States 
Code (as added by subsection (a)), shall apply only to final agency 
rules issued after the date of enactment of this Act.
                                 <all>