[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 118 (Monday, July 22, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H4709-H4711]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      GUIDANCE OUT OF DARKNESS ACT

  Ms. MACE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 890) to increase access to agency guidance documents, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                H.R. 890

       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 ``Guidance Out Of Darkness 
     Act'' or the ``GOOD Act''.

     SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) Agency.--The term ``agency'' has the meaning given the 
     term in section 551 of title 5, United States Code.
       (2) Director.--The term ``Director'' means the Director of 
     the Office of Management and Budget.
       (3) Guidance document.--
       (A) In general.--The term ``guidance document''--
       (i) means an agency statement of general applicability 
     (other than a rule that has the force and effect of law 
     promulgated in accordance with the notice and comment 
     procedures under section 553 of title 5, United States Code) 
     that--

       (I) does not have the force and effect of law; and
       (II) is designated by an agency official as setting forth--

       (aa) a policy on a statutory, regulatory, or technical 
     issue; or
       (bb) an interpretation of a statutory or regulatory issue; 
     and

[[Page H4710]]

       (ii) may include--

       (I) a memorandum;
       (II) a notice;
       (III) a bulletin;
       (IV) a directive;
       (V) a news release;
       (VI) a letter;
       (VII) a blog post;
       (VIII) a no-action letter;
       (IX) a speech by an agency official; and
       (X) any combination of the items described in subclauses 
     (I) through (IX).

       (B) Rule of construction.--The term ``guidance document''--
       (i) shall be construed broadly to effectuate the purpose 
     and intent of this Act; and
       (ii) shall not be limited to the items described in 
     subparagraph (A)(ii).

     SEC. 3. PUBLICATION OF GUIDANCE DOCUMENTS ON THE INTERNET.

       (a) In General.--Subject to section 5, on the date on which 
     an agency issues a guidance document, the agency shall 
     publish the guidance document in accordance with the 
     requirements under section 4.
       (b) Previously Issued Guidance Documents.--Subject to 
     section 5, not later than 180 days after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, each agency shall publish, in 
     accordance with the requirements under section 4, any 
     guidance document issued by that agency that is in effect on 
     that date.

     SEC. 4. SINGLE LOCATION.

       (a) In General.--All guidance documents published under 
     section 3 by an agency shall be published in a single 
     location on an internet website designated by the Director 
     under subsection (d).
       (b) Agency Internet Websites.--Each agency shall, for 
     guidance documents published by the agency under section 3, 
     publish a hyperlink on the internet website of the agency 
     that provides access to the guidance documents at the 
     location described in subsection (a).
       (c) Organization.--
       (1) In general.--The guidance documents described in 
     subsection (a) shall be--
       (A) categorized as guidance documents; and
       (B) further divided into subcategories as appropriate.
       (2) Agency internet websites.--The hyperlinks described in 
     subsection (b) shall be prominently displayed on the internet 
     website of the agency.
       (d) Designation.--Not later than 90 days after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Director shall designate an 
     internet website on which guidance documents shall be 
     published under section 3.

     SEC. 5. DOCUMENTS AND INFORMATION EXEMPT FROM DISCLOSURE 
                   UNDER FOIA.

       If a guidance document issued by an agency is a document 
     that is exempt from disclosure under section 552(b) of title 
     5, United States Code (commonly known as the ``Freedom of 
     Information Act''), or contains information that is exempt 
     from disclosure under that section, that document or 
     information, as the case may be, shall not be subject to the 
     requirements under this Act.

     SEC. 6. RESCINDED GUIDANCE DOCUMENTS.

       On the date on which a guidance document issued by an 
     agency is rescinded, or, in the case of a guidance document 
     that is rescinded pursuant to a court order, not later than 
     the date on which the order is entered, the agency shall, at 
     the location described in section 4(a)--
       (1) maintain the rescinded guidance document; and
       (2) indicate--
       (A) that the guidance document is rescinded;
       (B) if the guidance document was rescinded pursuant to a 
     court order, the case number of the case in which the order 
     was entered; and
       (C) the date on which the guidance document was rescinded.

     SEC. 7. RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.

       (a) Validity of Guidance Documents.--Nothing in this Act 
     shall be construed to mean that noncompliance with any 
     provision of this Act affects or otherwise impacts the 
     validity of any guidance document.
       (b) Congressional Review of Guidance Documents.--Nothing in 
     this Act shall be construed to affect or otherwise impact 
     whether a guidance document is subject to congressional 
     review under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code.

     SEC. 8. REPORT ON AGENCY COMPLIANCE.

       Not later than 5 years after the date of enactment of this 
     Act, the Comptroller General shall submit to the Committee on 
     Oversight and Accountability of the House of Representatives 
     and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
     Affairs of the Senate a report on agency compliance with this 
     Act.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
South Carolina (Ms. Mace) and the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Raskin) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from South Carolina.


                             General Leave

  Ms. MACE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on this measure.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from South Carolina?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. MACE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I call upon my colleagues to support H.R. 890, the 
Guidance Out Of Darkness Act, or the GOOD Act.
  This bill ensures agency guidance is transparent by requiring 
agencies to publish legal and regulatory guidance documents online in a 
single location.
  Under current law, agencies are required to proactively disclose 
statements of policy and interpretations, also commonly known as 
guidance documents, which have been adopted by the agency and are not 
published in the Federal Register. These regulatory guidance documents 
represent agency statements intended to inform the public of how an 
agency interprets laws and regulations.
  Despite this existing publishing requirement, the law currently lacks 
guidelines for how agencies must publish guidance documents. Federal 
agencies have typically used a variety of methods to issue their 
guidance documents, including websites, email, social media, and 
newsletters. As you can imagine, tracking down guidance documents 
across these different areas of publication is a very real burden.
  H.R. 890 solves this problem by ensuring the central publishing of 
all guidance documents. This will help the American public and 
regulated organizations, especially small entities, better understand 
agencies' views of their obligations under the law.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense, 
bipartisan legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. RASKIN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 890. I thank the gentlewoman 
for her leadership.
  The bill is titled the Guidance Out Of Darkness Act, suggesting that 
agency guidance documents are currently secreted away behind closed 
doors, shrouded in mystery. This is a bit melodramatic, gothic, and not 
exactly the reality.
  Federal agencies are presently required to disclose any statement of 
policy and interpretations that are not otherwise published in the 
Federal Register, but it is true that there are not standardized 
requirements now for how and where to publish these guidance documents.
  The GOOD Act would establish such requirements, directing agencies to 
publish them on a dedicated website of the agency. It would also 
require the OMB Director to designate a single website where all such 
guidance could be found.
  This step to make agency guidance documents more organized and 
accessible makes good sense.
  I appreciate my colleagues for working to address a number of 
concerns raised about the bill as originally drafted. For example, the 
bill now includes an exception to publishing a guidance document if 
that document is exempt from disclosure under FOIA, ensuring that the 
bill does not result in sensitive information winding up in the hands 
of our adversaries.
  However, some valid concerns remain outstanding--chiefly, that the 
bill's definition of ``guidance document'' may be overly broad to the 
extent that it undermines the transparency the bill is meant to 
advance.
  I won't oppose this bill today because I appreciate its stated goal 
of promoting transparency. I do ask our GOP colleagues to continue 
working with us in good faith to thoroughly examine and address some 
lingering concerns before it moves any further through the legislative 
process.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. MACE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from 
Kentucky (Mr. Comer).
  Mr. COMER. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 890, the 
Guidance Out Of Darkness Act, or the GOOD Act.
  Regulatory guidance includes agency statements that, while not 
intended to have the force and effect of law, establish agency policies 
on statutory, regulatory, or technical issues. Since such guidance 
communicates how an agency will administer a law and its programs, it 
has a significant effect on regulated entities.

[[Page H4711]]

  Regulated entities and the public should know what agency guidance 
says about the laws and programs that affect them. However, guidance 
documents are not easy to find. They are not consistently posted on 
agency websites.
  This inconsistency burdens regulated entities. It especially burdens 
small businesses that often lack the resources to hire compliance 
experts. The problem is so bad that agency guidance documents are known 
as ``regulatory dark matter.''
  For a brief time, the prior administration brought needed sunshine to 
this situation. Following the GOOD Act's passage by the House during 
the 115th Congress, the prior administration voluntarily adopted the 
bill's reforms through an October 2019 executive order after the Senate 
failed to act.
  Under the executive order, guidance was required to become fully 
transparent online. Across the government, each agency was directed to 
make available on its website a single searchable, indexed database 
with links to all guidance documents in effect.
  As a result, for the first time, members of the public could easily 
find whatever agency guidance they needed online in one central 
location. The order was in effect during 2019 and 2020 but has since 
been rescinded.
  Ever since, agencies have been pulling down their guidance web pages, 
and guidance has once again fallen into darkness, increasing the 
potential for agency abuse.
  This is why we need to once again pass the GOOD Act in the House and 
require agencies to publish their regulatory guidance in a single, 
easily accessible location. The American public deserves nothing less 
from their government.
  I thank my committee colleague, Representative Ro Khanna, for 
cosponsoring my legislation. I especially thank the ranking member for 
working with my staff to strengthen the bill and helping us advance a 
bipartisan bill here today.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this simple and 
necessary transparency bill.
  Mr. RASKIN. Mr. Speaker, I am in favor of this legislation. I yield 
back the balance of my time.
  Ms. MACE. Mr. Speaker, I encourage my House colleagues to support 
this commonsense bill to make agency guidance documents more 
transparent to the American public, and I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from South Carolina (Ms. Mace) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 890, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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