[Senate Report 115-184]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


                                                       Calendar No. 261

115th Congress    }                                          {   Report
                                SENATE                          
1st Session       }                                          {  115-184
_______________________________________________________________________

                                     

                                                       


                   FEDERAL REGISTER PRINTING SAVINGS

                              ACT OF 2017

                               __________

                              R E P O R T

                                 of the

                   COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND

                          GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS

                          UNITED STATES SENATE

                              to accompany

                                H.R. 195

         TO AMEND TITLE 44, UNITED STATES CODE, TO RESTRICT THE
           DISTRIBUTION OF FREE PRINTED COPIES OF THE FEDERAL
           REGISTER TO MEMBERS OF CONGRESS AND OTHER OFFICERS
       AND EMPLOYEES OF THE UNITED STATES, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES




                November 8, 2017.--Ordered to be printed
                
                
                
                       _________ 
                       
            U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
            
79-010             WASHINGTON : 2017                    
                
                
                
                
                
        COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS

                    RON JOHNSON, Wisconsin, Chairman
JOHN McCAIN, Arizona                 CLAIRE McCASKILL, Missouri
ROB PORTMAN, Ohio                    THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware
RAND PAUL, Kentucky                  JON TESTER, Montana
JAMES LANKFORD, Oklahoma             HEIDI HEITKAMP, North Dakota
MICHAEL B. ENZI, Wyoming             GARY C. PETERS, Michigan
JOHN HOEVEN, North Dakota            MAGGIE HASSAN, New Hampshire
STEVE DAINES, Montana                KAMALA D. HARRIS, California


                  Christopher R. Hixon, Staff Director
                Gabrielle D'Adamo Singer, Chief Counsel
                  Daniel J. Spino, Research Assistant
               Margaret E. Daum, Minority Staff Director
               Stacia M. Cardille, Minority Chief Counsel
       Charles A. Moskowitz, Minority Senior Legislative Counsel
   Daniel J. Webb, Minority Government Accountability Office Detailee
                     Laura W. Kilbride, Chief Clerk
                     
                     
                     
                     

                                                        Calendar No. 261
                                                       
                                                       
115th Congress      }                                        {    Report
                                  SENATE                            
 1st Session        }                                        {    115-184

======================================================================



 
             FEDERAL REGISTER PRINTING SAVINGS ACT OF 2017

                                _______
                                

                November 8, 2017.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

 Mr. Johnson, from the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
                    Affairs, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 195]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
Affairs, to which was referred the bill (H.R. 195) to amend 
title 44, United States Code, to restrict the distribution of 
free printed copies of the Federal Register to Members of 
Congress and other officers and employees of the United States, 
and for other purposes, having considered the same, reports 
favorably thereon without amendment and recommends that the 
bill do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
  I. Purpose and Summary..............................................1
 II. Background and Need for the Legislation..........................2
III. Legislative History..............................................2
 IV. Section-by-Section Analysis......................................3
  V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact..................................3
 VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................3
VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Act, as Reported.............4

                         I. Purpose and Summary

    H.R. 195, the Federal Register Printing Savings Act of 
2017, ends daily distribution of the printed Federal Register 
to Members of Congress or any other office of the United States 
Government, unless the office specifically requests a 
subscription. The Act also establishes a maximum subscription 
length of one year before it would have to be renewed.

              II. Background and the Need for Legislation

    The Federal Register was first published in 1936 to ensure 
Executive Branch actions such as executive orders and 
regulations were properly recorded and made publicly 
available.\1\ Early editions of the Federal Register were short 
in length. For example, the first issue was only 16 pages.\2\ 
According to the Congressional Budget Office, today the average 
Federal Register is around 300 pages and costs $4.50 to produce 
and distribute.\3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\Office of the Fed. Register, A Brief History Commemorating the 
70th Anniversary of the Publication of the First Issue of the Federal 
Register March 14, 1936, National Archives and Records Administration, 
2, https://www.archives.gov/files/federal-register/the-federal-
register/history.pdf [hereinafter Brief History].
    \2\Id. at 3.
    \3\Cong. Budget Office, Cost Estimate: H.R. 194 Federal Register 
Printing Savings Act of 2017 (2017), available at https://www.cbo.gov/
sites/default/files/115th-congress-2017-2018/costestimate/hr195.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Since June 8, 1994, the Federal Register has been available 
to the public online.\4\ The online version of the Federal 
Register is updated daily and has navigational features that 
make it more user-friendly than the paper copy.\5\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \4\Brief History, supra note 1, at 14.
    \5\Office of the Fed. Register, About This Site, https://
www.federalregister.gov/reader-aids/government-policy-and-ofr-
procedures/about-this-site (last visited Oct. 16, 2017).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Despite the electronic availability of the digital Federal 
Register, Federal offices and members of Congress still receive 
automatic, daily deliveries of physical copies of the Federal 
Register.\6\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \6\Nat'l. Archives & Records Admin., About the Federal Register, 
https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/the-federal-register/
about.html (last visited Oct. 16, 2017).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    After declaring ``no one reads this thing,''\7\ President 
Obama sought to end automatic printing of the Federal 
Register.\8\ Although the Obama Administration could not fully 
do so without legislation, it was successful in reducing the 
number of Federal agencies that automatically receive the 
Federal Register by 85 percent.\9\ Congressional action is 
necessary to cease all automatic printing and distribution of 
the Federal Register to Government offices. The CBO estimates 
that doing so would save about one million dollars each 
year.\10\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \7\Robert Jackel, Federal Register Will No Longer Be Printed, Obama 
Says, The Regulatory Review (June 22, 2011), https://
www.theregreview.org/2011/06/22/federal-register-will-no-longer-be-
printed-obama-says/.
    \8\Id.
    \9\Press Release, Office of Mgmt. & Budget, We Can't Wait: 
President Obama to Sign Executive Order to Cut Waste and Promote 
Efficient Spending; White House to Announce 2011 SAVE Award Finalists 
(Nov. 09, 2011) available at https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-
press-office/2011/11/09/we-cant-wait-president-obama-sign-executive-
order-cut-waste-and-promote-.
    \10\Cong. Budget Office, supra note 3.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The Federal Register Printing Savings Act of 2017 would 
halt the wasteful automatic printing and distribution of the 
Federal Register to Members of Congress and Government offices. 
The Act requires offices that want hard copies to actively 
subscribe to the Federal Register and if they do so, it will be 
available to them free of charge. The Act also requires the 
office to renew its subscription each year. This provision 
ensures that a subscription will not be continually and 
unnecessary delivered to an office, unless specifically 
requested.

                        III. Legislative History

    On January 3, 2017, Representative Steve Russell (R-OK) 
introduced H.R. 195, the Federal Register Printing Savings Act 
of 2017. H.R. 195 passed the House by voice vote on May 17, 
2017.
    H.R. 195 was referred to the Senate Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs Committee. The Committee considered H.R. 
195 at a business meeting on July 26, 2017. The Act was ordered 
reported favorably en bloc by voice vote. Senators present for 
the vote were Johnson, Portman, Lankford, Daines, McCaskill, 
Tester, Heitkamp, Hassan and Harris.

        IV. Section-by-Section Analysis of the Act, as Reported


Section 1. Short title

    This section establishes the short title of the Act as the 
``Federal Register Printing Savings Act of 2017.''

Sec. 2. Restrictions on distribution of free printed copies of Federal 
        Register to members of Congress and federal employees

    Subsection (a) prohibits members of Congress and any office 
of the United States Government from receiving printed copies 
of the Federal Register unless they request a copy of a 
specific issue or opt for a subscription no longer than one 
year. Subsection (b) establishes an effective date for the 
amendments made by this Act of January 1, 2018.

                   V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact

    Pursuant to the requirements of paragraph 11(b) of rule 
XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee has 
considered the regulatory impact of this Act and determined 
that the Act will have no regulatory impact within the meaning 
of the rules. The Committee agrees with the Congressional 
Budget Office's statement that the Act contains no 
intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the 
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) and would impose no costs 
on state, local, or tribal governments.

             VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate

                                                    August 4, 2017.
Hon. Ron Johnson,
Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, U.S. 
        Senate, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 195, the Federal 
Register Printing Savings Act of 2017.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Matthew 
Pickford.
            Sincerely,
                                                        Keith Hall.
    Enclosure.

H.R. 195--Federal Register Printing Savings Act of 2017

    H.R. 195 would amend federal law to prohibit the Government 
Publishing Office (GPO) from furnishing a printed copy of the 
Federal Register without charge to a Member of Congress or any 
employee of the U.S. government unless specifically requested. 
The Federal Register compiles and organizes thousands of rules, 
regulations, executive orders, presidential documents, and 
notices generated by federal departments and agencies.
    Using information from the National Archives and Records 
Administration and GPO, CBO expects that implementing the bill 
would end the distribution of about 1,000 copies of the Federal 
Register that are distributed daily for free. The average 
Federal Register has 300 pages and costs $4.50 to produce and 
distribute. CBO estimates that eliminating those free copies of 
the Federal Register would reduce spending that is subject to 
appropriation by $1 million annually. Enacting the legislation 
would not affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-
as-you-go procedures do not apply.
    CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 195 would not increase 
direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four 
consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2028.
    H.R. 195 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.
    On February 22, 2017, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for 
H.R. 195 as ordered reported by the House Committee on 
Oversight and Government Reform on February 14, 2017. The two 
versions of legislation are identical, and CBO's estimates of 
the budgetary effects are the same.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Matthew 
Pickford. The estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, 
Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

       VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Act, as Reported

    In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by 
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law 
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in brackets, new matter is 
printed in italic, and existing law in which no change is 
proposed is shown in roman):

UNITED STATES CODE

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


TITLE 44--PUBLIC PRINTING AND DOCUMENTS

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


CHAPTER 15--FEDERAL REGISTER AND CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *



SEC. 1506. ADMINISTRATIVE COMMITTEE OF THE FEDERAL REGISTER; 
                    ESTABLISHMENT AND COMPOSITION; POWERS AND DUTIES.

    [The Administrative Committee] (a) Composition; Duties.--
The Administrative Committee of the Federal Register shall 
consist of the Archivist of the United States or Acting 
Archivist, who shall be chairman, an officer of the Department 
of Justice designated by the Attorney General, and the Director 
of the Government Publishing Office or Acting Director of the 
Government Publishing Office. The Director of the Federal 
Register shall act as secretary of the committee. The committee 
shall prescribe, with the approval of the President, 
regulations for carrying out this chapter. The regulations 
shall provide, among other things--
          (1) * * *
          (2) * * *
          (3) * * *
          (4) [the number of copies] subject to subsection (b), 
        the number of copies of the Federal Register, which 
        shall be printed, reprinted, and compiled, the number 
        which shall be distributed without charge to Members of 
        Congress, officers and employees of the United States, 
        or Federal agency, for official use, and the number 
        which shall be available for distribution to the 
        public; and
          (5) * * *
    (b) Restrictions on Distribution of Free Printed Copies to 
Members of Congress and Officers and Employees of the United 
States.--
          (1) Prohibit subscription to printed copies without 
        request.--Under the regulations prescribed to carry out 
        subsection (a)(4), the Director of the Government 
        Publishing Office may not provide a printed copy of the 
        Federal Register without charge to any Member of 
        Congress or any other office of the United States 
        during a year unless--
                  (A) the Member or office requests a printed 
                copy of a specific issue of the Federal 
                Register; or
                  (B) during that year or during the previous 
                year, the Member or office requested a 
                subscription to printed copies of the Federal 
                Register for that year, as described in 
                paragraph (2).
          (2) Administration of subscriptions.--The regulations 
        prescribed to carry out subsection (a)(4) shall 
        include--
                  (A) provisions regarding notifications to 
                offices of Members of Congress and other 
                offices of the United States of the 
                restrictions of paragraph (1);
                  (B) provisions describing the process by 
                which Members and other offices may request a 
                specific issue of the Federal Register for 
                purposes of paragraph (1)(A); and
                  (C) provisions describing the process by 
                which Members and other offices may request a 
                subscription to the Federal Register for 
                purposes of paragraph (1)(B), except that such 
                regulations shall limit the period for such a 
                subscription to not longer than 1 year.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *