A bill has been introduced in the House of Representatives that would require federal agencies to wipe out rules that have been upheld by Chrevron Deference as a means of correcting “disasters caused by decades of Chevron” and put the power of lawmaking back with Congress, according to the bill’s sponsor.
The Sunset Chevron Act, H.R. 8889, was introduced on Friday by Rep. Mark Green [R-Tenn.]. If enacted, the bill would require the Government Accountability Office to compile a list of executive agency actions that have been upheld by Chevron deference. These actions begin sunsetting every 30 days on a rolling basis unless they are upheld by Congressional action.
The bill currently has eight co-sponsors, all of them Republicans.
On Friday, the Supreme Court issued a ruling in a case that determined it should be up to judges, not government regulators to interpret laws enacted by Congress. The ruling overturned a case — known as Chevron — that had stood for 40 years and put the power of interpreting laws with regulators and government agencies, who are supposed to be experts in their fields.
[EDITOR’S NOTE: Sign up for a webinar on Tuesday, July 2 at 2:15pm to learn more about the impact of the Chevron deference ruling.]
“Chevron Deference has been a blight on our Constitutional system since it was decided,” said Rep. Green in a statement. “If there is ambiguity in the law, Congressional intent should be the most important tool of interpretation, not the political ambitions of federal bureaucrats. Allowing the executive branch to twist or add to laws is unconstitutional. Both Congress and the courts need to take back their respective authority instead of letting the executive branch run rogue.”
