Early Participation in Regulations Act of 2025
The Early Participation in Regulations Act of 2025 would require federal agencies to publish an advance notice of proposed rule making (ANPRM) for certain rules deemed “major.” A major rule is defined by the Administration as a rule likely to have a substantial economic impact (typically at least $100 million in annual effects), or to significantly affect costs, competition, employment, investment, health, safety, the environment, or the competitiveness of U.S. firms. For these major rules, agencies would must publish an ANPRM at least 90 days before the traditional notice of proposed rule making (NPRM). The ANPRM would solicit public input, describe the problem and potential regulatory approaches, outline the legal authority, and allow a minimum 30-day public comment period. The bill also provides several exceptions where an ANPRM would not be required and limits judicial review of certain agency determinations related to those exceptions. Overall, the bill would broaden early public participation in rulemaking for rules with the biggest potential impact. By elevating early notice and public input for major rules, the bill aims to improve transparency and stakeholder engagement before rule proposals are finalized. It would also give the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) a formal gatekeeping role in determining what qualifies as a major rule and whether an ANPRM is required, subject to limited judicial review of those determinations.
Key Points
- 1Defines “major rule” and expands OIRA’s role: A major rule is one likely to impose at least $100 million in annual economic effects, cause a major increase in costs/prices, or have significant effects on competition, employment, investment, productivity, health, safety, environment, or U.S. competitiveness. The term “Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs” is defined and tied to its statutory Office within the executive branch.
- 2New advance notice requirement: For major rules, agencies must publish an ANPRM in the Federal Register no later than 90 days before the NPRM, with explicit content requirements and a public comment window.
- 3ANPRM content and public participation: The ANPRM must (i) identify the problem, data, and relevant categories, (ii) describe regulatory alternatives, and (iii) state the legal authority for the major rule; it must also solicit written data and views and provide at least 30 days for public submissions.
- 4Exceptions to the ANPRM requirement: ANPRMs may be omitted if the major rule is not required to publish an NPRM, if OIRA determines that ANPRMs would not serve the public interest, would be duplicative/ineffective, or would be impracticable due to deadlines, or if the major rule is routine or periodic.
- 5Limited judicial review of exceptions: Determinations by OIRA to skip or limit ANPRMs are not subject to judicial review, and differences between an agency’s written ANPRM-related statement and the NPRM are not reviewable under the standard of “arbitrary and capricious” review.