Increasing Efficiency in Congressional Disapproval of Overreaching Rules

When the Founding Fathers wrote the Constitution and created our government, they separated powers between the three branches to prevent too much concentration of power in one branch, vesting legislative power in Congress, executive power in the President, and judicial power in the courts. This separation created a system of checks and balances, allowing the branches to hold each other accountable with their counteracting ambition.

Under the Biden-Harris Administration, however, federal agencies ran rampant, expanding their authority by assuming the powers of the legislative and judicial branches in addition to their executive powers, to the displeasure and detriment of the American people. They issued rules with the force of law, exercising legislative powers; enforced those rules, exercising executive powers; and used their own judgment to settle disputes under them, exercising judicial powers.

To check this overreach of power, the Congressional Review Act of 1996 (CRA) allows Congress to disapprove of agency rules by passing a joint resolution, effectively vetoing dangerous regulations; however, currently, the CRA demands Congress pass a separate joint resolution for each rule it needs to disapprove – slowing Congress’ ability to inhibit burdensome agency regulations and keep the administrative state and its unelected bureaucrats accountable. 

This is especially disrupting at the end of a President’s term, when agencies have historically issued many more regulations than previous years, called “midnight rulemaking,” making it even more difficult for Congress to review and, if necessary, disapprove the agencies’ rules – such as how agencies under the Biden Administration issued dozens of ‘significant’ final rules after President Trump won the Presidential election in 2024. 
 
It is the constitutional purview of Congress to legislate – not federal agencies. By allowing unelected bureaucrats at these agencies to make laws, the power of the American public to hold their government accountable is completely undermined. We can’t let agencies expand their power without limit – we’ve already seen how frequently federal agencies abuse their authority. 

H.R. 77, the Midnight Rules Relief Act, sponsored by Rep. Andy Biggs, amends the Congressional Review Act to allow Congress to disapprove multiple rules through one joint resolution if those rules were issued during the last year of a President’s term in office.

House Republicans are stepping up to rein in executive overreach, protect Americans from burdensome regulations, and keep the legislative process transparent and accountable to the American people the way our Founding Fathers intended.

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Cracking Down on High Speed Chases With Illegal Immigrants Fleeing Arrest  

On December 7, 2022, Border Patrol Agent Raul Gonzalez, Jr., was killed in the line of duty while pursuing illegal immigrants who were fleeing capture near Mission, Texas. 
High speed chases often result in tragic losses of life, whether it is migrants in the cars when traffickers crash, Americans struck by illegal immigrants fleeing capture, or law enforcement officers in the line of duty.

Too many innocent Americans have paid the price for illegal immigrants recklessly breaking our laws and engaging in high speed chases to avoid detention. We must ensure that there are meaningful consequences in place for any illegal migrant who threatens the safety of our communities and lives of our citizens. 

In honor of Agent Raul Gonzalez, Jr., and his sacrifice while fighting to protect our southern border, House Republicans are bringing forward a bill that holds traffickers and illegal immigrants accountable and makes them think twice before fleeing arrest.

Rep. Juan Ciscomani’s legislation, H.R. 35, the Agent Raul Gonzalez Officer Safety Act, creates new criminal offenses for operating a vehicle within 100 miles of the southern border while fleeing from Border Patrol agents, or any law enforcement officer assisting the U.S. Border Patrol, including serious jail time and prohibition from ever receiving legal status in the United States. 

House Republicans are sending traffickers, cartels, and other illegal immigrants the message that if they risk the lives of American citizens, we will hold them to the full extent of the law.