How the Congressional Review Act Works—and Why It Matters

A Quiet Law With Outsized Power

Buried in the Contract with America Advancement Act of 1996, the Congressional Review Act (CRA) gives Congress an expedited path to strike down federal agency regulations. For most of its first two decades, the law sat nearly dormant. It has since become one of the most consequential—and controversial—tools in American governance, letting a simple majority in both chambers erase rules that took agencies years to draft.

How the CRA Works

The mechanism is straightforward. Every time a federal agency finalizes a new rule—whether on workplace safety, environmental standards, or financial regulation—it must submit a report to both houses of Congress and the Government Accountability Office (GAO). Congress then has 60 legislative days to review the rule.

If lawmakers object, they can introduce a joint resolution of disapproval. In the Senate, this resolution enjoys special fast-track procedures: debate is limited to ten hours, amendments are not permitted, and—crucially—the resolution cannot be filibustered. It passes or fails on a simple majority vote. If both chambers approve and the president signs it, the rule is nullified.

There is a powerful sting in the tail. Once a rule is disapproved under the CRA, the issuing agency may not reissue the same rule or any "substantially similar" rule unless Congress specifically authorizes it through new legislation. This prohibition makes each CRA disapproval far more permanent than a typical legislative repeal.

The "Lookback" Window

The CRA's most politically potent feature is its lookback provision. When a new Congress is seated—especially after a change in the White House—lawmakers can reach back and target rules finalized during the previous administration's final months. Any rule submitted to Congress during roughly the last 60 legislative days of the prior session is treated as if it were freshly submitted, reopening the disapproval window.

This creates a recurring pattern: outgoing administrations rush to finalize regulations before leaving office, and incoming Congresses use the CRA to unwind them.

From Dormancy to Dominance

For its first five years, the CRA went entirely unused. Congress successfully deployed it for the first time in 2001, when it repealed an OSHA ergonomics rule finalized in the final months of the Clinton administration. The law then went dormant again for over 15 years.

The CRA's modern era began in 2017, when the 115th Congress used it to repeal 16 Obama-era regulations in rapid succession—covering everything from internet privacy rules to environmental protections. The Biden-era 117th Congress then used the CRA three times to overturn Trump-era rules, including a loosening of oil and gas emission standards.

Usage surged again in 2025, when 22 CRA resolutions were signed into law—more in a single year than all previous presidents combined. Congress also expanded the CRA's reach into novel territory, using it for the first time to overturn Bureau of Land Management resource management plans and EPA Clean Air Act waivers for California.

Why It's Controversial

Supporters say the CRA enforces democratic accountability: unelected bureaucrats should not impose sweeping rules without elected officials having a meaningful check. The filibuster bypass ensures that a determined majority can act.

Critics counter that the law undermines regulatory stability. The "substantially similar" prohibition can freeze entire policy areas for years, and the expanding interpretation of what counts as a "rule" threatens long-settled agency actions, according to scholars at Harvard's Environmental and Energy Law Program. By defying the Senate parliamentarian and the GAO's own guidance on scope, recent Congresses have stretched the CRA well beyond its original design.

The law also creates a ratchet effect. Because each party uses it aggressively when it gains power, the CRA encourages a cycle of regulatory whiplash—rules enacted, erased, and replaced with each change of administration.

The Road Ahead

The Congressional Review Act is unlikely to fade back into obscurity. Both parties have now discovered its utility, and legal scholars expect its use to intensify with each transition of power. A proposed Congressional Review Reform Act introduced in the 119th Congress seeks to update the law's procedures, though its prospects remain uncertain. What began as a modest oversight mechanism has become a central battleground in the ongoing struggle over who controls federal regulation.