U.S. Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-TX) introduced a bill on Thursday that would limit the power of regulatory agencies by restoring the ability of courts to interpret laws.
The Separation of Powers Restoration Act, H.R. 4768, aims to prevent unelected officials and federal agencies from effectively creating laws.
“The constituents I represent aren’t just frustrated with the enormous quantity of regulations being rolled out by unelected federal bureaucrats – they’re fed up with the lack of accountability administrative agencies have when they make all these rules out of thin air,” Ratcliffe said.
Under the bill, a 1984 U.S. Supreme Court decision that found federal agencies, not courts, should interpret statutes written by Congress in most cases would be overturned.
“For too long, federal regulators have been allowed to run free and loose in their interpretation of the laws that Congress writes, resulting in a dangerous and unconstitutional culmination of power,” Ratcliffe said. “The government works for the people – not the other way around – and I’m proud to help lead this effort to ensure the separation of powers is respected as our Founding Fathers intended.”
The bill would amend the Administrative Procedure Act to require courts to review all relevant questions of law rather than bureaucrats.
“We’ve already seen unelected bureaucrats try to tell people what kind of light bulbs they can buy, attempt to regulate puddles in people’s backyards and fail immensely at taking over Americans’ healthcare,” Ratcliffe said. “We must ensure the integrity of our three co-equal branches of government, and this legislation will stop administrative agencies from taking powers the Constitution does not give them.”
U.S. Reps. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, and Tom Marino (R-PA), the chairman of House Judiciary Subcommittee on Regulatory Reform, are among the bill’s 43 original cosponsors.