Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 104 Part 6.djvu/579

 PUBLIC LAW 101-648—NOV. 29, 1990 104 STAT. 4969 Public Law 101-648 101st Congress An Act To establish a framework for the conduct of negotiated rulemaking by Federal Nov. 29, 1990 agencies. [S. 303] Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, Negotiated Rulemaking Act SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 9f.l??P. This Act may be cited as the "Negotiated Rulemaking Act of 1990". 5 USC 581 note. SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 5 USC 581 note. The Congress makes the following findings: (1) Government regulation has increased substantially since the enactment of the Administrative Procedure Act. (2) Agencies currently use rulemaking procedures that may discourage the affected parties from meeting and communicating with each other, and may cause parties with different interests to assume conflicting and antagonistic positions and to > engage in expensive and time-consuming litigation over agency rules. (3) Adversarial rulemaking deprives the affected parties and the public of the benefits of face-to-face negotiations and cooperation in developing and reaching agreement on a rule. It also deprives them of the benefits of shared information, knowledge, expertise, and technical abilities possessed by the affected parties. (4) Negotiated rulemaking, in which the parties who will be significantly affected by a rule participate in the development of the rule, can provide significant advantages over adversarial rulemaking. (5) Negotiated rulemaking can increase the acceptability and improve the substance of rules, making it less likely that the affected parties will resist enforcement or challenge such rules in court. It may also shorten the amount of time needed to issue final rules. (6) Agencies have the authority to establish negotiated rulemaking committees under the laws establishing such agencies and their activities and under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.). Several agencies have successfully used negotiated rulemaking. The process has not been widely used by other agencies, however, in part because such agencies are unfamiliar with the process or uncertain as to the authority for such rulemaking. SEC. 3. NEGOTIATED RULEMAKING PROCEDURE. (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new subchapter:

�