Overview
Title
To end the unconstitutional delegation of legislative power which was exclusively vested in the Senate and House of Representatives by article I, section 1 of the Constitution of the United States, and to direct the Comptroller General of the United States to issue a report to Congress detailing the extent of the problem of unconstitutional delegation to the end that such delegations can be phased out, thereby restoring the constitutional principle of separation of powers set forth in the first sections of the Constitution of the United States.
ELI5 AI
S. 60 is a bill that wants to make sure only Congress gets to make the rules for the country and not anyone else, like the President or other groups. It says Congress should follow the Constitution and keep these important jobs for themselves.
Summary AI
S. 60, also known as the “Write the Laws Act,” aims to stop Congress from giving away its legislative powers to other branches of government or outside entities. The bill emphasizes the importance of keeping law-making powers within Congress, as outlined in the U.S. Constitution, to preserve the separation of powers between the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. It also requires the Comptroller General to report on existing laws that inappropriately delegate legislative power, ensuring laws are created and defined by elected officials in Congress rather than unelected bureaucrats. Additionally, it sets rules to prevent any new executive actions or regulations from taking effect unless they are explicitly authorized by Congress.
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AnalysisAI
The United States Senate has introduced a bill, designated S. 60, titled the "Write the Laws Act." This proposed legislation seeks to address the issue of what it identifies as "unconstitutional delegation" of legislative power by Congress to various government agencies and other entities. The core intent of the bill is to reinforce the separation of powers outlined in the U.S. Constitution by prohibiting such delegations and ensuring that legislative power remains exclusively within Congress.
General Summary
This bill proposes several key actions:
Classifying Delegations: It identifies and defines what constitutes an unconstitutional delegation of legislative powers, including the creation or clarification of criminal and civil offenses that are not fully defined by Congress itself.
Prohibition and Enforcement: It explicitly prohibits Congress from delegating legislative powers to any branch of government or external entity, asserting that any such actions taken outside these guidelines would be invalid and unenforceable.
Accountability and Reporting: The bill tasks the Comptroller General with reporting any existing statutes that might include such delegations, aiming to phase these out.
Legal Relief: It allows individuals aggrieved by any executive actions resulting from such unconstitutional delegations to seek redress in court.
Severability Clause: If any portion of the bill is ruled invalid in court, the rest of the bill would remain in force.
Significant Issues
A number of issues accompany this legislative proposal:
Ambiguity and Complexity: The bill's broad definitions and complex language may lead to ambiguity. Terms such as "delegation of legislative powers" and "quasi-public agency" are not clearly defined, which could cause varying interpretations.
Operational Impact: The prohibition of all forms of delegation could significantly disrupt the operations of federal agencies, which rely on delegations to effectively implement and enforce regulations.
Judicial Overhead: The right to challenge these delegations might increase the judicial system’s workload, with the potential flood of litigation testing executive actions against this new standard.
Administrative Burdens: The Comptroller General's task to identify existing statutes with inappropriate delegations may require substantial resources and time, impacting other responsibilities.
Impact on the Public
Broadly speaking, this bill could have significant implications for how laws are crafted and enforced in the United States. By insisting that more power remains with Congress, it could potentially make the government more transparent and ensure that elected representatives are directly accountable for the laws under which the public must live. However, the resulting inefficiencies in federal administration might lead to slower regulatory processes or gaps in important regulatory areas, affecting services on which citizens rely.
Impact on Specific Stakeholders
Legislative and Executive Branches: Congress and the Executive may find their capacity to efficiently create and enforce detailed regulations hampered by this bill, particularly in highly specialized fields that traditionally benefit from agency input.
Administrative Agencies: These bodies could face significant restructuring or reduction in authority, affecting their ability to carry out specialized tasks and respond to contemporary challenges.
Legal System: The judiciary could experience an increase in cases challenging executive actions, leading to potential backlogs and increased legal costs for both government and plaintiffs.
General Public and Businesses: While the bill might safeguard against perceived "oversights by bureaucrats," the lack of delegation could also mean that beneficial regulatory changes are slower or more challenging to implement, impacting businesses and day-to-day public life.
Ultimately, while aiming to adhere more closely to constitutional principles, the "Write the Laws Act" could introduce substantial administrative and operational hurdles, posing challenges for the practical governance of the nation.
Issues
The prohibition on delegation under Section 4, specifically in section 151(b), could significantly disrupt the functioning of the government by limiting necessary administrative delegations, leading to inefficiencies in implementing laws and policies.
The broad definition of 'delegation of legislative powers' in sections 4(a)(1) and 151(a)(1) could cause ambiguity and lead to differing interpretations, affecting the clarity and application of the proposed legislation.
The complexity and potentially ambiguous language in the findings of Section 3, which critiques the separation of powers without providing clear legislative solutions, might create uncertainty in understanding and implementing the bill's objectives.
Section 152's enforcement clause ambiguously defines 'appropriate relief' and uses complex legal terminology that could confuse non-legal experts, potentially leading to inconsistent judicial outcomes and increased litigation.
Section 5's severability clause contains complex legal language that may be difficult for laypeople to understand, potentially leading to uncertainties in how the remainder of the Act would be interpreted if part is invalidated.
The tasking of the Comptroller General in section 4(d) and 151(d) to report on existing statutes with prohibited delegations could impose a significant administrative burden, requiring more resources and time than anticipated.
The definition of 'quasi-public agency' in section 4, specifically section 151(b)(5), is not clearly defined, which could lead to inconsistent interpretations and applications of the law.
Sections
Sections are presented as they are annotated in the original legislative text. Any missing headers, numbers, or non-consecutive order is due to the original text.
1. Short title Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
The first section of the act gives it the official name "Write the Laws Act."
2. Constitutional authority statement Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
The section explains that the Act is based on the powers given to Congress by the U.S. Constitution, specifically those that allow Congress to create laws and ensure they are necessary and proper. It also aims to ensure that enforcing federal law aligns with the Fifth Amendment's guarantee of due process.
3. Findings Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
Congress finds that the Constitution clearly separates the powers of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, but believes Congress has unconstitutionally created and empowered agencies by blending these powers, thereby undermining the system of checks and balances and violating the separation of powers. Additionally, Congress has improperly delegated legislative responsibilities to unelected officials, violating constitutional principles and imposing burdens on the American people.
4. Restoring the separation of powers Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
The proposed section of the bill aims to reinforce the separation of powers by prohibiting Congress from delegating its legislative powers to other branches of government or agencies, ensuring that any new regulations or changes by the Executive branch must be authorized by Congress, and invalidating any actions that do not comply with these rules.
151. Nondelegation of legislative power Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
The section prohibits Congress from delegating its legislative powers to any government branch, agency, or external organization. It also specifies that new Executive actions affecting individuals or entities (non-government employees) require authorization by an Act of Congress, and mandates a report identifying existing laws with prohibited delegations.
152. Enforcement clause Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
In Section 152, the bill states that any law, directive, or regulation that doesn't follow Section 151 has no legal power, and nobody can be sued under it. Additionally, individuals can sue the government if harmed by such a policy, using a specific legal process, to stop its enforcement, and any such case will be reviewed from scratch by the court.
153. Effective date Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
This section clarifies that the rules in this chapter will apply to any new law, presidential order, legal decision, or regulation, as well as any changes to existing ones, starting 90 days after the chapter is officially enacted.
5. Severability clause Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
If any part of the Act or its amendments is found invalid by a court, the rest of the Act and the remaining amendments will continue to be in effect for other people and situations.