Sen. James Lankford Explains Nationwide Injunctions and the Congressional Review Act

Nationwide Injunctions and Judicial Overreach

• 🏛️ The U.S. has three branches of government: legislative (writes laws), executive (executes laws), and judicial (interprets laws).
• ⚖️ Traditionally, district courts rule on cases before them, with appeals moving to circuit courts and finally the Supreme Court.
• 📈 Nationwide injunctions, a relatively recent phenomenon starting around the 1960s, allow lower courts to make decisions affecting the entire country, bypassing higher courts.
• ⚠️ This practice has increased significantly under recent administrations, with a notable rise under President Trump and continued use under President Biden.
• 📜 Senator Grassley's "Judicial Relief Clarification Act" aims to curb nationwide injunctions by ensuring courts decide only the cases presented to them.

The Congressional Review Act (CRA)

• 🔍 The CRA allows Congress to review and overturn regulations issued by the executive branch, particularly "midnight regulations" enacted at the end of a presidential term.
• 💰 A regulation is typically considered a "rule" if it costs the economy over $100 million or if the agency designates it as such.
• 📜 The Congressional Review Act was first used under President Clinton to overturn an ergonomics rule.

California's Electric Vehicle Mandate and GAO's Role

• 🚗 California, with a waiver under the Clean Air Act, sought to implement stricter emissions standards, requiring 35% zero-emission vehicles by 2026 and 100% by 2035.
• 🗓️ The Biden administration worked with the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to frame this as an "order" rather than a "rule" to avoid CRA review.
• 🌐 Eleven other states adopted California's rule, expanding its impact to affect 40% of U.S. vehicle sales.
• 🗳️ The Biden administration issued permission for the mandate in late 2024/early 2025, after the election, which Senator Lankford argues is a "midnight regulation."
• 📉 The GAO initially stated that if an agency declares something a rule, it is a rule, but later declared California's EV mandate an "order" to prevent Congressional review.
• ❓ Senator Lankford asserts that the GAO broke its own legal opinion by not deferring to the agency's classification of the EV mandate as a rule.

Confronting Agency Overreach

• 🇺🇸 The action taken was not "going nuclear" but confronting an agency that allegedly broke its own rules to impose a nationwide mandate without Congressional approval.
• ⚖️ The core issue is whether an agency can impose mandates that Congress has not legislated, violating the constitutional principle that legislative power resides with Congress.
• ✅ The resolution clarified that when an agency designates an action as a rule, it is indeed a rule, reaffirming Congressional authority.
• 🚗 The aim is not to oppose electric vehicles but to ensure Americans have the choice to buy them, rather than being mandated, and that Congress, not agencies, makes such significant policy decisions.