Sunshine for Regulatory Decrees and Settlements Act of 2025
Sponsored By: Representative Rep. Cline, Ben [R-VA-6]
In Committee
Summary
tighten judicial and public oversight of consent decrees and settlement agreements that require federal agencies to take regulatory action. It would layer notice, public comment, mediation, certification, and record requirements before courts may enter or approve those agreements.
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- Agencies would have to publish notices online within 15 days and post proposed decrees in the Federal Register at least 60 days before filing. They would also have to respond to public comments, provide a certified index of the administrative record, and the Attorney General or agency head must personally certify settlements that create nondiscretionary duties, commit unappropriated funds, or divest agency discretion.
- State, local, and tribal governments would face specific intervention rules. The bill creates a rebuttable presumption that an outside movant is not adequately represented and directs courts to consider joint administration or preemption when governments seek to intervene.
- Settlement negotiations would require court mediation or an approved alternative dispute resolution program that includes intervenors, and courts could not enter covered decrees or dismiss cases until specified sequencing and proceedings finish. The public would gain access to proposed settlements, optional hearings with full hearing records, and courts must include certified indexes and hearing records in the court file.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
4 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 0 costs, 3 mixed.
More public input and intervention rights
If enacted, the bill would make it easier for people and governments to join suits that seek to force agency action. Courts would start from a rebuttable presumption that an alleged affected person is not adequately represented, and judges must consider whether State, local, or tribal governments share administration of the relevant law or would be preempted. The bill would also require settlement talks that could bind agencies to run through court mediation or approved ADR and to include any intervenor in those talks.
Which lawsuits this bill would cover
If enacted, the bill would apply only to ‘‘covered civil actions’’ filed on or after enactment and to proposed covered consent decrees or settlement agreements submitted to a court on or after enactment. The bill defines covered cases as suits that seek to compel agency regulatory action or allege unreasonable delay under certain statutes. This timing rule would start the bill's procedural duties only for later-filed cases and proposals.
Courts would reexamine settlement changes
If enacted, the bill would require courts to review de novo any agency motion to modify a covered consent decree or settlement when the agency says changed duties or facts make the terms no longer in the public interest. Courts would reexamine both the modification request and the original decree from scratch. This raises judicial scrutiny and may make it harder for agencies to change settlement terms later.
More public notice before agency settlements
If enacted, the bill would require agencies to publish proposed consent decrees or settlement agreements online and in the Federal Register at least 60 days before filing. Agencies would have to accept public comment for 60 days, respond to substantive comments, and give the court a certified index of the full administrative record. The bill would also require agencies to post notices of intent to sue and complaints online within 15 days of service. Parties would be barred from asking a court to enter or dismiss such settlements until those notice, comment, and hearing steps finish, which would likely delay some settlements and any regulatory relief they would create.
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Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Rep. Cline, Ben [R-VA-6]
VA • R
Cosponsors
Tiffany
WI • R
Sponsored 12/11/2025
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
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