Title 5Government Organization and EmployeesRelease 119-73

§605 Avoidance of duplicative or unnecessary analyses

Title 5 › Part PART I— - THE AGENCIES GENERALLY › Chapter CHAPTER 6— - THE ANALYSIS OF REGULATORY FUNCTIONS › § 605

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Federal agencies may do the reviews required by sections 602, 603, and 604 together with other required studies, as long as those other studies meet the same requirements. Sections 603 and 604 do not apply to a proposed or final rule if the agency head certifies the rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. The agency must publish that certification and the factual basis in the Federal Register when it publishes the proposed or final rule, and must send them to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy at the Small Business Administration. To avoid repeating work, an agency may treat a series of closely related rules as one rule for sections 602, 603, 604, and 610.

Full Legal Text

Title 5, §605

Government Organization and Employees — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Any Federal agency may perform the analyses required by section 602, 603, and 604 of this title in conjunction with or as a part of any other agenda or analysis required by any other law if such other analysis satisfies the provisions of such sections.
(b)section 603 and 604 of this title shall not apply to any proposed or final rule if the head of the agency certifies that the rule will not, if promulgated, have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. If the head of the agency makes a certification under the preceding sentence, the agency shall publish such certification in the Federal Register at the time of publication of general notice of proposed rulemaking for the rule or at the time of publication of the final rule, along with a statement providing the factual basis for such certification. The agency shall provide such certification and statement to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration.
(c)In order to avoid duplicative action, an agency may consider a series of closely related rules as one rule for the purposes of section 602, 603, 604 and 610 of this title.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

1996—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 104–121 amended subsec. (b) generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (b) read as follows: “section 603 and 604 of this title shall not apply to any proposed or final rule if the head of the agency certifies that the rule will not, if promulgated, have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. If the head of the agency makes a certification under the preceding sentence, the agency shall publish such certification in the Federal Register, at the time of publication of general notice of proposed rulemaking for the rule or at the time of publication of the final rule, along with a succinct statement explaining the reasons for such certification, and provide such certification and statement to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration.”

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1996 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 104–121 effective on expiration of 90 days after Mar. 29, 1996, but inapplicable to interpretative rules for which a notice of proposed rulemaking was published prior to Mar. 29, 1996, see section 245 of Pub. L. 104–121, set out as a note under section 601 of this title.

Effective Date

Section effective Jan. 1, 1981, see section 4 of Pub. L. 96–354, set out as a note under section 601 of this title.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

5 U.S.C. § 605

Title 5Government Organization and Employees

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73