Political Quotes

“Every year, thousands of federal rules or regulations governing almost every aspect of society are conceived through the federal rulemaking process. Consequently, federal agencies perform quasi-legislative functions and, in many ways, serve as an extension of Congress. This notion of an unelected entity having such tremendous impact on society rests uneasily with democratic theory. For this reason, a critical feature in our democracy is to control excessive bureaucratic discretion and to ensure that rules and regulations promulgated by federal agencies are consistent with the intent of Congress as expressed in the law. The Administrative Procedure Act (APA) of 1946 exists for this purpose--to constrain excessive bureaucratic discretion through procedural requirements for agency decision making, including setting goals and standards for regulations, and ensuring public participation through notice and comment.”