# The REG Budgeting Act of 2025: What It Actually Does

This bill creates a new system to control how much it costs businesses and individuals to comply with federal regulations. Think of it like putting a yearly spending cap on regulations—similar to how a household budget limits spending in different categories. Each year, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) would set a maximum amount of new regulatory costs that federal agencies can impose on the private sector. If an agency wants to create a rule that would push costs over that limit, Congress would have to approve it first.

Here's how it works in practice: Before each fiscal year starts, the OMB director sets a total cost ceiling for all new regulations government-wide, plus individual limits for each agency. If the Environmental Protection Agency, for example, wants to issue a new pollution rule that would cost businesses $50 million to comply with, but that rule would exceed the EPA's yearly limit, the rule can't take effect unless Congress votes to approve it. Agencies have to notify the OMB when they're planning rules that might exceed their limits, explaining why the rule is necessary and whether there are cheaper alternatives. The OMB then decides whether to allow it or block it. If the OMB approves a rule that exceeds the limit, it has to report that decision to Congress and the Government Accountability Office within a week.

The bill does include some exceptions for emergency situations, criminal law enforcement, national security, and international trade agreements. It also creates a new position—an Associate Administrator for Regulatory Budgeting—to oversee this whole system. The practical effect is that new regulations would face an additional approval hurdle: not only would they need to go through the normal rule-making process, but they'd also need to fit within a regulatory cost budget or get special congressional permission. This could slow down the creation of new rules, whether they're environmental protections, workplace safety standards, or consumer safeguards.