Rep. Burlison's Guidance Clarity Act of 2025 lands spot on 2026 No-Brainer Report
The bill would require federal agency guidance documents to state that the guidance does "not have the force and effect of law."
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WASHINGTON, DC-- U.S. Representative Eric Burlison's (R-MO) Guidance Clarity Act of 2025 has been included in National Taxpayers Union's annual "No Brainers" Report, released Thursday.
The bill would require federal agency guidance documents to state that the guidance does "not have the force and effect of law." Guidance is not issued in accordance with the formal rulemaking process and it is not legally binding. However, some agencies have attempted to use regulatory guidance to issue new policy directives.
"This legislation would provide much-needed clarity to the public that agency guidance is not legally binding. It will reduce confusion and ensure that regulatory policy is changed only through the formal rulemaking process," Pete Sepp, President of National Taxpayers Union, said.
The Guidance Clarity Act of 2025 is a bipartisan federal bill introduced in the 119th Congress to increase transparency and prevent federal agencies from treating nonbinding guidance documents as formal laws.
The legislation requires executive branch agencies to prominently display a standardized statement on the first page of any covered guidance document. [1, 2]
Mandatory Statement Text:
"The contents of this document do not have the force and effect of law and do not, of themselves, bind the public or the agency."
To be included on the "No Brainers" list, bills must meet three key criteria:
Support from both Democrats and Republicans
Not appeared on a previous NTU list
Provide a sensible solution to a real taxpayer issue
"This bill should be included on Congress's lame duck agenda and passed immediately," Sepp said. "When we put partisan politics aside, there's wide agreement on sensible solutions."
NTU is the only free-market representation for taxpayers that unites effective advocacy with useful research about how to limit taxes, spending, and regulation at every level and branch of government—state, federal, administrative, and judicial.
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