A Review of Congressional Mandating Behavior Since the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act

Title 1 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) of 1995 discourages Congress from considering a reported bill containing intergovernmental mandates without a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) cost statement and prohibits floor consideration of a bill that would impose new mandates costing more than the statutory threshold unless the legislation provides new spending authority or authorizes appropriations to cover the costs. A member must raise a point of order to enforce these rules, and in the House a simple majority can vote to consider the bill. Since cost estimates for bills are routine and the procedural safeguard is weak, it is a challenge to explain why Congress has enacted relatively few unfunded mandates since UMRA. This article reviews the circumstances that put unfunded mandates on the congressional agenda and examines congressional mandating behavior after UMRA.