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Dec 21, 2025

Trump Signs Record Number Of Congressional Review Act Resolutions-lllllllllllllll

President Donald Trump signed five Congressional Review Act resolutions into law on Dec. 11, bringing the total number he has approved in 2025 to 22. That total marks the most CRA resolutions signed by any president in a single year since the law took effect in 1996, surpassing the combined total of all previous presidents.

The five resolutions disapproved of Bureau of Land Management resource management plans covering parts of North Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, and northern and central Alaska, Ballotpedia reported.

The Congressional Review Act, signed into law by President Bill Clinton in 1996, allows Congress to review and reject newly issued federal agency rules.

Under the law, Congress has 60 working days to review a rule once it is formally submitted.

Both the House and Senate may pass a joint resolution of disapproval, which is then sent to the president for signature or veto.

If the president signs the resolution, the rule is overturned and the issuing agency is barred from issuing a substantially similar rule in the future.

The CRA applies broadly to agency rules, with exceptions for certain internal agency matters. Agencies themselves determine which actions qualify as rules and are therefore subject to congressional review.

When lawmakers dispute an agency’s decision not to submit an action, they may seek an opinion from the Government Accountability Office on whether the action should be treated as a rule under the CRA.

The 60-day review window begins once an agency submits the rule to Congress, even if the agency action occurred earlier. Congressional use of the CRA has increased sharply since 2017.

In the nearly 30 years since its enactment, Congress has repealed 42 rules under the CRA, with the vast majority occurring in recent years.

Between his two administrations, Trump has now signed 38 of the 42 CRA resolutions that have become law, accounting for approximately 95 percent of all successful CRA actions.

From 1996 through 2016, Congress passed six resolutions of disapproval. President George W. Bush signed one of those resolutions, while President Barack Obama vetoed the remaining five.

During Trump’s first term, Congress passed 17 CRA resolutions. Trump signed 16 and vetoed one. During the Biden administration, Congress passed 14 CRA resolutions. Former President Joe Biden signed three and vetoed 11. Congress has also expanded the scope of its CRA use in 2025.

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