The Administrative Procedure Act (APA) is the United States federal statute, enacted June 11 1946 and codified chiefly at 5 U.S.C. Subchapter II (Sections 551 to 559, with judicial review provisions at 701 to 706), that governs how federal administrative agencies develop and issue regulations and establishes the framework for judicial review of agency action. It requires notice-and-comment rulemaking for most regulations: an agency must publish a proposed rule in the Federal Register, accept public comment, and consider that comment before issuing a final rule. It also sets standards for formal and informal adjudication and empowers courts to set aside agency action found to be arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, or otherwise not in accordance with law. It is commonly described as the enabling frame for the modern regulatory state: the statute under whose procedures federal agencies issue the great majority of binding federal regulations.
Facts
EraUnited States, enacted June 11 1946 2 Promulgated ByThe 79th United States Congress 2 Jurisdiction ScopeUnited States federal administrative agencies, and the federal courts reviewing their action 2 Regulatory DomainAdministrative rulemaking and adjudication procedure 2 Classification
Legal Status Jurisdiction Scope
Jurisdiction Scope (category) Era
Era (category)20th Century (1900-1999) 1 Connections
Associated With
The Freedom of Information Act was enacted in 1966 as an amendment to the Administrative Procedure Act.
Source National Archives, Federal Register
The APA (5 U.S.C. 701-706) establishes the statutory framework for judicial review of federal agency action, empowering courts to set aside action found arbitrary, capricious or otherwise unlawful.
The Administrative Procedure Act structures how agencies exercise delegated rulemaking power, which is the terrain the nondelegation doctrine polices.
Established
For the United States federal system specifically: administrative law as a field is older and exists independently in other jurisdictions, but the Administrative Procedure Act (1946) gave it its modern statutory procedural frame in US federal practice.
Source National Archives, Federal Register
The EPA promulgates and revises Clean Air Act regulations, including the National Ambient Air Quality Standards, through the notice-and-comment rulemaking procedure the Administrative Procedure Act (1946) sets for federal agencies.
Source National Archives, Federal Register
EPA regulations implementing the Clean Water Act are promulgated via APA notice-and-comment rulemaking, the same pattern already recorded for Clean Air Act Regulations established-by APA
FTC and CFPB rules implementing the Fair Credit Reporting Act, such as Regulation V, are adopted through Administrative Procedure Act rulemaking.
The HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules were promulgated by the Department of Health and Human Services through Administrative Procedure Act notice-and-comment rulemaking.
OSHA safety standards under the Occupational Safety and Health Act are promulgated by the Department of Labor through Administrative Procedure Act notice-and-comment rulemaking, the same convention already used for Clean Air Act Regulations and the Clean Water Act.
The FCC implements the Telecommunications Act of 1996 through Administrative Procedure Act notice-and-comment rulemaking.
In Legal System
Source National Archives, Federal Register
Sources
1. Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School: 5 U.S. Code Section 551 - Definitions
Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law SchoolSource credit, era
June 11, 1946, ch. 324, § 2(a) , 60 Stat. 237 .
Source credit, status
Pub. L. 111-350, § 5(a)(2) , Jan. 4, 2011 , 124 Stat. 3841 .
View the Source 2. National Archives, Federal Register
Administrative Procedure Act (Wikipedia)
In Group: Administrative Procedure, Information and Land Regulation, Introduction, sentence 1Quote, In Group: Administrative Procedure, Information and Land Regulation, Introduction, sentence 1
The Administrative Procedure Act (APA), (Pub. L. 79-404, ch.
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