House judiciary hearing spotlights proposals to rein in the administrative state and disputes over agency authority

Congressional members and four outside witnesses spent a hearing on Capitol Hill Tuesday arguing over whether and how to rein in the federal administrative state, debating the economic costs of regulatory accumulation and the fairness of agency-run adjudications.

The hearing focused on proposals that would increase congressional oversight of major rules, expand judicial review of agency actions, and provide defendants a route to Article III courts when agencies seek enforcement. "Regulatory burdens have reached an all time high," Chairman Michael Fitzgerald said in opening remarks, listing measures such as the REINS Act and the Separation of Powers Restoration Act as tools the committee considered to restore congressional control.

Why it matters: Witnesses said regulatory growth affects business investment and households while members tied those effects to larger questions about separation of powers, agency accountability and recent moves by the executive branch to reassign agency personnel and data access. That mix of economic and constitutional concerns animated both majority and minority members across multiple lines of questioning.

Testimony and evidence: Patrick McLaughlin, a research fellow at the Hoover Institution and…