H.R. 3171 — Reduction in Force Review Act

This section amends the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to subject federal agency reductions in force (RIFs), authorized under subchapter I of chapter 35 of title 5, United States Code, and certain other significant agency actions to congressional review. Specifically, it (1) requires agencies submitting CRA reports on rules relating to such RIFs to include a detailed justification covering the specific reasons for the RIF, anticipated impacts on employees and operations, alternatives considered and reasons for their rejection, consultations with affected employees and their representatives, and impacts on veteran employees; and (2) expands the definition of "rule" under the CRA to explicitly include rules or orders relating to such RIFs and any significant agency action that substantially affects non-federal parties' rights or obligations (e.g., workforce restructuring or office closure) or materially impacts agency employees or operations. (As background, the CRA requires agencies to submit rules to Congress and GAO for potential disapproval via joint resolution.)