H.R. 7592 — Zero-Based Regulatory Budgeting to Unleash American Energy Act of 2026

This section defines, for purposes of the Act, (1) "covered agency" to mean the Department of Energy; the Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, and Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement within the Department of the Interior; and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission; (2) "covered regulation" to mean any regulation promulgated by those agencies under specified statutes (e.g., Atomic Energy Act of 1954, Energy Policy Act of 2005, Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977, Federal Power Act, Natural Gas Act); and (3) "regulation" to mean each part, subpart, or individual provision of a rule (as defined in 5 U.S.C. §551) promulgated by a covered agency.

This section requires the head of each covered agency to (1) amend each existing covered regulation within 90 days of enactment to expire one year after the amendment's effective date; and (2) ensure each new covered regulation expires five years after its effective date, subject to waiver if the agency determines it has a net deregulatory effect and notifies the Office of Management and Budget. This section further authorizes covered agencies to extend a covered regulation's expiration date up to five years (from the current date) upon public comment on costs and benefits and a determination that extension is warranted, with simplified procedures for net deregulatory amendments and allowance for multiple extensions; seeking comment does not automatically extend the date. Upon sunset without extension, the regulation ceases to have effect, may not be enforced, and must be removed from the Code of Federal Regulations as soon as practicable.

This section provides a severability clause, stating that if any provision of the Act or its application to any person or circumstance is held unconstitutional, the remainder of the Act and the application of the provision to other persons or circumstances shall not be affected.

This section includes standard administrative provisions that (1) preserve existing authorities granted by law to executive departments, agencies, or their heads and (2) state that the Act creates no enforceable right or benefit, substantive or procedural, against the United States, its departments, agencies, entities, officers, employees, agents, or any other person.