The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act: Opportunities for Improvement to Support State and Local Governments

The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA) was originally conceived to ensure that congressional deliberation and agency regulation took into account the costs to state and local governments to implement new requirements.  Since that time, concerns have been expressed about the efficacy of the legislation, inconsistency in the application of its requirements, and inadequacy of agency consultation with state and local governments.  The Unfunded Mandates Information and Transparency Act of 2015 (UMITA) House committee report states that it aims to “improve the quality of Congressional deliberations and enhance the ability of Congress, federal agencies, and the public to identify federal mandates that may impose undue harm on state, local, and tribal governments and the private sector.”  This hearing examined the effectiveness of UMRA by getting the perspective of state and local governments on the challenges they face as they implement congressional and agency mandates.