What is regulatory authority?

Regulatory authority is the power granted to federal agencies by Congress to create and enforce rules that have the force of law within their jurisdiction. Federal agencies use regulatory authority to implement broad statutes passed by Congress, filling in details that the statutes leave unspecified. Congress writes laws in general terms, and agencies translate those general provisions into specific rules through the regulatory process. The legal basis for regulatory authority comes from statutes that Congress passes giving agencies the power to issue rules.

The Clean Air Act, for example, gives the Environmental Protection Agency broad authority to set air pollution standards. The Securities Act of 1933 and Securities Exchange Act of 1934 give the Securities and Exchange Commission authority to regulate securities markets. The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act gives the Food and Drug Administration authority to approve drugs and regulate food safety.

Federal agencies issue regulations through a process called rulemaking, governed by the Administrative Procedure Act of 1946. The standard rulemaking process, called notice-and-comment rulemaking, requires agencies to publish proposed rules in the Federal Register, allow the public to submit comments on the proposals, consider those comments, and then publish a final rule with a written explanation of the agency's decisions. The process can take months or years for complex rules.

After publication, regulations are codified in the Code of Federal Regulations, the official compilation of federal regulations organized by subject area. The CFR runs to thousands of pages across more than 200 volumes covering everything from aviation safety to wage and hour rules to environmental standards. Regulations have the force of federal law. People and businesses subject to a regulation must comply with it, and agencies can enforce compliance through inspections, audits, fines, license actions, and referrals for criminal prosecution.

Major federal regulatory areas include environmental protection (EPA), food and drug safety (FDA), workplace safety (OSHA), labor relations (NLRB), aviation safety (FAA), banking and financial services (multiple agencies including the Federal Reserve, the SEC, and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency), telecommunications (FCC), and others.

Regulatory authority has been a recurring source of constitutional and political controversy. The Supreme Court has imposed some limits, including the major questions doctrine articulated in West Virginia v. EPA (2022), which holds that agencies need clear congressional authorization to issue regulations of vast economic and political significance. The Court overturned the Chevron doctrine in Loper Light Enterprises v. Raimondo (2024), reducing the deference courts give to agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes.