Mandates

Review of Activities Under the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act

The federal government sometimes imposes requirements—known as mandates—on state, local, and tribal governments and entities in the private sector in order to achieve national goals. In 1995, lawmakers enacted the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) in part to ensure that the Congress receives information about the potential effects of mandates as it considers proposed legislation. To that end, UMRA requires CBO, at certain points in the legislative process, to assess the cost of mandates that would apply to state, local, and tribal governments and to the private sector. From 1997 through 2015, CBO prepared annual reviews of its activities under UMRA and produced reports summarizing those activities. The last report, which covered activities in calendar year 2014, was published in March 2015. In 2016, CBO fully transitioned to an online version of the review. The online version includes information about mandates in legislation and in public laws beginning with 2013, and it is updated periodically throughout the year.