SBREFA

The Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) of 1996 provided new avenues for small businesses to participate in  the federal regulatory arena.

SBREFA created Small Business Advocacy Review (SBAR) panels, which certain agencies must convene prior to proposing rules that would have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.

SBREFA Panels

Three agencies are now required to convene SBAR (or SBREFA) panels:  the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). This SBAR panel is made up of a chair from the covered agency, the Chief Counsel for Advocacy, and the Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. The panel meets with representatives of directly regulated small entities and offers an opportunity to provide advice and recommendations on regulatory alternatives to minimize the burden on small entities.

Under SBREFA, covered agencies (the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) must conduct a Small Business Advocacy Review (SBAR) panel before publishing a proposed rule with an Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis. This SBAR panel, made up of a chair from the covered agency, the Chief Counsel for Advocacy, and the Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, meets with representatives of directly regulated small entities and offers an opportunity to provide advice and recommendations on regulatory alternatives to minimize the burden on small entities.

Small Business Advocacy Review Panels Convened From 1997 to the Present under the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA)

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

RuleDate
Convened 		Date
Completed 		Notice of
Proposed
Rulemaking 		Final Rule
Published
Personal Financial Data Rights02/01/2303/30/2023
Automated Valuation Model (AVM)03/14/2205/13/2206/21/23
Small Business Lending Data Collection10/15/2012/14/2010/08/2105/31/23
Debt Collection 08/25/16 10/19/16 05/21/19. Supplemental rule published 03/03/20.11/30/20
Arbitration Clauses 10/20/15 12/11/15 05/24/16 Rule published 07/19/17. Repealed under Congressional Review Act 11/22/17
Limit Certain Practices for Payday, Vehicle Title, and Similar Loans 04/27/15 06/25/15 07/22/16 Rescinded in part, 07/07/20
Home Mortgage Disclosure Act 02/27/14 04/24/14 08/29/14 10/15/15
Loan Originator Compensation Requirements under Regulation Z 05/09/12 07/12/12 09/07/12 02/15/13
Mortgage Servicing under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA or Regulation X) and Truth in Lending Act (TILA or Regulation Z) 04/09/12 06/11/12 09/17/12 02/14/13
Integrated Mortgage Disclosures under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA or Regulation X) and Truth in Lending Act (TILA or Regulation Z) 02/21/12 04/23/12 08/23/12 12/31/13

Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration

RuleDate
Convened 		Date
Completed 		Notice of
Proposed
Rulemaking 		Final Rule
Published
Prevention of Workplace Violence in Healthcare and Social Assistance03/01/2305/01/23
Emergency Response10/04/2112/02/21
Tree Care Operations03/23/2005/22/2020
Telecommunications Towers 08/15/18 10/11/18    
Process Safety Management Standard 06/02/16 08/01/16    
Occupational Exposure to Infectious Diseases in Healthcare and Other Related Work Settings 10/14/14 12/22/14    
Occupational Exposure to Diacetyl and Food Flavorings Containing Diacetyl 05/05/09 07/02/09    
Occupational Exposure to Beryllium 09/17/07 01/15/08 08/07/15  01/09/17
Cranes and Derricks in Construction 08/18/06 10/17/06 10/09/08 08/09/10
Occupational Exposure to Hexavalent Chromium 01/30/04 04/20/04 10/04/04 02/28/06
Occupational Exposure to Crystalline Silica 10/20/03 12/19/03  09/12/13 03/25/16 
Confined Spaces in Construction 09/26/03 11/24/03 11/28/07 05/04/15
Electric Power Generation, Transmission, and Distribution 04/01/03 06/30/03 06/15/05 04/11/14
Ergonomics Program Standard 03/02/99 04/30/99 11/23/99 11/14/00
Safety and Health Program Rule 10/20/98 12/19/98    
Tuberculosis 09/10/9611/12/96 10/17/97 Withdrawn
12/31/03 

Environmental Protection Agency

RuleDate
Convened 		Date
Completed 		Notice of
Proposed
Rulemaking 		Final Rule
Published
N-Methylpyrrolidone (NMP); Rulemaking under TSCA §6(a)05/10/23
Proposed Amendments to the New Source Performance Standards for Greenhouse Gas Emissions from New, Modified, and Reconstructed Stationary Sources: Electric Generating Units07/27/2305/23/23
National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants: Lime Manufacturing Plants Amendments07/21/2301/05/23
Meat and Poultry Products Effluent Limitations Guidelines Rulemaking Revisions07/03/23
Trichloroethylene (TCE) Risk Management Rulemaking Under the Toxic Substances Control Act01/17/2304/04/23
National Primary Drinking Water Regulation: Lead and Copper Rule Improvements (LCRI)11/15/2305/31/23
Perchloroethylene (PCE) Risk Management Rulemaking Under the Toxic Substances Control Act10/27/2202/01/2306/16/23
Revisions to the Air Emissions Reporting Requirements10/06/2201/03/2308/09/23
TSCA Section 8(a)(7) Rule: Reporting and Recordkeeping Requirements for Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances04/06/2208/02/2206/28/23
Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) National Primary Drinking Water Regulation (NPDWR)05/24/2208/01/2203/29/23
Cyclic Aliphatic Bromide Cluster (HBCD) Risk Management Rulemaking Under the Toxic Substances Control Act01/06/2209/09/22
Standards of Performance for New, Reconstructed, and Modified Sources: Oil and Natural Gas Sector Review07/15/2109/20/2111/15/21
1-Bromopropane; Rulemaking under TSCA §6(a)04/27/2112/16/21
Methylene Chloride; Rulemaking under TSCA §6(a)01/07/2110/28/2105/03/23
National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants: Ethylene Oxide Commercial Sterilization and Fumigation Operations11/25/204/26/214/13/23
Financial Responsibility Requirements for Hard Rock Mining 08/24/16 12/01/16 12/01/16 Withdrawn 2/21/18
Regulation of Trichloroethylene for Vapor Degreasers under Section 6(a) of the Toxic Substances Control Act 06/01/16 09/26/16 01/19/17  
Regulation of N-Methylpyrrolidone and Methylene Chloride in Paint and Coating Removal under Section 6(a) of the Toxic Substances Control Act 06/01/16 09/26/16 01/19/17  
Risk Management Program Modernization 11/04/15 02/19/16 03/14/16 01/13/17
Emission Standards for New and Modified Sources in the Oil and Natural Gas Sector 06/16/15 08/13/15 09/18/15 06/3/16
Federal Plan for Regulating Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Electric Generating Units 04/30/15 07/28/15 10/23/15 Withdrawn
04/03/17
Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Vehicles 10/22/14 01/15/15 07/13/15 10/25/2016
PCB (Polychlorinated Biphenyls) Use Authorizations Update Rule 02/07/14 04/07/14    
Review of New Source Performance Standards and Amendments to Emission Guidelines for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills 12/05/13 07/21/15 07/17/14 08/27/15 Emission Guidelines and Compliance Time for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills 8/29/16   Standards for Performance for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills 8/29/16
National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP): Brick and Structural Clay Products and Clay Products 06/12/13 01/16/14 12/18/14 10/26/15
Long Term Revisions to the Lead and Copper Rule 08/14/12 08/16/13 – –
Petroleum Refinery Sector Risk and Technology Review and New Source Performance Standards 08/04/11 Rule proposed rule w/o completion of SBREFA panel report 06/30/14 12/01/15
Control of Air Pollution from Motor Vehicles: Tier 3 Motor Vehicle Emission and Fuel Standards 08/04/11 10/14/11 05/21/13 04/28/14
Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Electric Utility Steam Generating Units 06/09/11 Rule proposed rule w/o completion of SBREFA panel report 04/14/13  04/13/12 01/08/14 06/02/14
National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) Risk and Technology Review for the Mineral Wool and Wool Fiberglass Industries 06/02/11 10/26/11 11/12/11 07/29/15
Formaldehyde Emissions from Pressed Wood Products 02/03/11 04/04/11 06/10/13 12/12/16
Stormwater Regulations Revision to Address Discharges from Developed Sites 12/06/10 10/04/11 – Withdrawn 06/06/17
National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Coal- and Oil-fired Electric Utility Steam Generating Units 10/27/10 03/02/11 05/03/11 02/16/12
Revision of New Source Performance Standards for New Residential Wood Heaters 08/04/10 10/26/11 02/03/14 03/16/15
Pesticides; Reconsideration of Exemptions for Insect Repellents 11/16/09 01/15/10    
National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Industrial, Commercial, and Institutional Boilers: Major and Area Sources 01/22/09 03/23/09 06/04/10 03/21/11
Pesticides; Certification of Pesticide Applicators (Revisions) 09/04/08 11/03/08 08/24/15 01/04/17
Pesticides; Agricultural Worker Protection Standard Revisions 09/04/08 11/03/08 03/19/14 11/02/15
Renewable Fuel Standards 2 07/09/08 09/05/08 05/26/09 03/26/10
Total Coliform Monitoring 01/31/08 01/31/08 07/14/10 2/13/2013 
Non-Road Spark-Ignition Engines/Equipment 08/17/06 10/17/06 05/18/07 10/08/08
Mobile Source Air Toxics 09/07/05 11/08/05 03/29/06 02/26/07
Federal Action Plan for Regional Nitrogen Oxide/Sulfur Dioxide (2005 Clean Air Interstate Rule) 04/27/05 06/27/05 08/24/05 04/28/06
Section 126 Petition (2005 Clean Air Interstate Rule) 04/27/05 06/27/05 08/24/05 04/28/06
Cooling Water Intake Structures Phase III Facilities 02/27/04 04/27/04 11/24/04 06/16/06
Nonroad Diesel Engines – Tier IV 10/24/02 12/23/02 05/23/03 06/29/04
Lime Industry – Air Pollution 01/22/02 03/25/02 12/20/02 01/05/04
Aquatic Animal Production Industry 01/22/02 06/19/02 09/12/02 08/23/04
Construction and Development Effluent Limitations Guidelines 07/16/01 10/12/01 06/24/02 Withdrawn
04/26/04
Nonroad Large Spark Ignition Engines, Recreation Land Engines, and Recreation Marine Gas Tanks 05/03/01 07/17/01 10/05/01 08/14/02 11/08/02
Stage 2 Disinfectant Byproducts; Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment 04/25/00 06/23/00 08/18/03     01/04/06  
Reinforced Plastics Composites 04/06/00 06/02/00 08/02/01 04/21/03
Concentrated Animal Feedlots 12/16/99 04/07/00 01/12/01 02/12/03
Metals Products and Machinery 12/09/99 03/03/00 01/03/01 05/13/03
Lead Renovation and Remodeling Rule 11/23/99 03/03/00 01/10/06  04/22/08
Diesel Fuel Sulfur Control Requirements 11/12/99 03/24/00 06/02/00 01/18/01
Recreational Marine Engines 06/07/99 08/25/99 10/05/01 08/14/02 11/08/02
Arsenic in Drinking Water 03/30/99 06/04/99 06/22/00 01/22/01
Light Duty Vehicles/Light Duty Trucks Emissions and Sulfur in Gas 08/27/98 10/26/98 05/13/99 02/10/00
Filter Backwash Recycling 08/21/98 10/19/98 04/10/00 06/08/01
Long Term 1 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment 08/21/98 10/19/98 04/10/00 01/14/02
Radon in Drinking Water 07/09/98 09/18/98 11/02/99  
Section 126 Petitions 06/23/98 08/21/98 09/30/98 05/25/99
Phase I (FIP) To Reduce the Regional Transport of Ozone in the Eastern United States 06/23/98 08/21/98 10/21/98 05/06/05
Ground Water 04/10/98 06/09/98 05/10/00 11/08/06
Underground Injection Control (UIC) Class V Wells 02/17/98 04/17/98 07/29/98 12/07/99
Centralized Waste Treatment Effluent Guideline 11/06/97 01/23/98 09/10/03 01/13/99 12/22/00
Transportation Equipment Cleaning Effluent Guidelines 07/16/97 09/23/97 06/25/98 08/14/00
Stormwater Phase II 06/19/97 08/07/97 01/09/98 12/08/99
Industrial Laundries Effluent Guidelines 06/06/97 08/08/97 12/17/97 Withdrawn
08/18/99
Nonroad Diesel Engines 03/25/97 05/23/97 09/24/97 10/23/98