A Republican bill with 15 Republican cosponsors · See all 15 cosponsors
Last activity — Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 565.
Cleared committee, waiting for its first floor vote
A committee approved it and it is on the calendar of the chamber it started in.
This is further than most bills get, and still no promise of a vote: the calendar is a queue, and the majority leadership decides what is called. A bill can sit here until the Congress ends.
Its path through Congress
- Introduced
- On Calendar
What this bill would do
S. 252, known as the Guidance Out Of Darkness Act or the GOOD Act, requires federal agencies to publish their guidance documents online. Under Section 3, agencies must publish new guidance documents on the date they are issued and publish any guidance documents in effect within 180 days of the act's enactment. Section 4 directs the Director of the Office of Management and Budget to designate a single internet website for all agency guidance documents within 90 days. Section 5 exempts documents or information already exempt under the Freedom of Information Act from these publishing requirements. Section 6 requires agencies to maintain rescinded guidance documents online along with information indicating they are rescinded. Finally, Section 8 mandates that the Comptroller General submit a report on agency compliance to specific congressional committees within five years.
Yes· 3 of 12
- Scored +8
Does this make what the government does easier for the public to see?
The bill mandates the centralized, online publication of agency guidance documents to increase public access.
- Scored +5
Would business owners be better off under this?
Centralized guidance makes it significantly easier for businesses to find and follow regulatory interpretations.
- Scored +3
Would farmers be better off under this?
Agricultural guidance is often complex; centralized access helps farmers comply with USDA and EPA rules.
The opposite
No question was scored the opposite.
Who it would affect, and how
Potential Positive Impacts for People
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Section 3 and Section 4 require agencies to publish all guidance documents in a single, designated internet location and provide prominent hyperlinks on their principal websites, which benefits the public by making government policies and interpretations much easier to find and access.
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Section 4(d) requires each guidance document to be made available as an open Government data asset and optimized for search engines, which helps individuals and groups search for and analyze government documents more efficiently.
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Section 6 requires agencies to keep rescinded guidance documents online and clearly mark them as rescinded with the date and court order information if applicable, which provides transparency to the public regarding which agency policies are no longer active.
Potential Negative Impacts for People
- Section 7(a) states that noncompliance with the act does not affect or impact the validity of any guidance document, which means that the public has no explicit remedy through this bill to invalidate an improperly published guidance document if an agency fails to follow the law.
Groups and Interests Ranking
Every group the model scored this bill for, from -10 to +10. Tap or hover a score for the reason it gave.
- Demographic And Interest Groups
- Would business owners be better off under this? — Centralized guidance makes it significantly easier for businesses to find and follow regulatory interpretations. Would farmers be better off under this? — Agricultural guidance is often complex; centralized access helps farmers comply with USDA and EPA rules. Would billionaires be better off under this? — General increase in transparency benefits all users of government services. Would high-income households be better off under this? — General increase in transparency benefits all users of government services. Would people with substantial wealth be better off under this? — General increase in transparency benefits all users of government services. Would households on low incomes be better off under this? — Easier access to agency guidance helps those who cannot afford legal counsel to understand government policies. Would middle-income households be better off under this? — Increased transparency allows middle-class citizens to better navigate agency regulations. Would the very wealthiest people be better off under this? — General increase in transparency benefits all users of government services.
- Governance And Ideology
- Does this make what the government does easier for the public to see? — The bill mandates the centralized, online publication of agency guidance documents to increase public access. Does this protect the right to fair treatment by the courts? — Increased transparency of agency interpretations of rules improves the ability of individuals to understand and challenge agency actions.
- Economy And Finance
- Does this give people more protection from unfair business practices? — Public access to agency guidance allows consumers to better understand their rights and agency policies. Does this make it easier to run a small business? — Increased transparency of agency guidance helps small businesses comply with regulations more easily.
- 9/14/2026
- Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Reported by Senator Paul with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Without written report.
- Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 565.
- 8/6/2026
- Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
- 11/19/2025
- 1 Cosponsor added.
- 1/24/2025
- Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
- 14 Cosponsors added.
- Introduced in Senate
2 bills Congress.gov lists as related to this one — companions in the other chamber, earlier versions, and bills this one absorbed or was folded into.
Marsha BlackburnRepublican · Tennessee
Ted BuddRepublican · North Carolina
Kevin CramerRepublican · North Dakota
Joni ErnstRepublican · Iowa
John HoevenRepublican · North Dakota
Cynthia LummisRepublican · Wyoming
James LankfordRepublican · Oklahoma
Mike LeeRepublican · Utah
Roger MarshallRepublican · Kansas
David McCormickRepublican · Pennsylvania
James RischRepublican · Idaho
Rick ScottRepublican · Florida
Eric SchmittRepublican · Missouri
Tim SheehyRepublican · Montana
Thomas TillisRepublican · North Carolina