[3] The Caucus was informally created by Representatives J. D. Hayworth, John Shadegg, Sam Brownback, Bob Barr, and Richard Pombo in the 104th Congress.

[5] The Caucus was officially registered as a Congressional Member Organization in 2005 by Congressmen Scott Garrett, Virginia Foxx, and Rob Bishop.

In a 2006 interview, the three described themselves as leading "...a team dedicated to downsizing the amount of power usurped from the states by the federal government.

[5] The members of the Caucus are strongly opposed to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and are outspoken opponents of the individual health mandate.

In 2014, after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia rejected one such challenge in the case Sissel v. United States Department of Health & Human Services (ruling that the ACA did not violate the Origination Clause of the Constitution),[9] the Caucus issued a statement saying "The judges got it wrong.