Here’s the next exciting chapter in the regulatory reform saga, inspired by my new report. Here’s Part I and Part II.
Today, I discuss some background on the existing regulatory review process:
The state?s Administrative Procedure Act (APA) is the law that governs the regulatory process in the state. One key protection established under the APA is the power of the Rules Review Commission (RRC). The RRC, a ten-member commission appointed by the House and Senate leaders, is a body that must approve regulations prior to them becoming finalized.
This much-needed Commission is generally limited to, among other things, making sure that an agency has followed proper procedures, had statutory authority for its regulation, and developed clear rules. The RRC is expressly prohibited from evaluating the merits of regulations.
The APA also includes a process for the public to object to a rule. If there are 10 objections filed with the RRC, the rule is delayed giving the legislature a chance to pass a bill disapproving of the rule. If the legislature takes no action, the rule goes into effect.
While this check is very important, it is not as valuable as it may seem. In order to block proposed regulations, the legislature needs to get a bill passed by both chambers and signed by the Governor, all of which can be quite challenging.
Here’s some data for 2004-2009
Rules (permanent regulations) Introduced: 6,510
Rules subject to legislative review: 218
Bills introduced to disapprove rules: 28
Enacted bills to disapprove rules: 7
These numbers should make it crystal clear how difficult it is to have the legislature repeal (disapprove) rules.
– Only about 1/10th of one percent of all permanent rules are repealed.
– Even when rules are subject to legislative review (i.e. there are 10 objections to a rule), only 3% of the rules are then repealed.
Part IV coming soon!
