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REFERENCE TITLE: administrative rules oversight committee; dissent |
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State of Arizona House of Representatives Fifty-sixth Legislature Second Regular Session 2024
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HB 2491 |
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Introduced by Representative Bliss
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An Act
amending sections 41-1001.01, 41-1011, 41-1031, 41-1048 and 41-1051, Arizona Revised Statutes; relating to rulemaking.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Section 41-1001.01, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
41-1001.01. Regulatory bill of rights; small businesses
A. To ensure fair and open regulation by state agencies, a person:
1. Is eligible for reimbursement of fees and other expenses if the person prevails by adjudication on the merits against an agency in a court proceeding regarding an agency decision as provided in section 12-348.
2. Is eligible for reimbursement of the person's costs and fees if the person prevails against any agency in an administrative hearing as provided in section 41-1007.
3. Is entitled to have an agency not charge the person a fee unless the fee for the specific activity is expressly authorized as provided in section 41-1008.
4. Is entitled to receive the information and notice regarding inspections and audits prescribed in section 41-1009.
5. May review the full text or summary of all rulemaking activity, the summary of substantive policy statements and the full text of executive orders in the register as provided in article 2 of this chapter.
6. May participate in the rulemaking process as provided in articles 3, 4, 4.1 and 5 of this chapter, including:
(a) Providing written comments or testimony on proposed rules to an agency as provided in section 41-1023 and having the agency adequately address those comments as provided in section 41-1052, subsection D, including comments or testimony concerning the information contained in the economic, small business and consumer impact statement.
(b) Filing an early review petition with the governor's regulatory review council as provided in article 5 of this chapter.
(c) Providing written comments or testimony on rules to the governor's regulatory review council during the mandatory sixty-day comment period as provided in article 5 of this chapter.
7. Is entitled to have an agency not base a licensing decision in whole or in part on licensing conditions or requirements that are not specifically authorized by statute, rule or state tribal gaming compact as provided in section 41-1030, subsection B.
8. Is entitled to have an agency not base a decision regarding any filing or other matter submitted to an agency on a requirement or condition that is not specifically authorized by a statute, rule, federal law or regulation or state tribal gaming compact as provided in section 41-1030, subsection C.
9. Is entitled to have an agency not make a rule under a specific grant of rulemaking authority that exceeds the subject matter areas listed in the specific statute or not make a rule under a general grant of rulemaking authority to supplement a more specific grant of rulemaking authority as provided in section 41-1030, subsection D.
10. May allege that an existing agency practice or substantive policy statement constitutes a rule and have that agency practice or substantive policy statement declared void because the practice or substantive policy statement constitutes a rule as provided in section 41-1033.
11. May file a complaint with the administrative rules oversight committee concerning:
(a) A rule's, practice's or substantive policy statement's lack of conformity with statute or legislative intent as provided in section 41-1047.
(b) An existing statute, rule, practice alleged to constitute a rule or substantive policy statement that is alleged to be duplicative, or onerous, inconsistent with legislative intent or beyond an agency's statutory authority as provided in section 41-1048.
12. May have the person's administrative hearing on contested cases and appealable agency actions heard by an independent administrative law judge as provided in articles 6 and 10 of this chapter.
13. May have administrative hearings governed by uniform administrative appeal procedures as provided in articles 6 and 10 of this chapter and may appeal a final administrative decision by filing a notice of appeal pursuant to title 12, chapter 7, article 6.
14. May have an agency approve or deny the person's license application within a predetermined period of time as provided in article 7.1 of this chapter.
15. Is entitled to receive written notice from an agency on denial of a license application:
(a) That justifies the denial with references to the statutes or rules on which the denial is based as provided in section 41-1076.
(b) That explains the applicant's right to appeal the denial as provided in section 41-1076.
16. Is entitled to receive information regarding the license application process before or at the time the person obtains an application for a license as provided in sections 41-1001.02 and 41-1079.
17. May receive public notice and participate in the adoption or amendment of agreements to delegate agency functions, powers or duties to political subdivisions as provided in section 41-1026.01 and article 8 of this chapter.
18. May inspect all rules and substantive policy statements of an agency, including a directory of documents, in the office of the agency director as provided in section 41-1091.
19. May file a complaint with the office of the ombudsman-citizens aide to investigate administrative acts of agencies as provided in chapter 8, article 5 of this title.
20. Unless specifically authorized by statute, may expect state agencies to avoid duplication of other laws that do not enhance regulatory clarity and to avoid dual permitting to the extent practicable as prescribed in section 41-1002.
21. May have the person's administrative hearing on contested cases pursuant to title 23, chapter 2 or 4 heard by an independent administrative law judge as prescribed by title 23, chapter 2 or 4.
22. Pursuant to section 41-1009, subsection E, may correct deficiencies identified during an inspection unless otherwise provided by law.
B. The enumeration of the rights listed in subsection A of this section does not grant any additional rights that are not prescribed in the sections referenced in subsection A of this section.
C. Each state agency that conducts audits, inspections or other regulatory enforcement actions pursuant to section 41-1009 shall create and clearly post on the agency's website a small business bill of rights. The agency shall create the small business bill of rights by selecting the applicable rights prescribed in this section and section 41-1009 and any other agency-specific statutes and rules. The agency shall provide a written document of the small business bill of rights to the authorized on-site representative of the regulated small business. In addition to the rights listed in this section and section 41-1009, the agency notice of the small business bill of rights shall include the process by which a small business may file a complaint with the agency employees who are designated to assist members of the public or regulated community pursuant to section 41-1006. The notice must provide the contact information of the agency's designated employees. The agency notice must also state that if the regulated person has already made a reasonable effort with the agency to resolve the problem and still has not been successful, the regulated person may contact the office of ombudsman-citizens aide.
Sec. 2. Section 41-1011, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
41-1011. Preparation and publication; code and register; dissent letters
A. The secretary of state shall prepare and publish the code and register.
B. The secretary of state shall prescribe a uniform numbering system and have reasonable discretion to determine the form and style for rules filed with and published by the office. The secretary of state shall refuse to accept a rule notice or other notice filing if the notice or filing does not comply with the secretary of state's prescribed filing requirements, numbering system, form and style.
C. The secretary of state shall assign titles and chapters to agencies and prepare, arrange and correlate rules and other text as necessary when publishing the code and register. The secretary of state may not alter the sense, meaning or effect of any rule but may renumber rules and parts of rules, rearrange rules, change reference numbers to agree with renumbered rules and parts of rules, substitute the proper rule number for "the preceding rule" and similar terms, delete figures if they are merely a repetition of written words, change capitalization for the purpose of uniformity and correct manifest clerical or typographical errors. With the consent of the attorney general, the secretary of state may remove from the code a provision of a rule that a court of final appeal declares unconstitutional or otherwise invalid and a rule made by an agency that is abolished if the rule is not transferred to a successor agency. The secretary of state shall remove a rule from the code when notified by the governor's regulatory review council that the rule has expired pursuant to section 41-1056, subsection J.
D. The secretary of state shall prepare and publish a dissent letter filed pursuant to section 41-1048 with the corresponding rule in the code and register.
Sec. 3. Section 41-1031, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
41-1031. Filing rules and preamble with secretary of state; administrative oversight committee dissent letter; permanent record
A. Following the filing of a rule made pursuant to an exemption to this chapter, or following approval and filing of a rule and preamble and an economic, small business and consumer impact statement by the council as provided in article 5 of this chapter or by the attorney general as provided in article 4 of this chapter or following the filing of A DISSENT LETTER by the committee PURSUANT TO SECTION 41-1048, the secretary of state shall affix to each rule document, preamble, and economic, small business and consumer impact statement and dissent letter the time and date of filing. A rule is not final until the secretary of state affixes the time and date of filing to the rule document as provided in this section.
B. The secretary of state shall keep a permanent record of rules, preambles, and economic, small business and consumer impact statements and dissent letters filed with the office.
Sec. 4. Section 41-1048, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
41-1048. Committee review; duplicative or onerous statutes, rules, practices alleged to constitute rules and substantive policy statements; legislative intent; inconsistency; statutory authority
A. The committee shall receive complaints concerning statutes, rules, agency practices alleged to constitute rules and substantive policy statements that are alleged to be duplicative, or onerous, inconsistent with legislative intent or beyond an agency's statutory authority. The committee may review any statutes, rules, agency practices alleged to constitute rules or substantive policy statements alleged to be duplicative, or onerous, inconsistent with legislative intent or beyond an agency's statutory authority and may hold hearings regarding the allegations. The committee may comment to an agency, the attorney general, the council or the legislature on whether the statutes, rules, agency practices alleged to constitute rules or substantive policy statements are duplicative, or onerous, inconsistent with legislative intent or beyond an agency's statutory authority. The comments may include committee recommendations for ensuring consistency with legislative intent or alleviating the duplicative or onerous aspects of the statutes, rules, agency practices alleged to constitute rules and substantive policy statements.
B. The COMMITTEE may prepare a dissent letter expressing disagreement with any statutes, rules, agency practices alleged to constitute rules or substantive policy statements that are duplicative, onerous, INCONSISTENT WITH LEGISLATIVE INTENT OR BEYOND AN AGENCY'S STATUTORY AUTHORITY. The dissent letter shall be filed with the secretary of state and placed in the code pursuant to section 41-1011.
B. C. The committee shall prepare a report to the legislature by December 1 of each year recommending legislation to ensure consistency with legislative intent and to alleviate the effects of duplicative or onerous statutes, rules, agency practices alleged to constitute rules and substantive policy statements.
C. D. This section applies to all statutes, rules, agency practices alleged to constitute rules and substantive policy statements, regardless of whether the statutes, rules, agency practices alleged to constitute rules or substantive policy statements were enacted or made before or after January 1, 1996.
Sec. 5. Section 41-1051, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
41-1051. Governor's regulatory review council; membership; terms; compensation; powers
A. The governor's regulatory review council is established consisting of six eight members who are appointed by the governor pursuant to section 38-211 and who are subject to sections 38-291 and 38-295 and the director of the department of administration or the assistant director of the department of administration who is responsible for administering the council. The director or assistant director is an ex officio member and chairperson of the council. The council shall elect a vice-chairperson vice chairperson to serve as chairperson in the chairperson's absence. The governor shall appoint at least one member who represents the public interest, at least one member who represents the business community, at least one member who is a small business owner, one member two members from a list of three persons who are not legislators submitted by the president of the senate and one member two members from a list of three persons who are not legislators submitted by the speaker of the house of representatives. At least one member of the council shall be an attorney licensed to practice law in this state. The governor shall appoint the members of the council for staggered terms of three years. A vacancy occurring during the term of office of any member shall be filled by appointment by the governor for the unexpired portion of the term in the same manner as provided in this section.
B. The council shall meet at least once a month at a time and place set by the chairperson and at other times and places as the chairperson deems necessary.
C. Members of the council are eligible to receive compensation in an amount of two hundred dollars $200 for each day on which the council meets and reimbursement of expenses pursuant to title 38, chapter 4, article 2.
D. The chairperson, subject to chapter 4, article 4 and, as applicable, articles 5 and 6 of this title, shall employ, determine the conditions of employment of and specify the duties of administrative, secretarial and clerical employees as the chairperson deems necessary.
E. The council may make rules pursuant to this chapter to carry out the purposes of this chapter.
F. The council shall make a list of agency rules approved or returned pursuant to sections 41-1027 and 41-1052 and section 41-1056, subsection C for the previous twelve-month period available to the public on request and on the council's website.