BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1612
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 1612 (Lara)
As Introduced February 7, 2012
Majority vote
BUSINESS & PROFESSIONS 8-0 APPROPRIATIONS 15-0
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|Ayes:|Hayashi, Bill Berryhill, |Ayes:|Fuentes, Harkey, |
| |Allen, Butler, Eng, | |Blumenfield, Bradford, |
| |Hagman, Atkins, Ma | |Charles Calderon, Campos, |
| | | |Davis, Donnelly, Gatto, |
| | | |Hill, Lara, Mitchell, |
| | | |Nielsen, Solorio, Wagner |
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SUMMARY : Requires state agencies, when submitting a notice to
the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) proposing the adoption,
amendment, or repeal of a building standard regulation, to
include with the initial statement of reasons (ISOR), the
estimated cost and benefits of compliance and the related
assumptions used in determining that estimate, if the proposed
building standard regulation impacts housing, and requires the
agencies to make this information available to the public.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires state agencies to include in the ISOR and make
available to the public, the estimated cost of compliance, the
estimated potential benefits, and the related assumptions used
to determine those estimates, if the proposed building
standard regulation impacts housing.
2)Exempts adopted model codes, as specified, from these
requirements, unless an interested party requests to examine a
specific section for purposes of estimating the cost of
compliance, the potential benefits for that section, and the
related assumptions used to determine the estimates, as
specified.
3)Makes conforming changes.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Governs the procedure for the adoption, amendment, or repeal
AB 1612
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of regulations by state agencies and for the review of those
regulatory actions by the OAL, under the Administrative
Procedure Act (APA).
2)Requires state agencies to submit to OAL and make available to
the public, a copy of the proposed regulation and an ISOR, as
specified, including the effect of the proposed regulatory
action on housing costs, if any.
3)Requires that the ISOR include facts evidence, documents,
testimony, or other evidence on which the state agency relies
to support an initial determination that the action will not
have a significant adverse economic impact on business.
4)Requires state agencies adopting or proposing adoption of a
model code, national standard, or specification to reference
the most recent edition of applicable model codes, national
standards, or specifications, as specified.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, on-going General Fund costs of up to $25,000 for the
workload associated with the affected departments, including the
California Department of Housing and Community Development, the
Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the California
Energy Commission, the Division of the State Architect, and the
Department of Water Resources, providing the additional
information required if requested for model codes.
COMMENTS : According to the author, "An agency is required to
provide the cost of compliance if it expects a proposed building
standard to have a significant effect on housing.
However, if it determines that the standard will not have a
significant impact, or if it is unaware of any significant
impact, the agency simply has to state something to that effect,
such as: 'The agency has determined that there will be no
significant economic impact on housing.'
"The subjectivity of the term 'significant,' and the lack of an
estimate of the cost of compliance leave the public without a
clear indication of the actual costs of proposed building
standards. Without a firm understanding of proposed building
standards, businesses and the public cannot provide informed
input, nor can they fully prepare for the standard."
AB 1612
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The APA governs the adoption of regulations by state agencies
for purposes of ensuring that they are clear, necessary, legally
valid, and available to the public. In seeking adoption of a
proposed regulation, state agencies must comply with procedural
requirements that include publishing the proposed regulation
with a supporting statement of reasons; mailing and publishing a
notice of the proposed action 45 days before a hearing or before
the close of the public comment period; and submitting a final
statement to OAL which summarizes and responds to all
objections, recommendations, and proposed alternatives that were
raised during the public comment period. The OAL is then
required to approve or reject the proposed regulation within 30
days.
More specifically, the APA requires state agencies proposing to
adopt, amend, or repeal any administrative regulation to assess
the potential for adverse economic impact on California business
enterprises and individuals, and avoid imposing unnecessary or
unreasonable regulations. State agencies are also required to
determine and advise the OAL accordingly, if the proposal has a
significant effect on housing costs.
This bill requires agencies, when submitting an ISOR to OAL to
include the estimated cost and benefits of compliance and the
related assumptions used in determining that estimate, if a
proposed building standard regulation impacts housing. This
bill is a substantially similar to SB 643 (Correa) of 2011,
which was held in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
Analysis Prepared by : Rebecca May / B.,P. & C.P. / (916)
319-3301
FN: 0003205