BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 176
Page 1
Date of Hearing: August 14, 2013
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ACCOUNTABILITY AND ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW
Jim Frazier, Chair
SB 176 (Galgiani) - As Amended: August 7, 2013
SENATE VOTE : 39-0
SUBJECT : Administrative procedures
SUMMARY : Amends the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) to
strengthen the requirement for agencies to increase transparency
and accountability in the rulemaking process.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires state agencies to make a reasonable effort to consult
with interested persons and affected entities at the beginning
of the rulemaking process.
2)Requires state agencies to include outreach activities in
their rulemaking record, as specified.
3)Permits state agencies to electronically submit mandated
notices and rulemaking documents to the Office of
Administrative Law (OAL).
EXISTING LAW :
1)Charges the OAL with ensuring that agency regulations are
clear, necessary, legally valid, and available to the public.
OAL is responsible for reviewing administrative regulations
proposed by over 200 state regulatory agencies for compliance
with the standards set forth in the APA, transmitting these
regulations to the Secretary of State, and publishing these
regulations in the California Code of Regulations (CCR). OAL
oversees the publication and distribution, in print and on the
internet, of the CCR and the California Regulatory Notice
Register.
2)Authorizes a state agency that is considering adopting,
amending, or repealing a regulation to consult with interested
persons before initiating any regulatory action. When a state
agency is proposing to adopt complex or numerous regulatory
proposals, existing law requires the agency, prior to
publication of a required notice of public regulations, to
SB 176
Page 2
involve parties who would be subject to those proposed
regulations in public discussions.
FISCAL EFFECT : The current version of this bill has not yet
been analyzed by a fiscal committee.
COMMENTS : Supporters note that since the adoption of the APA in
1945, the process for developing regulations has evolved
substantially, and today a majority of regulations are developed
during the pre-rulemaking process.
They believe that this bill will greatly benefit state agencies
when developing regulations by encouraging citizen participation
and will simplify the state's regulatory notice procedures by
providing a single source of information to state agencies'
pre-rulemaking process.
The author's office suggests that California should adopt
practices that more closely approximate the federal rulemaking
process, which requires federal agencies to additionally publish
all public notices of hearings, workshops, and the like in the
Federal Register, rather than just notices of proposed
regulations.
Additionally, the author is proposing to amend Government Code
Section 11346 (b), which currently states "An agency that is
considering adopting, amending, or repealing a regulation may
consult with interested persons before initiating regulatory
action pursuant to this article." Supporters contend that the
current use of the term "may" does not hold agencies
sufficiently accountable for notifying the public and affected
parties of new rules or changes to existing rules.
Accordingly, this bill amends this section by replacing the
"may" with "shall make a reasonable effort to consult with
interested persons who would be subject to the proposed
regulation, or their representatives, prior to initiating
regulatory action pursuant to this article." This bill now
requires agencies to engage with interested persons.
Flexibility remains built in by recognizing the agency need only
"make a reasonable effort."
Additional flexibility is provided to agencies by allowing them
to state in the rulemaking record specific reasons why they are
unable to contact interested parties as specified.
SB 176
Page 3
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
American Council of Engineering Companies
Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles
California Apartment Association
California Association of Realtors
California Building Industry Association
California Business Properties Association
California Cement Manufactures Environmental Coalition
California Chamber of Commerce
California Ground Water Association
California Hotel and Lodging Association
California Independent Oil Marketers Association
California Land and Title Association
California Manufactures and Technology Association
California New Car Dealers Association
California Restaurant Association
California Retailers Association
California Service Station and Auto Repair Association
National Federation of Independent Business
Northern California Power Agency
San Diego County Apartment Association
Santa Barbara Rental Property Association
USANA Health Sciences, Inc.
Western Manufactured Housing Communities Association
Western States Petroleum Association
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : William Herms / A. & A.R. / (916)
319-3600