H-0805.2 _______________________________________________
HOUSE BILL 1613
_______________________________________________
State of Washington 53rd Legislature 1993 Regular Session
By Representatives Mielke, R. Meyers, Reams, Pruitt, Chandler, Anderson, Dyer, Morton, Vance, Padden, Lisk, Silver, Cooke, Casada, Foreman, Sheahan, Fuhrman, Jones, Campbell, Long, Rayburn, Kremen and Quall
Read first time 02/03/93. Referred to Committee on State Government.
AN ACT Relating to review of agency rules; amending RCW 34.05.610; adding a new section to chapter 34.05 RCW; and creating a new section.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that the Washington state Constitution vests all law-making authority in the legislative branch of government as the duly elected representatives of the people. The executive branch of state government is given the duty to see that the laws passed by the legislative branch are faithfully executed by the administrative agencies under executive control. It is in the best interest of the citizens of the state of Washington that administrative agencies adopt only those rules that are authorized by legislative authority, that rules that are authorized comply with legislative intent, and that rules only implement public policy specifically created by the legislature.
The intent of this act is to strengthen legislative oversight and to better ensure public participation, agency accountability, and review of proposed or existing rules. The role of the joint administrative rules review committee is expanded to better deal with agency rules that expand legislative intent and impose intrusive and costly burdens on individuals, families, businesses, and the economy and to ensure that public policy is created only by the people's elected representatives, and only rules that are reasonably necessary to carrying out such policy are adopted.
Sec. 2. RCW 34.05.610 and 1988 c 288 s 601 are each amended to read as follows:
(1) ((There is hereby created a)) The
joint administrative rules review committee ((which)) is created to
serve as an ombudsman for the people of the state in connection with the
state's administrative agencies. The rules review committee shall be a
bipartisan committee consisting of four senators and four representatives from
the state legislature. The senate members of the committee shall be appointed
by the president of the senate, and the house members of the committee shall be
appointed by the speaker of the house. Not more than two members from each
house may be from the same political party. All appointments to the committee
are subject to approval by the caucuses to which the appointed members belong.
(2) Members shall be appointed as soon as possible after the legislature convenes in regular session in an odd-numbered year, and their terms shall extend until their successors are appointed and qualified at the next regular session of the legislature in an odd-numbered year or until such members no longer serve in the legislature, whichever occurs first. Members may be reappointed to a committee.
(3) The president of the senate shall appoint the chairperson in even-numbered years and the vice chairperson in odd-numbered years from among committee membership. The speaker of the house shall appoint the chairperson in odd-numbered years and the vice chairperson in even-numbered years from among committee membership. Such appointments shall be made in January of each year as soon as possible after a legislative session convenes.
(4) A vacancy on the committee shall be filled by appointment of a legislator from the same political party as the original appointment. The appropriate appointing authority shall make the appointment within thirty days of the vacancy occurring.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 34.05 RCW to read as follows:
(1) A resident of this state may appeal directly to the rules review committee for review of a proposed or an existing rule to determine the rule's compliance with legislative authority. The committee may grant or deny the person's appeal for review.
(2) A rule that is appealed to the rules review committee by a person under subsection (1) of this section and is accepted for review by the committee shall not be effective nor may it go into effect until the committee makes a determination that the rule is within the intent of the legislature. A rule may go into effect without a committee determination if the agency shows with clear and convincing evidence that an emergency exists that requires immediate implementation of the rule.
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