S-0771.1 _______________________________________________
SENATE BILL 5805
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State of Washington 57th Legislature 2001 Regular Session
By Senators Hochstatter, T. Sheldon, Honeyford, Hale, Hewitt, Rasmussen, McCaslin, Stevens, Oke and Swecker
Read first time 02/02/2001. Referred to Committee on State & Local Government.
AN ACT Relating to grants of rule-making authority; adding a new section to chapter 43.21A RCW; adding a new section to chapter 43.22 RCW; and creating a new section.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) The legislature recognizes that clear and specific grants of rule-making authority are necessary for accountability in decision making by governmental agencies, and that an agency should exercise jurisdiction and adopt rules over a subject matter only if it has obvious and explicit rule-making authority to do so. It is therefore the legislature's purpose to ensure that existing and future rules exist only under clear and appropriate rule-making authority.
(2) The legislature further finds that state agencies have adopted administrative rules without clear authority to do so from the legislature, relying on general grants of authority rather than specific legislative policy direction. This has resulted in agency-initiated policy that has been adopted without the benefit of the public dialogue and accountability inherent to the legislative process. It is therefore the intent of the legislature to eliminate reliance on general grants of authority, limit certain agency rule making to those matters specifically authorized by the legislature, and that grants of rule-making authority be narrowly construed.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 43.21A RCW to read as follows:
The director of the department of ecology may adopt, in accordance with chapter 34.05 RCW, rules or policy statements, other than emergency rules, only:
(1) As specifically required by federal law, and only to the extent specifically required; or
(2) As specifically authorized, and only to the extent specifically authorized, by the legislature.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 43.22 RCW to read as follows:
The director of the department of labor and industries may adopt in accordance with chapter 34.05 RCW, rules or policy statements, other than emergency rules, only:
(1) As specifically required by federal law, and only to the extent specifically required; or
(2) As specifically authorized, and only to the extent specifically authorized, by the legislature.
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