Read first time 01/25/13.   Referred to Committee on Government Operations & Elections.

     AN ACT Relating to clarifying that service includes electronic distribution of hearing notices and orders in administrative proceedings; and amending RCW 34.05.434, 34.05.461, and 34.05.010.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1   RCW 34.05.434 and 1988 c 288 s 409 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) The agency or the office of administrative hearings shall set the time and place of the hearing and give not less than seven days advance written notice to all parties and to all persons who have filed written petitions to intervene in the matter.
     (2) The notice shall include:
     (a) Unless otherwise ordered by the presiding officer, the names and mailing addresses of all parties to whom notice is being given and, if known, the names and addresses of their representatives;
     (b) If the agency intends to appear, the mailing address and telephone number of the office designated to represent the agency in the proceeding;
     (c) The official file or other reference number and the name of the proceeding;
     (d) The name, official title, mailing address, and telephone number of the presiding officer, if known;
     (e) A statement of the time, place and nature of the proceeding;
     (f) A statement of the legal authority and jurisdiction under which the hearing is to be held;
     (g) A reference to the particular sections of the statutes and rules involved;
     (h) A short and plain statement of the matters asserted by the agency; and
     (i) A statement that a party who fails to attend or participate in a hearing or other stage of an adjudicative proceeding may be held in default in accordance with this chapter.
     (3) If the agency is unable to state the matters required by subsection (2)(h) of this section at the time the notice is served, the initial notice may be limited to a statement of the issues involved. If the proceeding is initiated by a person other than the agency, the initial notice may be limited to the inclusion of a copy of the initiating document. Thereafter, upon request, a more definite and detailed statement shall be furnished.
     (4) The notice may include any other matters considered desirable by the agency.
     (5) The notice may be served on a party via electronic distribution, with a party's agreement.

Sec. 2   RCW 34.05.461 and 1995 c 347 s 312 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section:
     (a) If the presiding officer is the agency head or one or more members of the agency head, the presiding officer may enter an initial order if further review is available within the agency, or a final order if further review is not available;
     (b) If the presiding officer is a person designated by the agency to make the final decision and enter the final order, the presiding officer shall enter a final order; and
     (c) If the presiding officer is one or more administrative law judges, the presiding officer shall enter an initial order.
     (2) With respect to agencies exempt from chapter 34.12 RCW or an institution of higher education, the presiding officer shall transmit a full and complete record of the proceedings, including such comments upon demeanor of witnesses as the presiding officer deems relevant, to each agency official who is to enter a final or initial order after considering the record and evidence so transmitted.
     (3) Initial and final orders shall include a statement of findings and conclusions, and the reasons and basis therefor, on all the material issues of fact, law, or discretion presented on the record, including the remedy or sanction and, if applicable, the action taken on a petition for a stay of effectiveness. Any findings based substantially on credibility of evidence or demeanor of witnesses shall be so identified. Findings set forth in language that is essentially a repetition or paraphrase of the relevant provision of law shall be accompanied by a concise and explicit statement of the underlying evidence of record to support the findings. The order shall also include a statement of the available procedures and time limits for seeking reconsideration or other administrative relief. An initial order shall include a statement of any circumstances under which the initial order, without further notice, may become a final order.
     (4) Findings of fact shall be based exclusively on the evidence of record in the adjudicative proceeding and on matters officially noticed in that proceeding. Findings shall be based on the kind of evidence on which reasonably prudent persons are accustomed to rely in the conduct of their affairs. Findings may be based on such evidence even if it would be inadmissible in a civil trial. However, the presiding officer shall not base a finding exclusively on such inadmissible evidence unless the presiding officer determines that doing so would not unduly abridge the parties' opportunities to confront witnesses and rebut evidence. The basis for this determination shall appear in the order.
     (5) Where it bears on the issues presented, the agency's experience, technical competency, and specialized knowledge may be used in the evaluation of evidence.
     (6) If a person serving or designated to serve as presiding officer becomes unavailable for any reason before entry of the order, a substitute presiding officer shall be appointed as provided in RCW 34.05.425. The substitute presiding officer shall use any existing record and may conduct any further proceedings appropriate in the interests of justice.
     (7) The presiding officer may allow the parties a designated time after conclusion of the hearing for the submission of memos, briefs, or proposed findings.
     (8)(a) Except as otherwise provided in (b) of this subsection, initial or final orders shall be served in writing within ninety days after conclusion of the hearing or after submission of memos, briefs, or proposed findings in accordance with subsection (7) of this section unless this period is waived or extended for good cause shown. The initial or final order may be served on a party via electronic distribution, with a party's agreement.
     (b) This subsection does not apply to the final order of the shorelines hearings board on appeal under RCW 90.58.180(3).
     (9) The presiding officer shall cause copies of the order to be served on each party and the agency.

Sec. 3   RCW 34.05.010 and 2011 c 336 s 762 are each amended to read as follows:
     The definitions set forth in this section shall apply throughout this chapter, unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
     (1) "Adjudicative proceeding" means a proceeding before an agency in which an opportunity for hearing before that agency is required by statute or constitutional right before or after the entry of an order by the agency. Adjudicative proceedings also include all cases of licensing and rate making in which an application for a license or rate change is denied except as limited by RCW 66.08.150, or a license is revoked, suspended, or modified, or in which the granting of an application is contested by a person having standing to contest under the law.
     (2) "Agency" means any state board, commission, department, institution of higher education, or officer, authorized by law to make rules or to conduct adjudicative proceedings, except those in the legislative or judicial branches, the governor, or the attorney general except to the extent otherwise required by law and any local governmental entity that may request the appointment of an administrative law judge under chapter 42.41 RCW.
     (3) "Agency action" means licensing, the implementation or enforcement of a statute, the adoption or application of an agency rule or order, the imposition of sanctions, or the granting or withholding of benefits.
     Agency action does not include an agency decision regarding (a) contracting or procurement of goods, services, public works, and the purchase, lease, or acquisition by any other means, including eminent domain, of real estate, as well as all activities necessarily related to those functions, or (b) determinations as to the sufficiency of a showing of interest filed in support of a representation petition, or mediation or conciliation of labor disputes or arbitration of labor disputes under a collective bargaining law or similar statute, or (c) any sale, lease, contract, or other proprietary decision in the management of public lands or real property interests, or (d) the granting of a license, franchise, or permission for the use of trademarks, symbols, and similar property owned or controlled by the agency.
     (4) "Agency head" means the individual or body of individuals in whom the ultimate legal authority of the agency is vested by any provision of law. If the agency head is a body of individuals, a majority of those individuals constitutes the agency head.
     (5) "Entry" of an order means the signing of the order by all persons who are to sign the order, as an official act indicating that the order is to be effective.
     (6) "Filing" of a document that is required to be filed with an agency means delivery of the document to a place designated by the agency by rule for receipt of official documents, or in the absence of such designation, at the office of the agency head.
     (7) "Institutions of higher education" are the University of Washington, Washington State University, Central Washington University, Eastern Washington University, Western Washington University, The Evergreen State College, the various community colleges, and the governing boards of each of the above, and the various colleges, divisions, departments, or offices authorized by the governing board of the institution involved to act for the institution, all of which are sometimes referred to in this chapter as "institutions."
     (8) "Interpretive statement" means a written expression of the opinion of an agency, entitled an interpretive statement by the agency head or its designee, as to the meaning of a statute or other provision of law, of a court decision, or of an agency order.
     (9)(a) "License" means a franchise, permit, certification, approval, registration, charter, or similar form of authorization required by law, but does not include (i) a license required solely for revenue purposes, or (ii) a certification of an exclusive bargaining representative, or similar status, under a collective bargaining law or similar statute, or (iii) a license, franchise, or permission for use of trademarks, symbols, and similar property owned or controlled by the agency.
     (b) "Licensing" includes the agency process respecting the issuance, denial, revocation, suspension, or modification of a license.
     (10) "Mail" or "send," for purposes of any notice relating to rule making or policy or interpretive statements, means regular mail or electronic distribution, as provided in RCW 34.05.260. "Electronic distribution" or "electronically" means distribution by electronic mail or facsimile mail.
     (11)(a) "Order," without further qualification, means a written statement of particular applicability that finally determines the legal rights, duties, privileges, immunities, or other legal interests of a specific person or persons.
     (b) "Order of adoption" means the official written statement by which an agency adopts, amends, or repeals a rule.
     (12) "Party to agency proceedings," or "party" in a context so indicating, means:
     (a) A person to whom the agency action is specifically directed; or
     (b) A person named as a party to the agency proceeding or allowed to intervene or participate as a party in the agency proceeding.
     (13) "Party to judicial review or civil enforcement proceedings," or "party" in a context so indicating, means:
     (a) A person who files a petition for a judicial review or civil enforcement proceeding; or
     (b) A person named as a party in a judicial review or civil enforcement proceeding, or allowed to participate as a party in a judicial review or civil enforcement proceeding.
     (14) "Person" means any individual, partnership, corporation, association, governmental subdivision or unit thereof, or public or private organization or entity of any character, and includes another agency.
     (15) "Policy statement" means a written description of the current approach of an agency, entitled a policy statement by the agency head or its designee, to implementation of a statute or other provision of law, of a court decision, or of an agency order, including where appropriate the agency's current practice, procedure, or method of action based upon that approach.
     (16) "Rule" means any agency order, directive, or regulation of general applicability (a) the violation of which subjects a person to a penalty or administrative sanction; (b) which establishes, alters, or revokes any procedure, practice, or requirement relating to agency hearings; (c) which establishes, alters, or revokes any qualification or requirement relating to the enjoyment of benefits or privileges conferred by law; (d) which establishes, alters, or revokes any qualifications or standards for the issuance, suspension, or revocation of licenses to pursue any commercial activity, trade, or profession; or (e) which establishes, alters, or revokes any mandatory standards for any product or material which must be met before distribution or sale. The term includes the amendment or repeal of a prior rule, but does not include (i) statements concerning only the internal management of an agency and not affecting private rights or procedures available to the public, (ii) declaratory rulings issued pursuant to RCW 34.05.240, (iii) traffic restrictions for motor vehicles, bicyclists, and pedestrians established by the secretary of transportation or his or her designee where notice of such restrictions is given by official traffic control devices, or (iv) rules of institutions of higher education involving standards of admission, academic advancement, academic credit, graduation and the granting of degrees, employment relationships, or fiscal processes.
     (17) "Rules review committee" or "committee" means the joint administrative rules review committee created pursuant to RCW 34.05.610 for the purpose of selectively reviewing existing and proposed rules of state agencies.
     (18) "Rule making" means the process for formulation and adoption of a rule.
     (19) "Service," except as otherwise provided in this chapter, means posting in the United States mail, properly addressed, postage prepaid, or personal or electronic service. Service by mail is complete upon deposit in the United States mail. Agencies may, by rule, authorize service by electronic ((telefacsimile)) transmission, ((where copies are mailed simultaneously,)) or by commercial parcel delivery company.