PREPROPOSAL STATEMENT OF INQUIRY
RETIREMENT SYSTEMS
Subject of Possible Rule Making: Rules that will be required to be adopted as an outcome of the 2003 legislature's changes to pension law.
Statutes Authorizing the Agency to Adopt Rules on this Subject: RCW 41.50.050(5) and statutes to be identified in bills.
Reasons Why Rules on this Subject may be Needed and What They Might Accomplish: Currently, the Department of Retirement Systems (DRS) anticipates that the 2003 legislature will pass several pension-related bills that will require DRS to quickly amend or repeal some of its existing rules and/or add new rules. Any rules proposed under this preproposal (CR-101) will be directly related to these anticipated pension bills.
Other Federal and State Agencies that Regulate this Subject and the Process Coordinating the Rule with These Agencies: DRS will communicate with the Internal Revenue Service and the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries as needed in developing any WAC.
Process for Developing New Rule: DRS staff will work on the project, with the assistance of the Office of the Attorney General. The public is invited and encouraged to participate, as described below.
Interested parties can participate in the decision to adopt the new rule and formulation of the proposed rule before publication. DRS encourages your active participation in the rule-making process. Anyone interested in participating should contact the rules coordinator, below. After the rule(s) is drafted, DRS will file a copy with the Office of the Code Reviser with a notice of proposed rule making, and send a copy to everyone currently on the mailing list and anyone else who requests a copy. For more information on how to participate, please contact Merry A. Kogut, Rules Coordinator, Department of Retirement Systems, Mailstop 48380, P.O. Box 48380, Olympia, WA 98504-8380, voice (360) 664-7291, TTY (360) 586-5450, e-mail merryk@drs.wa.gov, fax (360) 753-3166.
March 12, 2003
Merry A. Kogut
Rules Coordinator