PRINTER'S NO. 156
No. 156 Session of 1989
INTRODUCED BY HOLL, JANUARY 23, 1989
REFERRED TO STATE GOVERNMENT, JANUARY 23, 1989
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of June 25, 1982 (P.L.633, No.181), entitled,
2 as reenacted and amended, "An act providing for independent
3 oversight and review of regulations, creating an Independent
4 Regulatory Review Commission, providing for its powers and
5 duties and making repeals," extending the time for review by
6 the commission and by legislative committees.
7 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
8 hereby enacts as follows:
9 Section 1. Sections 5(c) and 6(a) of the act of June 25,
10 1982 (P.L.633, No.181), known as the Regulatory Review Act,
11 reenacted and amended February 21, 1986 (P.L.47, No.16), are
12 amended to read:
13 Section 5. Proposed regulation; criteria for review, existing
14 regulations.
15 * * *
16 (c) The standing committee shall, within [20] 30 calendar
17 days from the date the proposed regulation is published in the
18 Pennsylvania Bulletin, approve or disapprove the proposed
19 regulation. The standing committee shall notify the commission
1 of approval or disapproval. Failure of both standing committees
2 to disapprove a regulation within the [20] 30 calendar days
3 shall constitute approval thereof. Along with a notification of
4 approval or disapproval the committee shall convey a report
5 which includes:
6 (1) A copy of the proposed regulation.
7 (2) A summary of the objections of the committee, if
8 any, stating the reasons why the committee has found the
9 proposed regulation unacceptable, and a copy of any staff
10 reports deemed pertinent by the committee. Such reasons shall
11 include, but not be limited to, deviations from the statutory
12 authority of the agency and the intention of the General
13 Assembly in the enactment of the statute upon which the
14 proposed regulation was based.
15 In the event the standing committees are prevented from
16 completing their [20-day] 30-day review because of expiration of
17 the legislative session in even-numbered years, consideration of
18 the proposed regulation shall be automatically suspended until
19 the fourth Monday in January of the next succeeding session of
20 the General Assembly. On that date, the agency shall resubmit
21 the proposed regulation to the designated standing committee of
22 each chamber, or its successor committee, and to the commission.
23 The standing committees, or their successor committees, shall
24 have [20] 30 calendar days and the commission shall have [30] 40
25 calendar days from the date the proposed regulation is published
26 in the Pennsylvania Bulletin to review such regulation. In
27 computing the [20-day] 30-day committee review period and the
28 [30-day] 40-day commission review period, the number of days in
29 which the proposed regulation had been under review by the
30 standing committees and by the commission as of the expiration
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1 of the prior session shall be subtracted from the [20-day] 30-
2 day committee and the [30-day] 40-day commission review periods,
3 respectively. Failure of the agency to resubmit the proposed
4 regulation on the fourth Monday in January of the next
5 succeeding session shall constitute withdrawal thereof. No
6 proposed regulation shall be submitted to the commission or the
7 standing committees for review during the period from the end of
8 the legislative session of even-numbered years to the first day
9 of the next succeeding legislative session, but emergency
10 regulations may be adopted pursuant to the provisions of section
11 6(b).
12 * * *
13 Section 6. Procedures for commission consideration and agency
14 review.
15 (a) Whenever the commission shall find that a proposed
16 regulation submitted to the Legislative Reference Bureau for
17 publication of notice of proposed rulemaking in the Pennsylvania
18 Bulletin or that a regulation for which notice of proposed
19 rulemaking is omitted pursuant to section 204 of the act of July
20 31, 1968 (P.L.769, No.240), referred to as the Commonwealth
21 Documents Law, or a regulation which submitted to the Attorney
22 General for review prior to publication may be contrary to the
23 public interest under the criteria set forth in section 5, the
24 commission shall notify the agency promulgating such regulation
25 of its finding. Such notification shall set forth the
26 commission's objections in reasonable detail. The agency shall
27 review the commission's finding and not later than two weeks
28 following the notification unless the commission grants extended
29 time to comment shall respond to the commission as to whether or
30 not the proposed regulation will be withdrawn, revised or
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1 returned in its original form with added justification or
2 documentation by the agency. If the commission does not notify
3 the agency of any objection within [30] 40 days of publication,
4 in the case of proposed rulemaking, or within [30] 40 days of
5 receipt, in the case of omission of proposed rulemaking, the
6 agency may proceed to promulgate the regulation as provided in
7 the Commonwealth Documents Law.
8 * * *
9 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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