SJR 30-REPEAL OF REGULATIONS BY LEGISLATURE Number 1196 MR. POUND introduced the bill by saying the regulation process is creating laws without the process of an elected official. The process is based on a bureaucratic agenda with no one accountable. Through the previous attorney general there is a ruling that the Lt. Governor's signature is mandatory for a regulation. This legislation will correct the problem, allowing the legislature to change regulations that do not meet the original intent of statute. SENATOR ELLIS commented this is the same legislation that has been rejected by the voters several times, and he asked the Chairman why he feels the outcome for this bill will be any different. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR responded this is a continuing education process and he hopes that in the debate the public will understand that some of the regulations passed, such as RS 2477, are regulatory changes and not statutory changes which the legislature can not change promptly. SENATOR ELLIS asked if the Senate State Affairs Committee waived this bill and if the Judiciary Committee is the only committee considering this legislation. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR said last year the bill went through two committees and was passed by the Senate. The bill was sent to the House and went through the full committee process but did not pass on the floor of the House and, therefore, was not referred back to the Rules Committee. Chairman Taylor has been advised that the bill is not active and needs to be recreated. This is the same bill the Senate passed last year. SENATOR DONLEY moved SJR 30 out of committee with individual recommendations. SENATOR ELLIS objected. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR asked for discussion. SENATOR DONLEY stated one of the top complaints from his constituents concern regulations. It is hard to explain that the legislature has limited powers over regulations that are adopted by the executive branch. He feels if the public understood how difficult it is to correct a mistake in the law they would approve this legislation. SENATOR DONLEY said the only way for the legislature to correct a problem is by passing a bill that removes the authority of an agency to do a specific regulation--which will be subject to veto by the governor. SENATOR DONLEY feels this legislation is important and will empower the public by giving the legislature the power to act on their behalf. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR commented that in the past the legislature repealed regulations by resolution but a supreme court decision changed this. This legislation will be overturning that supreme court decision. SENATOR ELLIS asked if Senator Donley believed that in the three times the voters rejected this legislation they did not understand what they were voting on, and that it only takes legislators to educate them to change their minds. SENATOR DONLEY responded no, but he has been amazed that in all the people he has talked with no one remembers this issue being on the ballot or how they voted. Number 1605 SENATOR ELLIS commented that the issue has been on the ballot three times and the public's position seems clear. There are individuals who have problems with specific regulations but regulations are not made for individuals but are made for the greater public good. SENATOR DONLEY responded there are many members of the public who feel regulations are not made for the greater public good but are for the greater good of the bureaucracy that adopts them. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR commented that people are upset about the regulation the Department of Environmental Conservation(DEC) passed to raise the cost for a food permit from $75.00 to $400.00 annually for day care centers. SENATOR ELLIS asked if this is disconnected from this legislatures attitude toward DEC's budget. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR responded yes and that no one in the legislature imagined that DEC would have leveraged and utilized regulations to the extent they are today--using them as a revenue source. Nor did the legislature imagine that the Department of Fish and Game would be using regulations to demand cash from Ketchikan fishermen with the threat of being shut down. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR said many times after regulations have been adopted it is discovered they impact in ways that were not intended, and a correction can take years. SENATOR ELLIS asked if this is not why a governor is elected every four years--holding him accountable for the executive branch. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR answered that you cannot wait four years for accountability and there are laws against committing, before an election, who will be appointed by the governor. SENATOR ELLIS asked if some of the regulation problems could be avoided if the legislature did a better job in writing the statutes. Number 1880 CHAIRMAN TAYLOR responded that what he is looking for is an appropriate check and balance within the creation of the regulation system. SENATOR HALFORD stated that the public does not trust the legislature and that the referendum process should be changed to allow the initiative process to apply to the regulations. Once a regulation is repealed by initiative it cannot be reinstated for a longer period of time than the two years a statute takes. The standard for regulations is too weak and the constitution should be changed to say that no regulation should be permitted unless it is essential for the express purpose of the statute. The public will probably vote for this but it will hamstring the government. SENATOR HALFORD commented the bill should be changed in some way so that it will not be identical to the bill that passed last year. SENATOR DONLEY asked for unanimous consent to withdraw his motion. With no objection, the motion to move the bill was withdrawn. After discussion by committee members on the rewording of SJR 30, SENATOR HALFORD proposed that line 6 of SJR 30 be deleted and that line 7 read: A regulation found inconsistent with its enabling statute is repealed by a resolution concurred in by a majority of the members of each house. SENATOR HALFORD moved to amend amendment 1. With no objection, the amendment passed. SENATOR HALFORD moved SJR 30 from committee with individual recommendations. SENATOR ELLIS objected. The roll was taken on the motion. Voting yea: Senator Halford, Senator Donley and Chairman Taylor. Voting nay: Senator Ellis