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Regulatory Information

Understand the Basics of the Process

Man using computer California state government agencies submit hundreds of proposed actions each year to adopt, amend and repeal regulations. These regulatory actions cumulatively affect most individuals and economic activities in California.

State agencies propose regulations “to implement, interpret, or make specific the law enforces or administered by it, or to govern its procedure.” [Government Code section (GC section) 11342.600] The process by which regulations become adopted is governed by the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), and is commonly known as the State Rulemaking Process.

The Administrative Procedure Act (APA) was enacted in 1979 to promote the rational development of regulations by requiring that interested parties be notified of any rulemaking proposal, and be given an opportunity to participate in the rulemaking process. (The APA discussed here refers to the portions of the Act in GC section 11340 through 11361 governing rulemaking by state agencies.)

All state agencies are subject to the APA, unless expressly exempted by statute. Generally, all policies and procedures of general application that implement, interpret, or make law specific -- and are intended to be enforced or administered by a state agency -- must be developed and announced as regulations under the APA.

The principal steps in the rulemaking process, as they occur, are discussed in the remaining sections of this page. Contact the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) for more specific rulemaking information, and to obtain a copy of their publication, How to Participate in the Rulemaking Process.

Developing the Proposal

The agency is required to prepare the following documents:

  • Notice of Proposed Action (Notice). The Notice of the regulatory proposal, which will be published in the weekly California Regulatory Notice Register (Register) and sent to interested parties;
  • Initial Statement of Reasons (ISOR). The ISOR contains the justification for the regulatory proposal;
  • Proposed Regulation Text. The proposed changes to the California Code of Regulations (CCR), utilizing strikethrough and underline to indicate deleted and new text, respectively;
  • Economic and Fiscal Impact Statement (STD. 399 Form, rev. 2-98). A state form that summarizes the economic and fiscal impacts of the regulatory proposal.

For complex proposals the agency is encouraged to communicate with the public before the Notice is published. GC section 11346.45(a) states that, “In order to increase public participation and improve the quality of regulations, state agencies proposing to adopt regulations shall, prior to publication of the notice required by Section 11346.5, involve parties who would be subject to the proposed regulations in public discussions regarding those proposed regulations, when the proposed regulations involve complex proposals or a large number of proposals that cannot easily be reviewed during the comment period.”

If the regulatory proposal will impose any fiscal impacts, the agency submits the proposal to the California Department of Finance (DOF) for review of the Fiscal Impact Statement part of the STD. 399 Form. DOF reviews the fiscal impacts of the proposal on local governments, state government, and the federal funding of state programs.

Releasing the Proposal for Comment

The proposal is then submitted to OAL for approval and publication in the Register. The Register is a weekly OAL publication that contains Notices of all regulatory proposals submitted to OAL for the week, along with other regulatory news and announcements. OAL is responsible for enforcing the APA and ensuring that state agency regulations are: authorized by statute; necessary; consistent with existing laws; written in a comprehensible manner; and in compliance with the procedural and legal standards in the APA.

When the Notice of Proposed Action is published in the Register, a minimum 45-day public comment period begins and an agency rulemaking record is opened (if one has not already been opened). The agency also posts the rulemaking documents on its Internet website, as required by GC section 11340.85(c). During the comment period, the public may review the rulemaking record and submit written comments to the agency.

If the agency did not schedule a public hearing, any person may request a public hearing. However, that request must be made at least 15 days prior to the comment deadline. Interested parties may submit written comments and/or present oral testimony at the hearing.

After the Comment Period Ends

After the close of the public comment period, the agency must summarize and respond to the comments it received. The agency may make changes to the regulatory proposal in response to comments, or on its own initiative. If the agency proposes substantial modifications that are not sufficiently related to original proposal, then a new 45-day comment period is required. If the changes are substantial, but sufficiently related to the text of the original proposal, only an additional 15-day comment period is required. No substantial modifications may be made without any additional opportunity for the public to comment.

The agency prepares the final statement of reasons (FSOR) and submits the complete rulemaking record to OAL. The FSOR must include the agency's summary of and responses to all public comments. The FSOR must also contain any updates to the ISOR, and any additional information that was not presented in the ISOR. The agency posts the FSOR on its website, and also makes the FSOR available to persons who request a copy.

At any point in the process, the agency may decide to discontinue the rulemaking. If so, the agency must publish a Decision Not to Proceed in the Register and also post that decision on its website.

OAL Review

The regulatory agency has one year, from the date of publication in the Register, to submit the original or amended proposal and the FSOR to OAL for review and potential approval. (Although there can be a number of exceptions to the one-year limit.) OAL reviews the rulemaking file submitted by the agency for compliance with the following six legal standards: [GC section 11349.1]

  • Necessity
  • Authority
  • Clarity
  • Consistency
  • Reference
  • No duplication

OAL also reviews the adequacy of the agency summary of and responses to public comments. Based on the results of its review, OAL then makes a decision to approve or disapprove the regulatory proposal. If approved, the rulemaking record is closed, the proposal is filed with the Secretary of State, and the regulations become state law.

If OAL disapproves the regulatory proposal, the agency has 120 days to address OAL's concerns. OAL may also, for good cause, grant an extension to this 120-day period. In unusual cases, the agency may appeal an OAL disapproval decision to the Governor.

If OAL disapproves the proposal, the agency may decide not to proceed with the rulemaking. The agency may initiate a new rulemaking as it deems appropriate.

The California Code of Regulations (CCR) contains the text of California regulations that have been approved by the Office of Administrative Law and filed with the Secretary of State. Title 24 of the CCR contains the text of California building standards that have been approved by the California Building Standards Commission (CBSC). Visit the CBSC website for information on obtaining California Building Standards (Title 24 regulations).