2011 Utah Business Regulation Review
On Tuesday, December 6, 2011, Governor Gary R. Herbert announced the results of a comprehensive review of all of Utah’s business regulations and the release of the report, Utah Business Regulation Review. This report documents the efforts of state agencies’ to respond to the governor’s call to review existing business regulations.
In addition to summarizing agencies’ responses to the Governor’s request, the report also includes an analysis of rules conducted by the Governor’s Office, and feedback from over 100 business associations and over 300 survey responses from individual businesses.
The report is available from the Division of Administrative Rules’ web site at http://www.rules.utah.gov/reports/2011UtahBusinessRegulationReview.pdf .
As part of the announcement, Governor Herbert also signed Executive Order EO/013/2011 entitled “Establishing Effective Oversight Over State Agency Rulemaking”. This order updates requirements found in orders issued in 1979, 1986, and 1988. The order establishes additional procedures for agencies to follow when promulgating rules.
The order:
- establishes the Governor’s expectation that rules be clear and concise, and that they not impose unnecessary burdens on the economy, on individuals, on public or private organizations, or on local government;
- requires agencies to include non-fiscal and indirect costs or savings as part of the cost boxes in the rule analysis;
- requires department heads to designate a department rules coordinator and report that person’s name to the Division of Administrative Rules;
- requires the department rules coordinator to perform several functions including a review of legislation for rulemaking mandates AND sending a copy of the rule analysis for a notice of proposed rule to the Governor’s Office of Economic Development;
- reestablishes the role of the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget to review rules;
- outlines the sources from which agencies may seek assistance;
- requires state administrators to cooperate with GOPB’s executive review of rules, and the Division of Administrative Rules implementation of filing, publication and hearing procedures.
The full language of the executive order is available online at http://www.rules.utah.gov/execdocs/2011/ExecDoc151876.htm.