An agency may choose to prefile a draft of their rule filing, including analysis forms if desired, with the Office of Administrative Rules before filing in eRules. Our office will review this draft for formatting and style inconsistencies with the Rulewriting Manual for Utah. Prefilings are designed to assist agencies in the rulemaking process and are not a replacement for a thorough agency review.
The prefiling process is simple:
- Collect your rule text and, if desired, the accompanying rule analysis form
- Send to ruleprefilings@utah.gov and include the rule number in the subject line
- Review suggested changes and comments upon return to your inbox, which may take up to a week
Frequently Asked Questions
- Can I prefile directly with someone who works for the Office of Administrative Rules?
- Prefilings are tracked exclusively through ruleprefilings@utah.gov. Sending them to individual OAR employees or to the Office’s general email may lead to lost or delayed prefilings.
- Does a prefiled review still need to go through the eRules filing process?
- Yes. Prefilings do not replace the formal eRules filing. Once a prefiling draft is sent back to the agency, the agency is responsible for filing through eRules. We have seen significant improvements in filing review times for prefiled rules, however, which is one of the primary benefits to prefiling.
- How many rules am I able to send in for prefiling reviews?
- There are no limits to how many rules you may send, but, for organizational reasons, please send each draft in a separate email. For example, if you’re wanting three rules reviewed at the same time, send three separate emails. Keep analysis forms and rule text drafts together.
- Is there anything I should check before sending in a prefiling?
- Ensure you’re drafting using the most recent version of your rule. You can download this through the eRules portal. If you’re unsure on how to get this version, let us know at rules@utah.gov.
- Our office uses this spreadsheet of common, nonsubstantive issues when reviewing prefilings. While it is only some of the things that we look for, we recommend that your agency uses this spreadsheet as part of your review during the drafting process and before prefiling with us.