An act to add and repeal Chapter 3.6 (commencing with Section 11366) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, relating to state agency regulations.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.
Chapter 3.6 (commencing with Section 11366) is added to Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, to read:
CHAPTER  3.6. Regulatory Reform
Article  1. Findings and Declarations
11366.
The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) The Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340), Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 11370), Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 11400), and Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 11500)) requires agencies and the Office of Administrative Law to review regulations to ensure their consistency with law and to consider impacts on the state’s economy and businesses, including small businesses.
(b) However, the act does not require agencies to individually review their regulations to identify overlapping, inconsistent, duplicative, or out-of-date regulations that may exist.
(c) At a time when the state’s economy is slowly recovering, unemployment and underemployment continue to affect all Californians, especially older workers and younger workers who received college degrees in the last seven years but are still awaiting their first great job, and with state government improving but in need of continued fiscal discipline, it is important that state agencies systematically undertake to identify, publicly review, and eliminate overlapping, inconsistent, duplicative, or out-of-date regulations, both to ensure they more efficiently implement and enforce laws and to reduce unnecessary and outdated rules and regulations.
Article  2. Definitions
11366.1.
For the purposes of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply:
(a) “State agency” means a state agency, as defined in Section 11000, except those state agencies or activities described in Section 11340.9.
(b) “Regulation” has the same meaning as provided in Section 11342.600.
Article  3. State Agency Duties
11366.2.
On or before January 1, 2018, each state agency shall do all of the following:
(a) Review all provisions of the California Code of Regulations
applicable to, or adopted by,
adopted by
that state agency.
(b) Identify any regulations that are duplicative, overlapping, inconsistent, or out of date.
(c) Adopt, amend, or repeal regulations to reconcile or eliminate any duplication, overlap, inconsistencies, or out-of-date provisions, and shall comply with the process specified in Article 5 (commencing with Section 11346) of Chapter 3.5, unless the addition, revision, or deletion is without regulatory effect and may be done pursuant to Section 100 of Title 1 of the California Code of Regulations.
(d) Hold at least one noticed public hearing,
that
which
shall be noticed on the Internet Web site of the state agency, for the purposes of accepting public comment on proposed revisions to its regulations.
(e) Notify the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of each house of the Legislature of the revisions to regulations that the state agency proposes to make at least 30 days prior to initiating the process under Article 5 (commencing with Section 11346) of Chapter 3.5 or Section 100 of Title 1 of the California Code of Regulations.
(g) (1) Report to the Governor and the Legislature on the state agency’s compliance with this chapter, including the number and content of regulations the state agency identifies as duplicative, overlapping, inconsistent, or out of date, and the state agency’s actions to address those regulations.
(2) The report shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
11366.3.
(a) On or before January 1, 2018, each agency listed in Section 12800 shall notify a department, board, or other unit within that agency of any existing regulations adopted by that department, board, or other unit that the agency has determined may be duplicative, overlapping, or inconsistent with a regulation adopted by another department, board, or other unit within that agency.
(b) A department, board, or other unit within an agency shall notify that agency of revisions to regulations that it proposes to make at least 90 days prior to a noticed public hearing pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 11366.2 and at least 90 days prior to adoption, amendment, or repeal of the regulations pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 11366.2. The agency shall review the proposed regulations and make recommendations to the department, board, or other unit within 30 days of receiving the notification regarding any duplicative, overlapping, or inconsistent regulation of another department, board, or other unit within the agency.
11366.4.
An agency listed in Section 12800 shall notify a state agency of any existing regulations adopted by that agency that may duplicate, overlap, or be inconsistent with the state agency’s regulations.
11366.45.
This chapter shall not be construed to weaken or undermine in any manner any human health, public or worker rights, public welfare, environmental, or other protection established under statute. This chapter shall not be construed to affect the authority or requirement for an agency to adopt regulations as provided by statute. Rather, it is the intent of the Legislature to ensure that state agencies focus more efficiently and directly on their duties as prescribed by law so as to use scarce public dollars more efficiently to implement the law, while achieving equal or improved economic and public benefits.
Article  4. Chapter Repeal
11366.5.
This chapter shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2019, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2019, deletes or extends that date.

Summary: Existing law authorizes various state entities to adopt, amend, or repeal regulations for various specified purposes. The Administrative Procedure Act requires the Office of Administrative Law and a state agency proposing to adopt, amend, or repeal a regulation to review the proposed changes for, among other things, consistency with existing state regulations.
This bill would, until January 1, 2019, require each state agency to, on or before January 1, 2018, review that agency’s regulations, identify any regulations that are duplicative, overlapping, inconsistent, or out of date, to revise those identified regulations, as provided, and report to the Legislature and Governor, as specified.