An Act to Strengthen Accountability in Rulemaking by Providing for Legislative Oversight
Maine Legislature, Session 131, LD 1744
Committee: State and Local Government
Sponsors: ANDREWS
Amends: 3 MRSA §165-A, 3 MRSA §167-A, 5 MRSA §8053-A, 5 MRSA §8056-A, 5 MRSA §8060, 5 MRSA §8071-A, 5 MRSA §8072, 5 MRSA §8075, 5 MRSA §11111, 5 MRSA §11113

Legislative Document
No. 1744
H.P. 1123
House of Representatives, April 20, 2023
An Act to Strengthen Accountability in Rulemaking by Providing 
for Legislative Oversight
Reference to the Committee on State and Local Government suggested and ordered printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative ANDREWS of Paris.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  3 MRSA §165-A is enacted to read:
§165-A.  Joint Committee on Administrative Rules
The Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, referred to in this section as "the 
committee," is established to review certain rule filings in accordance with Title 5, chapters 
and 379.
1. Membership.  The committee is composed of 13 members appointed at the 
beginning of each First Regular Session of the Legislature as follows:
A. Six members appointed by the President of the Senate;
B. Six members appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives; and
C. One member appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives in every 
odd-numbered Legislature, beginning with the 131st Legislature, and one member 
appointed by the President of the Senate in every even-numbered Legislature, 
beginning with the 132nd Legislature.
2. Term. Members serve for the full term of the Legislature in which they were 
appointed, unless removed in accordance with rules of the Legislature.
3. Chairs; subcommittees.  The first member appointed by the President of the Senate 
shall serve as the Senate Chair, and the first member appointed by the Speaker of the House 
shall serve as the House Chair. In order to assist the committee in its review of major 
substantive rules in accordance with Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A, the Senate Chair 
shall appoint a subcommittee of Senate members and the House Chair shall appoint a 
subcommittee of House members.  
4. Duties.  The committee shall review rule filings in accordance with the following 
provisions of law:
A. The Secretary of State's list of rules adopted in the previous calendar year, in 
accordance with Title 5, section 8053-A;
B. The Secretary of State's report on rule-making activities in the previous calendar 
year, in accordance with Title 5, section 8056-A;
C. Regulatory agendas, in accordance with Title 5, section 8060;
D. Major substantive rules, in accordance with Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A;
E. Petitions for review of rules, in accordance with Title 5, chapter 377-A.
Sec. 2.  3 MRSA §167-A is enacted to read:
§167-A.  Legislative Economic Analysis Unit
The Legislative Economic Analysis Unit, referred to in this section as "the unit," is 
established within the Legislature to carry out the duties specified in this section.
1.  Chief economist.  The administrative head of the unit, referred to in this section as 
"the chief economist," is jointly appointed at the beginning of each Legislature by the 
President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House and may be removed or replaced in 
accordance with applicable rules of the Legislature. The chief economist serves for the term 
of the Legislature to which the person is appointed and may be reappointed. In the event of 
a disagreement between the President and the Speaker on an appointment, no appointment 
is made and the position is vacant until an agreement is reached and the deputy chief shall 
serve as acting chief economist.
2. Staff.  The unit is staffed by a deputy chief and such professional and other support 
staff as determined and hired by the chief economist in accordance with policies established 
by the Legislative Council. The Legislative Council shall determine personnel policies 
governing the staff, including salary and benefits.
3.  Funding.  At the beginning of each First Regular Session, the chief economist, or 
in the case of a vacancy, the deputy chief, shall determine necessary funding for the unit 
for the budget biennium and submit the funding amount to the Legislative Council. In 
providing funding for the unit, the joint standing committee of the Legislature having 
jurisdiction over appropriations and financial affairs shall use as a reference baseline 
amount for the budget an amount equal to the sum of 2% of the General Fund 
appropriations in the Governor's proposed biennial budget for each agency having rule-
making authority.
4.  Duties.  The unit shall undertake:
A. The duties specified in Title 5, section 8075;
B. An impact analysis, as defined in Title 5, section 8075, subsection 1, paragraph A, 
of the acceptance and use of any federal or other grant received by the State, at the 
request of the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House or either chair of or a 
ranking member of any legislative committee with subject matter jurisdiction over the 
grant; and
C.  Any other responsibilities assigned to the unit jointly by the President of the Senate 
and the Speaker of the House or by the Legislature.
Sec. 3.  5 MRSA §8053-A, sub-§5, as enacted by PL 2011, c. 479, §4, is amended 
to read:
5.  Annual lists of rule-making activity.  By February 1st of each year, the Secretary 
of State shall provide the Executive Director of the Legislative Council lists by agency of 
all rules adopted by each agency in the previous calendar year. The Executive Director of 
the Legislative Council shall refer each list to the appropriate joint standing committee or 
committees of the Legislature Joint Committee on Administrative Rules established under 
Title 3, section 165-A for review. Each list must include for each rule the following 
information, which must be submitted by each agency to the Secretary of State:
A.  The statutory authority for the rule and the rule chapter number and title;
B.  The principal reason or purpose for the rule;
C.  A written statement explaining the factual and policy basis for each rule adopted 
pursuant to section 8052, subsection 5;
D.  If the rule adopted was routine technical or major substantive;
E.  If the rule was adopted as an emergency; and
F.  The fiscal impact of the rule.
Sec. 4.  5 MRSA §8053-A, sub-§6, as enacted by PL 2011, c. 479, §4, is amended 
to read:
6.  Authority to report out legislation.  After each appropriate joint standing 
committee of the Legislature the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules has received a 
list of rule-making activity pursuant to subsection 5, the committee may require an agency 
to appear before the committee, and the committee may report out legislation in the same 
legislative session in which the report is received to adjust rule-making authority related to 
the rules adopted in the previous calendar year.
Sec. 5.  5 MRSA §8056-A, sub-§3, as amended by PL 1991, c. 554, §3, is further 
amended to read:
3.  Report.  The Secretary of State shall report to the Governor and the joint standing 
committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over state and local government Joint 
Committee on Administrative Rules established under Title 3, section 165-A prior to 
February 1st of each year with respect to rule-making activities for the prior year. The 
report must include statistical information on agency rule-making activities, agency 
experience with procedural requirements of this subchapter, an evaluation of the 
codification process, the impact of the electronic text file data base on state agencies and 
users of the rules and recommendations for improvements to the rule-making process. In 
preparing the report, the Secretary of State shall solicit comments on this subchapter from 
agencies and their legal counsels, the Executive Director of the Legislative Council and the 
public.
Sec. 6.  5 MRSA §8060, first ¶, as enacted by PL 1989, c. 547, §8, is amended to 
read:
Each agency with the authority to adopt rules shall issue to the appropriate joint 
standing committee or committees of the Legislature Joint Committee on Administrative 
Rules established under Title 3, section 165-A and to the Secretary of State an agency 
regulatory agenda as provided in this section.
Sec. 7.  5 MRSA §8060, sub-§5, as enacted by PL 1989, c. 547, §8, is amended to 
read:
5.  Legislative review of agency regulatory agendas.  Each regulatory agenda shall 
must be reviewed by the appropriate joint standing committee of the Legislature Joint 
Committee on Administrative Rules established under Title 3, section 165-A at a meeting 
called for the purpose. The committee may review more than one agenda at a meeting.
Sec. 8.  5 MRSA §8071-A, sub-§3 is enacted to read:
3.  Rules committee.  "Rules committee" or "committee" means the Joint Committee 
on Administrative Rules established under Title 3, section 165-A.
Sec. 9.  5 MRSA §8072, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2011, c. 244, §4, is further 
amended to read:
3.  Legislative review; legislative instrument prepared.  If the required copies of the 
provisionally adopted rule and related information are received by the Executive Director 
of the Legislative Council during the legislative rule acceptance period, the Executive 
Director shall notify the Revisor of Statutes, who shall draft an appropriate legislative 
instrument to allow for legislative review and action upon the provisionally adopted rule 
during the legislative review session. The Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the 
House shall place the legislative instrument on the Advance Journal and Calendar. The 
secretary and clerk shall jointly suggest reference of the legislative instrument to a joint 
standing the rules committee of the Legislature that has jurisdiction over the subject matter 
of the proposed rule and shall provide for publication of that suggestion in the Advance 
Journal and Calendar first in the Senate and then in the House of Representatives no later 
than the next legislative day following receipt of the legislative instrument. After floor 
action on referral of the legislative instrument to the rules committee is completed, the 
Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of Representatives shall send copies of 
the rule and related information to each member of that committee. Each rule submitted for 
legislative review during the legislative rule acceptance period must be reviewed by the 
appropriate joint standing committee at a meeting called for that purpose in accordance 
with legislative rules. A The committee may review more than one rule and the rules of 
more than one agency at a meeting. The committee shall notify the affected agency of the 
meeting on its proposed rules.
Sec. 10.  5 MRSA §8072, sub-§7, as amended by PL 2011, c. 244, §7, is further 
amended to read:
7.  Report to the Legislature.  Unless otherwise provided by the Legislature, each 
joint standing if the rules committee of the Legislature that receives a rule submitted during 
the legislative rule acceptance period, the committee shall report to the Legislature its the 
committee's recommendations concerning final adoption of the rule no later than 30 days 
before statutory adjournment of the legislative review session as provided in Title 3, section 
2.
Sec. 11.  5 MRSA §8075 is enacted to read:
§8075.  Impact analysis and rule assessments
1. Definitions.  As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the 
following terms have the following meanings:
A. "Impact analysis" means an analysis produced by the unit of a state action or 
proposed state action that identifies sources consulted by the unit, key assumptions 
made by the unit and any areas of uncertainty with respect to the analysis and that 
provides:
(1) An evaluation of need for the action;
(2) Identification of the legal basis for the action;
(3) An evaluation of available alternatives;
(4) An evaluation of the costs and benefits, including estimates of:
(a)  Direct benefits, if any, including, but not limited to, cost savings or 
financial benefits to the State;
(b)  Compliance costs, if any, for affected entities;
(c)  Indirect costs, if any, including, but not limited to, administrative costs;
(d)  Effects on state revenue; and
(e)  Opportunity costs resulting from the removal or reduction, if any, of private 
capital in relevant markets.
B. "Unit" means the Legislative Economic Analysis Unit established under Title 3, 
section 167-A.
2.  Determinations.  Whenever it is unclear under applicable law whether a rule is a 
major substantive rule or a routine technical rule, the President of the Senate, the Speaker 
of the House or either chair of the rules committee may request that the unit determine an 
appropriate classification of the rule. If the unit finds that the rule is a major substantive 
rule, the unit shall notify the agency and provide public notice of its finding as well as a 
description of the process required for final adoption of major substantive rules and shall 
also notify the Legislature of its ability to take any action it determines to be appropriate 
with respect to the rule and the authorizing legislation for the rule, including, but not limited 
to, clarifying the law to designate the rule as major substantive. Notwithstanding any 
determination by the unit, a court, in any proceeding in which the classification of the rule 
is at issue, shall decide the issue de novo.
3. Impact analysis of rules.  The unit shall undertake and complete impact analyses 
of rules in accordance with this subsection.
A. Within 15 days of the submission of a provisionally adopted rule in accordance with 
section 8072, the unit shall complete and make public an impact analysis of the 
provisionally adopted rule.  
B.  If the unit determines under subsection 2 that a rule is a major substantive rule, the 
unit shall, within 15 days following that determination, complete and make public an 
impact analysis of the rule, if one has been proposed or adopted.
C.  At the request of either chair of the rules committee, the unit shall undertake an 
impact analysis of any major substantive or routine technical rule. The unit shall 
complete an impact analysis under this paragraph as resources allow and in the order 
of the requests received, unless otherwise directed jointly by the President of the Senate 
and the Speaker of the House.
Sec. 12.  5 MRSA §11111, sub-§2, as enacted by PL 1981, c. 524, §15, is repealed 
and the following enacted in its place:
2.  Committee.  "Committee" means the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules 
established under Title 3, section 165-A.
Sec. 13.  5 MRSA §11113, first ¶, as amended by PL 1985, c. 737, Pt. B, §16, is 
further amended to read:
The executive director shall, upon receipt of an application for review, determine the 
appropriate joint standing committee of the Legislature responsible for review of the rule 
in question and send the application and a copy of the rule in question to each member of 
the committee. Each member of the committee shall individually review the application to 
determine whether the applicant is qualified and whether the public interest would be 
served by a review of the rule in question by the full committee. If a committee member 
decides that the review should be made, he the committee member shall notify the director 
within 15 days after notice was sent. If 1/3 or more of the full committee notify the director 
that a review of the rule should be made, the director shall advise the chairman chairs of 
the committee, who shall schedule a meeting of the committee to review the rule. If the 
committee votes not to review the rule, a report to that effect shall must be prepared by the 
director and sent to the applicant and the Legislative Council.
SUMMARY
This bill does the following.
1.  It establishes the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules within the Legislature.  
The committee replaces the joint standing committees in reviewing the list, produced by 
the Secretary of State, of rules adopted in the previous calendar year; the Secretary of 
State’s report on rule-making activities in the previous calendar year; regulatory agendas 
submitted by agencies; provisionally adopted major substantive rules; and petitions for 
review of rules.
2.  It establishes the Legislative Economic Analysis Unit within the Legislature.  The 
unit is responsible for undertaking impact analysis of major substantive rules and other 
rules as directed.  The unit is also required, whenever it is unclear under applicable law 
whether a rule is a major substantive rule or a routine technical rule, to make a finding, on 
request, as to the appropriate classification of the rule. The unit is further directed to 
produce an impact analysis of the State’s acceptance and use of any federal or other grants, 
at the request of the President of the Senate, Speaker of the House or either chair of or a 
ranking member of any legislative committee with subject matter jurisdiction over the 
grant.  The unit is responsible for any other work assigned to it jointly by the President of 
the Senate and the Speaker of the House or by the Legislature.