2023 New York Laws › SAP - State Administrative Procedure Act › Article 2 - Rule Making › 202-BB - Rural Area Flexibility Analysis.

§  202-bb. Rural area flexibility analysis. 1. Intent. The legislature
hereby finds, determines and declares that:
(a) The capacity of public and private sector interests in rural areas
to respond to state  agency  regulations  is  often  constrained  by  an
operating  environment  distinctly different from that found in suburban
and metropolitan areas of the state;
(b) Factors such as population sparsity, small community size, limited
access to  financial  and  technical  assistance,  undeveloped  services
delivery  systems,  lack of economies of scale and extensive reliance on
part-time and volunteer services providers  inhibits  rural  ability  to
effectively   address  increasingly  complex  and  stringent  regulatory
requirements;
(c)  In  order  to  maximize  sensitivity  to  rural   strengths   and
limitations,  the  state  must  continue  to  promote  a framework which
enhances state and local cooperation in meeting rural needs; and
(d) Enhancement of this chapter to include a more thorough  assessment
of  regulatory  impact  and  alternatives for rural areas can provide an
improved dialogue on critical issues, while fostering  a  more  cohesive
and effective state/local partnership.
2.  Authorization.  (a)  In  addition  to,  and  consistent  with, the
provisions of sections two hundred two-a and two hundred two-b  of  this
article, agencies shall seek approaches that allow them to address their
statutory responsibilities while considering the impact of their actions
on  public  and  private  sector interests located in rural areas of the
state.
(b)  In  developing  a  rule,  the  agency  shall  consider  utilizing
approaches  that  will  accomplish the objectives of applicable statutes
while minimizing any adverse impact of the rule on  public  and  private
sector  interests  in  rural  areas.  Consistent  with the objectives of
applicable statutes, the agency shall consider such approaches as:
(i)  the  establishment   of   differing   compliance   or   reporting
requirements   or  timetables  that  take  into  account  the  resources
available to rural areas;
(ii) increased use of performance or  outcome  standards  rather  than
design or input standards; and
(iii)  an exemption from coverage by the rule, or by any part thereof,
so long  as  the  public  health,  safety  or  general  welfare  is  not
endangered.
3.  In  proposing  a  rule  for  adoption  or in adopting a rule on an
emergency basis,  the  agency  shall  issue  a  rural  area  flexibility
analysis regarding the rule being proposed for adoption or the emergency
rule being adopted. A copy of such analysis and any finding, and reasons
for  such  finding,  pursuant  to  this  section,  shall be submitted in
writing, and  may  be  transmitted  electronically  in  accordance  with
article  three  of  the  state  technology  law,  to  the  governor, the
temporary president of the senate, the  speaker  of  the  assembly,  the
office  for  regulatory and management assistance and the administrative
regulations review commission at the time such analysis is submitted  or
electronically  transmitted  to  the  secretary of state for publication
and, upon written or  electronic  request,  a  copy  shall  be  sent  or
electronically   transmitted  to  any  other  person.  Each  rural  area
flexibility analysis shall contain:
(a) A description of the types and an estimate of the number of  rural
areas to which the rule will apply;
(b)  A  description  of  (i)  the  reporting,  recordkeeping and other
compliance requirements of the rule, and (ii) the kinds of  professional
services that are likely to be needed in a rural area in order to comply
with such requirements;
(c)  An  estimate  of the initial capital costs and an estimate of the
annual cost of complying with the rule, with an indication of any likely
variation in such costs  for  different  types  of  public  and  private
entities in rural areas;
(d)  An indication of how the rule is designed to minimize any adverse
impact of such rule on  rural  areas,  including  information  regarding
whether  the  approaches suggested in subdivision two of this section or
other similar approaches were considered; and
(e) A statement indicating how the agency  complied  with  subdivision
seven of this section.
4.   (a)  This  section  shall  not  apply  to  any  rule  defined  in
subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (a) of subdivision  two  of  section  one
hundred  two  of this chapter, nor shall it apply to any rule which does
not impose an adverse impact on rural areas and which the  agency  finds
would   not   impose   reporting,   recordkeeping  or  other  compliance
requirements on public or private entities in rural areas. The  agency's
finding  and the reasons upon which the finding was made, including what
measures the agency took to ascertain that the  rule  would  not  impose
such compliance requirements or adverse impact, shall be included in the
rule  making  notice  as  required  by  section  two hundred two of this
chapter.
(b) A rule determined by an agency to be a consensus rule and proposed
pursuant to subparagraph (i) of paragraph  (b)  of  subdivision  one  of
section  two  hundred  two  of  this  article  shall  be exempt from the
requirements of this section.
5. In order to avoid duplicative action,  an  agency  may  consider  a
series of closely related rules as one rule for the purpose of complying
with subdivision three of this section.
6.  In  complying  with  the  provisions  of subdivision three of this
section, an agency  may  provide  either  a  quantifiable  or  numerical
description  of  the  effects  of  a  rule  or  more general descriptive
statements if quantification is not practicable or reliable.
7. When any rule is  proposed  for  which  a  rural  area  flexibility
analysis  is  required,  the agency shall assure that public and private
interests in rural areas have been given an opportunity  to  participate
in the rule making through such activities as:
(a) the publication of a general notice of the proposed rule making;
(b)  notification  of  public  and  private  interests  in rural areas
directly affected by the proposed rule;
(c) the conduct of special public hearings or meetings concerning  the
proposed  rule  for  those  public and private interests affected by the
rule; and
(d) the adoption or modification of agency procedural rules that  will
minimize the cost or complexity of participation in the rule making.
8.  Each  agency shall issue a revised rural area flexibility analysis
when:
(a) the information presented in the analysis  submitted  pursuant  to
this  section  is  inadequate  or  incomplete,  provided,  however, such
revised analysis shall be  submitted  as  soon  as  practicable  to  the
secretary  of  state  for  publication  in the state register, provided,
further, if such statement exceeds two thousand words, the notice  shall
include  only  a  summary  of  such  statement in less than two thousand
words;
(b) a proposed  rule  contains  any  substantial  revisions  and  such
revisions necessitate that such analysis be modified; or
(c)  there are no substantial revisions in the proposed rule but there
are changes in the text of the rule as adopted when  compared  with  the

text  of  the  latest  published  version  of the proposed rule and such
changes would necessitate that such analysis be modified.