Opinion ID: 2168838
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Relevant History

Text: The questionable DOC rules put into force without Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR) review came to fall on the courthouse steps after being tossed between the legislative and executive branches. In order to examine the validity of APA §§ 45 and 46, it is imperative to understand the history that necessarily attaches to an agency rule. The genesis of the DOC rules can be traced to the enactment of the APA. The APA became law as a product of the normal legislative process: enactment by introduction and passage of a bill that was eventually presented to and signed by the Governor. MCL 24.201 et seq.; MSA 3.560(101) et seq. The enabling statute that conferred rulemaking power upon the DOC in the first place was also enacted pursuant to constitutional procedures. MCL 791.206; MSA 28.2276. From that point, the ball bounced to the executive branch, and the DOC had the power to promulgate rules within the bounds of authority delegated by the Legislature. Limitations were placed on the DOC by the enabling statute as well as by the APA. Here, the DOC crafted rules and submitted them to JCAR as required by the APA. By determining that the DOC stepped outside its delegated power, the Legislature volleyed the ball back to the executive branch. In response, the DOC then decided to play by its own rules. The DOC failed to comply with the APA when it proceeded to file proposed rules in the face of JCAR disapproval. From a legal perspective, the enactment of the APA and the enactment of the enabling statute providing for DOC rule creation clearly constituted legislation for the purposes of the Enactment and Presentment Clauses. They were introduced by bill, presented to the Governor, and were enacted. When the enabling statute delegated power to the DOC, constitutional rules governing delegation became applicable. The DOC failed to comply with the APA by submitting rules for filing without a certificate of JCAR approval. A question of rule validity then arose. Now the debate turns on whether the rules should be upheld on the grounds that the APA is unconstitutional, or whether the rules should be invalidated because of a procedural failure. I believe that §§ 45 and 46 are constitutional because JCAR review is not equivalent to legislation. Further, the DOC rules should be invalidated in conformity with Michigan cases recognizing that procedural safeguards must be followed during the rulemaking process. See, e.g., Detroit Base Coalition for Human Rights of the Handicapped v. Dep't of Social Services, 431 Mich. 172, 428 N.W.2d 335 (1988); Clonlara, Inc. v. State Bd. of Ed., 442 Mich. 230, 501 N.W.2d 88 (1993); People v. Turmon, 417 Mich. 638, 340 N.W.2d 620 (1983). The lead opinion correctly recognizes that this Court may only declare a statute unconstitutional in the face of a clear violation. Op. at 535, citing Gauthier v. Campbell, Wyant & Cannon Foundry Co., 360 Mich. 510, 515, 104 N.W.2d 182 (1960). Similarly, statutes are presumed to be constitutional, and the challenger bears the burden of proving invalidity. [1] Johnson v. Harnischfeger Corp., 414 Mich. 102, 112, 323 N.W.2d 912 (1982); League General Ins. Co. v. Catastrophic Claims Ass'n, 165 Mich.App. 278, 293, 418 N.W.2d 708 (1987), rev'd on other grounds 435 Mich. 338, 458 N.W.2d 632 (1990). I would hold that the DOC failed to meet its burden.