§ 49:966 — Review of agency rules; fees

Louisiana § 49:966

• Jurisdiction: Louisiana
• Title 49: State Administration

Text

§966. Review of agency rules; fees
A. It is the declared purpose of this Section to provide a procedure whereby the
legislature may review the exercise of rulemaking authority and the adoption, increasing, or
decreasing of fees, extensions of the legislative lawmaking function, which it has delegated
to state agencies.
B. Prior to the adoption, amendment, or repeal of any rule or the adoption, increase,
or decrease of any fee, the agency shall submit a report relative to the proposed rule change
or fee adoption, increase, or decrease to the appropriate standing committees of the
legislature and the presiding officers of the respective houses as provided in this Section.
The report shall be submitted on the same day that the notice of the intended action is
submitted to the Louisiana Register for publication in accordance with R.S. 49:961. The
report shall be submitted to each standing committee electronically if electronic means are
available. If no electronic means are available, the report shall be submitted to the
committee's office in the state capitol by certified mail with return receipt requested or by
messenger who shall provide a receipt for signature. The electronic receipt by the
committee, return receipt or the messenger's receipt shall be proof of receipt of the report by
the committee.
(1) Louisiana Economic Development, all of the agencies made a part of it, and those
agencies transferred to or placed within the office of the governor pursuant to R.S. 36:4.1
shall submit the report to the House Committee on Commerce and the Senate Committee on
Commerce, Consumer Protection, and International Affairs.
(2) Corrections services of the Department of Public Safety and Corrections and all
the agencies of the department related to corrections and concealed weapons and concealed
weapon permits, except as otherwise provided in this Subsection, the Louisiana State Board
of Private Security Examiners, and the gaming enforcement section of the office of state
police within the Department of Public Safety and Corrections shall submit all reports other
than reports on proposed rule changes affecting prison enterprise programs, to the House
Committee on Administration of Criminal Justice and the Senate Committee on Judiciary,
Section C; however, the Crime Victims Reparation Board shall submit the report to the
House Committee on the Judiciary and the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Section B.
(3) The Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism and all of the agencies made
a part of it, except as otherwise provided in this Paragraph, shall submit the report to the
House Committee on Municipal, Parochial and Cultural Affairs and the Senate Committee
on Commerce, Consumer Protection, and International Affairs.
(a) The office of the state library, the office of the state museum, the State Board of
Library Examiners, the Louisiana Archaeological Survey and Antiquities Commission, the
Board of Directors of the Louisiana State Museum, the Board of Commissioners of the State
Library of Louisiana, the Louisiana State Arts Council, the Louisiana State Capitol Fiftieth
Anniversary Commission, and the Louisiana National Register Review Committee shall
submit the report to the House Committee on Municipal, Parochial and Cultural Affairs and
the Senate Committee on Education.
(b) The office of state parks and the State Parks and Recreation Commission shall
submit the report to the House Committee on Municipal, Parochial and Cultural Affairs and
the Senate Committee on Natural Resources.
(c) The office of tourism and promotion and the Louisiana Tourist Development
Commission shall submit the report to the House Committee on Commerce and the Senate
Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection, and International Affairs.
(4) The Department of State and all of the agencies made a part of it shall submit a
report to the House Committee on House and Governmental Affairs and the Senate
Committee on Senate and Governmental Affairs.
(5) Louisiana Works and all of the agencies made a part of it shall submit the report
to the House Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations and the Senate Committee on
Labor and Industrial Relations.
(6) The Department of Transportation and Development and all of the agencies made
a part of it shall submit the report, to the House Committee on Transportation, Highways and
Public Works and the Senate Committee on Transportation, Highways and Public Works.
The department shall also submit to the standing committees any policies or priorities
developed for the expenditure or distribution of any monies from the Transportation Trust
Fund as created by Article VII, Section 27 of the Constitution of Louisiana. The policies and
priorities shall be submitted for review purposes only.
(7) Repealed by Acts 2001, No. 451, §5, eff. Jan. 12, 2004.
(8) The Department of Justice and all of the agencies made a part of it shall submit
the report to the House Committee on the Judiciary and the Senate Committee on the
Judiciary, Section C.
(9) The Department of Civil Service and all of the agencies made a part of it shall
submit the report to the House Committee on House and Governmental Affairs and the
Senate Committee on Senate and Governmental Affairs; however, the Board of Tax Appeals
shall submit the report to the House Committee on Ways and Means and the Senate
Committee on Revenue and Fiscal Affairs.
(10) The Department of Revenue and all of the agencies made a part of it, except as
otherwise provided in this Paragraph, shall submit the report to the House Committee on
Ways and Means and the Senate Committee on Revenue and Fiscal Affairs; however, the
office of charitable gaming shall submit the report to the House Committee on
Administration of Criminal Justice and the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Section B.
(11) The Department of Conservation and Energy and all of the agencies made a part
of it shall submit the report to the House Committee on Natural Resources and Environment
and the Senate Committee on Natural Resources. However, for exercises of the
commissioner of conservation's rulemaking authority pursuant to Chapter 13-A-1 of Title 38
of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, the department shall submit the report to the
House Committee on Natural Resources and Environment and the Senate Committee on
Environmental Quality.
(12) Public Safety Services of the Department of Public Safety and Corrections and
all the agencies of the department related to public safety, except as otherwise provided in
this Subsection, shall submit the report to the House Committee on the Judiciary and the
Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Section B; however, the office of motor vehicles shall
submit the report to the House Committee on Transportation, Highways and Public Works
and the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Section B; however, the office of the state fire
marshal, code enforcement and building safety, shall submit the report to the House
Committee on Commerce and the Senate Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection
and International Affairs.
(13) The Wildlife and Fisheries Commission and the Department of Wildlife and
Fisheries and all of the agencies made a part of it shall submit the report to the House
Committee on Natural Resources and Environment and the Senate Committee on Natural
Resources.
(14) The Department of Insurance and all of the agencies made a part of it shall
submit the report to the House Committee on Insurance and the Senate Committee on
Insurance.
(15)(a) The Department of the Treasury and all of the agencies made a part of it,
except as otherwise provided in this Paragraph, shall submit the report to the House
Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Finance.
(b) Each retirement system made a part of the Department of the Treasury shall
submit the report to the House Committee on Retirement and the Senate Committee on
Retirement.
(16) The Louisiana Department of Health and all of the agencies made a part of it
shall submit the report to the House Committee on Health and Welfare and the Senate
Committee on Health and Welfare.
(17) The Department of Children and Family Services and all of the agencies made
a part of it shall submit the report to the House Committee on Health and Welfare and the
Senate Committee on Health and Welfare.
(18) The Department of Agriculture and Forestry and all of the agencies made a part
of it shall submit all reports, and the Department of Public Safety and Corrections and all the
agencies made a part of it shall submit reports on proposed rule changes affecting prison
enterprise programs to the House Committee on Agriculture, Forestry, Aquaculture and
Rural Development and the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Forestry, Aquaculture and
Rural Development.
(19) The Department of Education and all of the agencies made a part of it shall
submit the report to the House Committee on Education and the Senate Committee on
Education.
(20) The Department of Public Service and all of the agencies made a part of it shall
submit the report to the House Committee on Commerce and the Senate Committee on
Commerce, Consumer Protection, and International Affairs.
(21)(a) Except as provided in Paragraph (1) of this Subsection, the office of the
governor and the office of the lieutenant governor and all of the agencies within or part of
either and any other agency for which provisions are not otherwise made in this Subsection,
shall submit the report to the speaker of the House of Representatives and the president of
the Senate, except that executive orders duly issued by the governor and attested to by the
secretary of state are exempt from the provisions of this Chapter. The speaker of the House
of Representatives and the president of the Senate shall promptly forward the report to the
appropriate standing committee of their respective houses.
(b) The Louisiana Workforce Investment Council shall submit the report to the
House Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations and the Senate Committee on Labor and
Industrial Relations.
(c) The Office of Group Benefits shall submit the report to the House Committee on
Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Finance.
NOTE: Subparagraph (d) eff. upon appropriation of funds sufficient to fully fund the
provisions of Acts 2020, 2nd Ex. Sess., No. 24.
(d) The office of broadband and connectivity shall submit the report to the House
Committee on Commerce and the Senate Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection,
and International Affairs.
(22) The Department of Environmental Quality and all of the agencies made a part
of it shall submit the report to the House Committee on Natural Resources and Environment
and the Senate Committee on Environmental Quality.
(23) The Louisiana Sentencing Commission shall submit the report to the House
Committee on the Administration of Criminal Justice and the Senate Committee on the
Judiciary, Section C.
(24)(a) In addition to the submission of a report relative to a proposed rule change
or fee adoption, increase, or decrease by an agency to the appropriate standing committee as
specified in Paragraphs (1) through (23) of this Subsection, whenever the fiscal impact of the
rule or fee adoption, increase, or decrease, as indicated by the statement of fiscal impact
required by Paragraph (C)(5) of this Section, exceeds one million dollars, the report on the
proposed rule change or fee adoption, increase, or decrease shall also be submitted to the
Senate Committee on Finance and the House Committee on Appropriations and shall be
subject to review by those committees in the same manner and to the same extent as the
review of the standing committees provided for in Paragraphs (1) through (23) of this
Subsection.
(b) Whenever the fiscal impact or economic impact of the proposed rule change or
fee adoption, increase, or decrease is five hundred thousand dollars or more as indicated by
the statement of fiscal impact or the statement of economic impact required by Subsection
C of this Section, the agency shall transmit the report provided for in Subsection C of this
Section to each member of the legislature via electronic mail on the same day the notice of
the intended action is submitted to the Louisiana Register for publication in accordance with
R.S. 49:961.
C. The report, as provided for in Subsection B of this Section, shall contain:
(1) A copy of the rule as it is proposed for adoption, amendment, or repeal and a
statement of the amount of the fee to be adopted or the amount of the proposed increase or
decrease. The rule shall be coded with any new rule or language that is to be added to an
existing agency rule underscored and any language that is to be deleted from an existing
agency rule in struck-through type.
(2) A statement of whether the rule is proposed for adoption, amendment, or repeal;
a brief summary of the content of the rule if proposed for adoption or repeal; and a brief
summary of the change in the rule if proposed for amendment.
(3) The specific citation of the enabling legislation purporting to authorize the
adoption, amending, or repeal of the rule or purporting to authorize the adoption, increasing,
or decreasing of the fee.
(4) A statement of the circumstances which require adoption, amending, or repeal
of the rule or adoption, increasing, or decreasing of the fee.
(5) A statement of the fiscal impact of the proposed action and a statement of the
economic impact of the proposed action, both approved by the Legislative Fiscal Office.
D.(1)(a) The chairman of each standing committee to which reports are submitted
shall appoint an oversight subcommittee, which may conduct hearings on all rules that are
proposed for adoption, amendment, or repeal and on all proposed fee adoptions, increases,
or decreases. Any hearing shall be conducted after any hearing is conducted by the agency
pursuant to R.S. 49:961.
(b) The agency shall submit a report to the subcommittee, in the same manner as the
submittal of the report provided for in Subsection B of this Section, which shall include all
of the following:
(i) A summary of all testimony at any hearing conducted pursuant to R.S. 49:961.
(ii) A summary of all comments received by the agency, a copy of the agency's
response to the summarized comments, and a statement of any tentative or proposed action
of the agency resulting from oral or written comments received.
(iii) A revision of the proposed rule if any changes to the rule have been made since
the report provided for in Subsection B of this Section was submitted, or a statement that no
changes have been made.
(iv) A concise statement of the principal reasons for and against adoption of any
amendments or changes suggested.
(c) The agency shall publish on its website public notice that the report required by
Subparagraph (b) of this Paragraph has been delivered to the appropriate standing committee
as provided for in Subsection B of this Section within five business days from submission
of the report to the appropriate standing committee. If the agency does not maintain a
website, the agency may submit the public notice to the office of the state register for
publication on a website maintained by the office of the state register.
(2)(a) Except as provided in Paragraph (H)(2) of this Section, any subcommittee
hearing on a proposed rule shall be held no earlier than five days and no later than thirty days
following the day the report required by Subparagraph (1)(b) of this Subsection is received
by the subcommittee.
(b) The oversight subcommittee may consist of the entire membership of the
standing committee and shall consist of at least a majority of the membership of the standing
committee, at the discretion of the chairman of the standing committee, with the concurrence
of the speaker of the House of Representatives or the president of the Senate. House and
Senate oversight subcommittees may meet jointly or separately to conduct hearings for
purposes of rules review.
(3) At the hearings, the oversight subcommittees shall make all of the following
determinations:
(a) Whether the rule change or action on fees is in conformity with the intent and
scope of the enabling legislation purporting to authorize the adoption thereof.
(b) Whether the rule change or action on fees is in conformity and not contrary to all
applicable provisions of law and of the constitution.
(c) The advisability or relative merit of the rule change or action on fees.
(d) Whether the rule change or action on fees is acceptable or unacceptable to the
oversight subcommittee.
E.(1)(a) Each determination shall be made by the respective subcommittees of each
house acting separately. Action by a subcommittee shall require the favorable vote of a
majority of the members of the subcommittee who are present and voting, provided a quorum
is present.
(b) No later than three weeks before the deadline for legislative oversight action, the
chairman of the subcommittee may request, by letter, the consent of the subcommittee
members to have a mail ballot instead of a meeting to consider a proposed rule or proposed
fee action. If no objection is received within ten days of the chairman's request, the chairman
shall cause a mail ballot to be sent to the members of the subcommittee. In order for the
subcommittee to reject a proposed rule or proposed fee action, a majority of ballots returned
to the chairman at least twenty-four hours prior to the deadline for legislative oversight action
must disapprove the change. Any determination by the subcommittee shall be made within
the period provided for oversight hearings in Paragraph (D)(2) of this Section.
(2) Failure of a subcommittee to conduct a hearing or to make a determination
regarding any rule proposed for adoption, amendment, or repeal shall not affect the validity
of a rule otherwise adopted in compliance with this Chapter.
F.(1) If either the House of Representatives or the Senate oversight subcommittee
determines that a proposed rule change or proposed fee action is unacceptable, the respective
subcommittee shall provide a written report which contains all of the following:
(a) A copy of the proposed rule or a statement of the amount of the proposed fee
action.
(b) A summary of the determinations made by the subcommittee in accordance with
Subsections D and E of this Section.
(2) The written report shall be delivered to the governor, the agency proposing the
rule change, and the Louisiana Register no later than four days after the committee makes
its determination.
G. After receipt of the report of the subcommittee, the governor shall have ten
calendar days in which to disapprove the action taken by the subcommittee. If the action of
the subcommittee is not disapproved by the governor within ten calendar days from the day
the subcommittee report is delivered to him, the rule change shall not be adopted by the
agency until it has been changed or modified and subsequently found acceptable by the
subcommittee, or has been approved by the standing committee, or by the legislature by
concurrent resolution. If a proposed rule change is determined to be unacceptable by an
oversight committee and the determination is not disapproved by the governor as provided
in this Section, the agency shall not propose a rule change or emergency rule that is the same
or substantially similar to such disapproved proposed rule change nor shall the agency adopt
an emergency rule that is the same or substantially similar to such disapproved proposed rule
change within four months after issuance of a written report by the subcommittee as provided
in Subsection F of this Section nor more than once during the interim between regular
sessions of the legislature.
H.(1) If both the House of Representatives and Senate oversight subcommittees fail
to find a proposed rule change unacceptable, or if the governor disapproves the action of an
oversight subcommittee within the time provided in Subsection G of this Section, the
proposed rule change may be adopted by the agency in the identical form proposed by the
agency or with technical changes or with changes suggested by the subcommittee if at least
ninety days and no more than twelve months have elapsed since notice of intent was
published in the Louisiana Register.
(2) Substantive changes to a rule proposed for adoption, amendment, or repeal occur
if the nature of the proposed rule is altered or if the changes affect additional or different
substantive matters or issues not included in the notice required by R.S. 49:961. Whenever
an agency seeks to substantively change a proposed rule after notice of intent has been
published in the Louisiana Register pursuant to R.S. 49:961, the agency shall hold a public
hearing on the substantive changes preceded by an announcement of the hearing in the
Louisiana Register. A notice of the hearing shall be mailed within ten days after the date the
announcement is submitted to the Louisiana Register to all persons who have made request
of the agency for notice. Any hearing by the agency pursuant to this Paragraph shall be held
no earlier than thirty days after the publication of the announcement in the Louisiana
Register. The agency hearing shall conform to R.S. 49:961, and a report on the hearing shall
be made to the oversight committees in accordance with Subparagraph (D)(1)(b) of this
Section. The agency shall make available to interested persons a copy of the report no later
than one working day following the submittal of such report to the oversight committees.
Any determination as to the rule by the oversight committees, prior to gubernatorial review
as provided in Subsection G of this Section, shall be made no earlier than five days and no
later than thirty days following the day the report required by this Paragraph is received from
the agency.
(3) If a rule or part of a rule that is severable from a larger rule or body of rules
proposed as a unit is found unacceptable, the rules or parts found acceptable may be adopted
by the agency in accordance with Paragraph (1) of this Subsection.
I. If the governor disapproves the action of an oversight subcommittee, he shall state
written reasons for his action and shall deliver a copy of his reasons to the House and Senate
oversight subcommittees, the agency proposing the rule change, and the Louisiana Register.
J. The Louisiana Register shall publish a copy of the written report of an oversight
subcommittee and the written report of the governor in disapproving any such action, or if
unduly cumbersome, expensive, or otherwise inexpedient, a notice stating the general subject
matter of the omitted report and stating how a copy may be obtained.
K.(1) Each year, no later than thirty days prior to the beginning of the regular session
of the legislature, each agency shall submit a report to the appropriate committees as
provided for in Subsection B of this Section. This report shall contain a statement of the
action taken by the agency with respect to adoption, amendment, or repeal of each rule
proposed for adoption, amendment, or repeal during the previous year and a report of the
action taken by the agency with respect to any proposed fee adoption, increase, or decrease
during the previous year.
(2) The report required by Paragraph (1) of this Subsection shall also contain:
(a) A recitation of each petition, submission, and comment, if any, received by the
agency pursuant to R.S. 49:964 during the previous calendar year and the agency's response
to each petition, submission, and comment, if any were received.
(b) The report required by R.S. 49:964(D).
L. After submission of the report required by Subsection K of this Section to the
standing committee, a public hearing may be held by the committee for the purpose of
reviewing the report with representatives of the agency.
M. No later than the second legislative day of the regular session of the legislature,
a standing committee to which proposed rule changes or proposed fee changes are submitted
may submit a report to the legislature. This report shall contain a summary of all action
taken by the committee or the oversight subcommittee with respect to agency rules and fees
during the preceding twelve months. The report shall also contain any recommendations of
the committee for statutory changes concerning the agency, particularly in statutes
authorizing the making and promulgation of rules and fees of the agency.
N. A standing committee may, at any time, exercise the powers granted to an
oversight subcommittee under the provisions of this Section.
O. Each presiding officer of the legislature may establish a select committee on
oversight for his house of the legislature. If established, the select committee on oversight
of that house of the legislature may exercise the same power and authority granted under the
provisions of this Section to a standing committee of that house of the legislature or to an
oversight subcommittee of a standing committee of that house of the legislature if the
chairman of the standing committee or oversight subcommittee notifies the select committee
no later than the seventh day of the committee's oversight period that his committee will not
hold a hearing on the proposal.
NOTE: R.S. 51:1365 as amended by Acts 2022, No. 760, §1, provides that the
provisions of Chapter 12 of Title 51 of the L.R.S. of 1950 regarding the Office of Broadband
and Connectivity terminates on June 30, 2028.
NOTE: Former R.S. 49:966 redesignated as R.S. 49:952 by Acts 2022, No. 663, §1.

Legislative History

Acts 1990, No. 312, §1; Acts 1990, No. 938, §1; Acts 1990, No. 1085, §1, eff. July 31, 1990; Acts 1991, No. 21, §2, eff. June 14, 1991; Acts 1991, No. 938, §5; Acts 1992, No. 377, §4, eff. June 17, 1992; Acts 1992, No. 447, §3, eff. June 20, 1992; Acts 1993, No. 119, §1; Acts 1993, No. 733, §1; Acts 1995, No. 1057, §1, eff. June 29, 1995 and Jan. 8, 1996 (1/8/96 date is applicable to Dept. of Health and Hospitals only); Acts 1996, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 36, §3, eff. May 7, 1996; Acts 1997, No. 1, §5, eff. April 30, 1997; Acts 1997, No. 1001, §1; Acts 1999, No. 568, §2, eff. June 30, 1999; Acts 2001, No. 8, §16, eff. July 1, 2001; Acts 2001, No. 9, §8, eff. July 1, 2001; Acts 2001, No. 300, §3; Acts 2001, No. 451, §5, eff. Jan. 12, 2004; Acts 2001, No. 1178, §7, eff. June 29, 2001; Acts 2003, No. 49, §3, eff. July 1, 2003; Acts 2003, No. 116, §3, eff. May 28, 2003; Acts 2003, No. 183, §7; Acts 2003, No. 358, §1; Acts 2003, No. 850, §3; Acts 2003, No. 1049, §1; Acts 2008, No. 580, §6; Acts 2008, No. 743, §4, eff. July 1, 2008; Acts 2010, No. 777, §1; Acts 2010, No. 861, §21; Acts 2010, No. 877, §3, eff. July 1, 2010; Acts 2012, No. 549, §1; Acts 2012, No. 725, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2013; Acts 2012, No. 744, §1, eff. June 12, 2012; Acts 2013, No. 220, §23, eff. June 11, 2013; Acts 2014, No. 640, §3, eff. June 12, 2014; Acts 2014, No. 832, §7.(A); Acts 2018, No. 454, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2019; Acts 2020, 2nd Ex. Sess., No. 24, §2, see Act; Acts 2022, No. 663, §1; Redesignated from R.S. 49:968; Acts 2023, No. 98, §1, eff. June 6, 2023; Acts 2023, No. 150, §20, eff. Jan. 10, 2024; Acts 2023, No. 442, §1, eff. Jan. 8, 2024; Acts 2024, No. 192, §1.