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SPONSOR: Rep. Minor-Brown & Rep. Harris & Rep. Osienski &
Rep. Dukes & Rep. Spiegelman & Sen. Sokola &
Sen. Townsend & Sen. Lockman & Sen. Hocker &
Sen. Pettyjohn
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
153rd GENERAL ASSEMBLY
HOUSE BILL NO. 328
AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO AGENCY REGULATIONS.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:
1 Section 1. Amend Subchapter III, Chapter 11, Title 29 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by
2 strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows:
3 Subchapter III. Agency Regulations. Regulations and the Registrar of Regulations.
4 Section 2. Amend § 1131, Title 29 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and
5 insertions as shown by underline as follows:
6 § 1131. Legislative findings.
7 The General Assembly has conferred on boards, commissions, departments departments, and other agencies of the
8 Executive Branch of State Government the authority to adopt regulations. The General Assembly has found that this
9 delegation of authority has resulted in regulations being promulgated without effective review or oversight and conformity
10 to legislative intent. The General Assembly finds that they it must provide a procedure of oversight and review of
11 regulations pursuant to under this delegation of legislative power to curtail excessive regulations and to establish a system
12 of accountability. It is the The intent of this subchapter is to establish an effective method of ongoing review, accountability
13 accountability, and oversight of regulations. It is further the Further intent of this subchapter is to provide review by
14 requiring a comment period following the proposal of regulations and requiring the agency to review any comments
15 submitted.
16 Section 3. Amend § 1132, Title 29 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and
17 insertions as shown by underline as follows:
18 § 1132. Definitions.
19 As used in this subchapter:
20 (1) “Agency” means as defined in § 10102 of this title.
21 (2) “Division” means the Division of Legislative Services as established pursuant to under this chapter.
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22 (3) “Official regulation” means a regulation in its final form as adopted by an order as defined in § 10118 of
23 this title and filed with the Registrar of Regulations.
24 (4) “Register of Regulations” means a publication authorized and recognized by law published for public
25 information purposes, providing public notice of changes in agency regulations, whether new, modified modified, or
26 repealed, together with supplemental information as deemed appropriate by the Registrar. the Registrar deems
27 appropriate.
28 (5) “Registrar” means an employee of the Division charged with the responsibility of compiling, maintaining
29 maintaining, and publishing the Register of Regulations.
30 (6) “Regulation” means as defined in § 10102 of this title.
31 Section 4. Amend § 1133, Title 29 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and
32 insertions as shown by underline as follows:
33 § 1133. Register of Regulations.
34 The Division shall establish, maintain maintain, and publish an official Register of Regulations at the Division.
35 Regulations. The Register of Regulations shall provide public notice of all each proposed regulation or regulations to be
36 adopted, amended amended, or repealed, indexed by agency and subject matter with: matter, with all of the following:
37 (1) Text or summary of the proposed regulation or regulations to be adopted, amended amended, or repealed,
38 repealed; nature of the proceedings including a synopsis of the subject, substance, issues issues, and possible terms of
39 the agency action action; and a reference to the legal authority of the agency to act; act.
40 (2) A statement of the manner in which persons may present their views: comments, as follows:
41 a. If in writing, of the place to which to whom, in what manner, and the final date by which such the
42 views may be submitted; submitted.
43 b. If at a public hearing, the date, time time, and place of the hearing; hearing.
44 (3) The place or places where the proposed regulations to be adopted, amended amended, or repealed may be
45 inspected or copied; copied.
46 (4) The fee or other requirements for obtaining copies of same. the proposed regulation.
47 Section 5. Amend § 1134, Title 29 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and
48 insertions as shown by underline as follows and by redesignating accordingly:
49 § 1134. Powers and duties of the Registrar in preparation and maintenance of the Register of Regulations.
50 (a) The Registrar Registrar, in the course of compiling and maintaining the Register of Regulations Regulations,
51 shall: shall do all of the following:
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52 (1) In writing, notify all agencies Notify each agency authorized to make regulations that they are the agency
53 is to submit to the Division copies of all each proposed regulations as well as all regulation and each subsequent
54 amendments, repeals, additions or new or proposed regulations as they are proposed and statements amendment,
55 repeal, or addition, and a statement of purpose thereof; of each.
56 (2) Advise agencies Direct each agency as to the form and style of the regulations, as well as, regulations and,
57 to the extent practicable, the classification thereof into categories of substance, procedure procedure, and organization;
58 organization.
59 (3) Have the authority to make Make, as needed, revisions to both proposed and existing regulations that do
60 not alter the sense, meaning meaning, or effect of such the regulations, including, but not limited to: including all of the
61 following:
62 a. Renumbering and rearranging sections or parts of sections; sections.
63 b. Transferring of sections or dividing of sections so as to give to distinct subject matters a separate
64 section number, but without changing the meaning; meaning.
65 c. Inserting or changing the wording of headnotes; headnotes.
66 d. Change Changing reference numbers to agree with renumbered regulations or sections thereof;
67 regulations or renumbered sections or subsections of regulations.
68 e. Substituting the proper section or regulation number for the terms “this regulation”, “the preceding
69 section” section”, and the like; like.
70 f. Striking out figures where they the figures are merely a repetition of written words and or vice versa;
71 versa.
72 g. Changing capitalization for the purpose of uniformity; uniformity.
73 h. Applying gender silent language when there is no ambiguity regarding the noun which a pronoun is
74 meant to replace.
75 h. Correcting of manifest typographical and grammatical errors; and errors.
76 i. Making any other purely formal or clerical changes in keeping with the purpose of the revision.
77 (4) Have the authority to promulgate Adopt rules and regulations; regulations.
78 (5) Have authority to publish Publish the full text or a summary of each proposed, final final, or emergency
79 regulations; and regulation.
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80 (6) Publish the following the 15th of the month all proposed a Register of Regulations containing the
81 regulations received by the 15th of the 1st of that month preceding. that comply with Chapters 101 and 104 of this title
82 and rules or regulations that the Registrar adopts under this section.
83 (b) The Registrar may include in the Register of Regulations such other governmental information as the Registrar
84 deems appropriate.
85 Section 6. Amend § 1135, Title 29 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and
86 insertions as shown by underline as follows:
87 § 1135. Duties of state agencies.
88 Each (a) On the Registrar’s request, each agency shall submit to the Division Registrar a general description of its
89 organization, its the agency’s organization; the agency’s methods of operation, operation; the agency’s name, address
90 address, and telephone number of a contact person or persons that will be is responsible for submitting proposed, adopted to
91 the Registrar adopted regulations, proposed regulations, or regulations to be repealed to the Registrar, repealed; and a
92 current copy of existing regulations.
93 (b) The contact person shall under subsection (a) of this section must have a general working knowledge of the
94 agency’s functions, responsibilities responsibilities, and internal procedures and familiarity with the Administrative
95 Procedures Act.
96 (c) The submission shall under section (a) of this section must include a brief statement of the nature and
97 requirements of all rules each rule of practice and the procedure used by that the agency uses to exercise its the agency’s
98 statutory authority of promulgating to adopt regulations.
99 Section 7. Amend § 1136, Title 29 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and
100 insertions as shown by underline as follows:
101 § 1136. Public distribution of the register.
102 (a) The Division shall cause the register to be published publish the Register of Regulations for public distribution
103 on the first day of each calendar month. date required under § 1134(a)(6) of this title.
104 (b) The register shall Register of Regulations must be made available in print to the public for inspection and
105 copies a copy provided to any each person so requesting same a copy. The copy must be provided for a nominal fee to be
106 set by the Registrar. that the Registrar sets. The amount to be charged for copies of the register shall a copy of the Register
107 of Regulations must approximate and reasonably reflect all costs necessary to defray the expenses of the register as well as
108 Register of Regulations and the proportional expenses incurred by that the Division incurs in carrying out the
109 responsibilities of this subchapter.
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110 (c) In addition, copies of the register shall be provided gratis On request, printed copies of the Register of
111 Regulations must be provided to the each law libraries library located within each county, to all each public libraries library
112 in each county, to the 2 state daily newspapers and to the Director of the Division of Libraries.
113 (d) Any additions and Additions or corrections to the register shall likewise Register of Regulations must be made
114 available as soon as practicable.
SYNOPSIS
This Act includes changes to align the editorial powers of the Registrar with the Delaware Code editors related to
removing gendered language from regulations when the intended meaning is clear.
This Act revises the submission and publication schedule of the Register of Regulations to provide more consistent
review and processing times to the Registrar, which will allow for more effective interaction with promulgating agencies
and more efficient distribution of the Registrar's workload.
This Act also removes language requiring the antiquated practice of providing copies of the Register of
Regulations to 2 state daily newspapers. The Register of Regulations will continue to be published online for the public and
copies will be provided, upon request, to the public, law libraries and public libraries in this state, and the Director of the
Division of Libraries.
This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative
Drafting Manual.
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