The 81 percent of Idaho’s administrative rules that are up for reauthorization were published online this week.
The state has some 8,300 pages and 736 chapters of administrative rules detailing how agencies implement the state’s myriad statutes. Many of them are fairly mundane or technical, but some deal with how agencies approach controversial subjects such as vaccinations and school curriculum.
While the Legislature typically passes a bill at the end of the session extending all of the rules until July 1st of the next year, lawmakers did not do it this year, due to a disagreement between the House and Senate over a House proposal to require both chambers of the Legislature rather than just one to approve any new rules. As a result, all the rules will expire a week from Monday.
Governor Brad Little’s office reviewed the rules and decided to ax 139 chapters of rules, get rid of sections within another 79 chapters, rewrite and simplify 31 chapters, and extend the rest as-is as temporary proposed rules. The Legislature will take them up when it reconvenes in 2020 and decide whether to reauthorize them.
Overall more than 34 percent of the rules are being either eliminated or simplified.
Little has made cutting red tape and reducing regulations one of his signature issues, pushing for easing occupational licensing requirements and signing an executive order earlier this year requiring state agencies to identify for elimination or simplification two existing rules for every new one they propose. (Post Register)
