SENATE RULES COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR

SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL 7

49th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2010

A JOINT MEMORIAL

ESTABLISHING A TASK FORCE TO REVIEW THE PROPOSED MODEL STATE ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE ACT AND MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS CONCERNING THE ADOPTION OF PART OR ALL OF THAT MODEL ACT.

     WHEREAS, the health and well-being of New Mexico's people and communities depend on the maintenance of a clean and healthy environment, strong workers' and public safety standards as well as a strong business climate that is hospitable to various industries; and

     WHEREAS, New Mexico's ability to maintain a clean and healthy environment, strong workers' and public safety standards and a hospitable business climate depends on the fair and predictable administration and enforcement of various state laws and regulations; and

     WHEREAS, New Mexico statutes and regulations that provide for and govern rulemaking and adjudications of regulatory activities lack uniformity, in part because the Administrative Procedures Act, enacted in 1969, does not apply to most New Mexico state agencies; and

     WHEREAS, the national conference of commissioners on uniform state laws will release the final draft of the Model State Administrative Procedure Act in 2010 replete with options for state-specific adoption; and

     WHEREAS, the people, businesses and communities of New Mexico deserve to have their policymakers and administrators review the Model State Administrative Procedure Act in order to make recommendations concerning the adoption of part or all of that model act;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that an administrative procedures task force be created for 2010; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force consist of fifteen members as follows:

          A. three members of the legislature, appointed by the New Mexico legislative council, provided that no more than two shall be from the same legislative chamber and two shall be members of the majority party and one shall be a member of the minority party;

          B. the superintendent of regulation and licensing or the superintendent's designee;

          C. the secretary of taxation and revenue or the secretary's designee;

          D. the state records administrator or the administrator's designee;

          E. the secretary of environment or the secretary's designee;

          F. the secretary of energy, minerals and natural resources or the secretary's designee;

          G. one representative of either the environmental improvement board or the water quality control commission who works on administrative procedures in either a rulemaking or adjudicatory capacity, appointed by the governor;

          H. one member who is a small business owner or operator whose business is subject to state regulatory provisions, appointed by the governor in consultation with the association of commerce and industry of New Mexico and local chambers of commerce;

          I. one member representing the interests of the judicial branch, appointed by the chief justice of the New Mexico supreme court;

          J. two members representing the interests of different industries affected by regulatory proceedings, appointed by the governor; and

          K. two members representing public advocacy groups, one from a group that advocates for environmental justice and one from a group that advocates for consumers, appointed by the governor; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that vacancies on the task force be filled by appointment of the original appointing authority; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the office of the attorney general staff the task force and serve as a technical resource for the task force; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a member of the faculty of the university of New Mexico school of law be appointed by the dean of the school of law to serve as a technical resource for the task force; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force be chaired by the superintendent of regulation and licensing or the superintendent's designee and that the task force meet at the call of the chair but not less than three times throughout the year; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force be requested to review the current state of rulemaking and adjudicatory proceedings used by New Mexico agencies; to look at rulemaking and adjudicatory proceedings in other states; to review the Model State Administrative Procedure Act and to consider whether all or part of the proposed act should apply to some or all New Mexico agencies; to consider whether reform across all agencies will enhance the consistency and predictability of regulatory processes and meet the goals necessary to serve New Mexico's people, communities, environment and businesses more efficiently and effectively; to identify strategies for improving the essential rulemaking and adjudicatory functions of state agencies in order to carry out legislative mandates effectively and efficiently; to determine any necessary legislative action to improve administrative procedures and to develop a strategy and time frame for implementation; and to consider whether agencies engaged in administrative proceedings have adequate resources to comply with their mandates and the task force recommendations, including both provision of thorough, consistent and predictable permitting and enforcement and whether the fees the agencies are authorized to charge are sufficient to cover the agencies' costs; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the administrative procedures task force be requested to report its findings and recommendations before October 1, 2010 to an appropriate legislative interim committee, the legislative finance committee and the governor; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a written report of the task force's findings be posted for public access on the regulation and licensing department's web site and the legislature's web site; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the co-chairs of the New Mexico legislative council, the superintendent of regulation and licensing, the secretary of taxation and revenue, the state records administrator, the secretary of environment, the secretary of energy, minerals and natural resources, the attorney general, the university of New Mexico school of law, the administrative office of the courts and the governor.

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