Florida Senate - 2022 SB 536 By Senator Diaz 36-00345-22 2022536__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to administrative procedures; amending 3 s. 120.52, F.S.; defining terms; amending s. 120.54, 4 F.S.; applying certain provisions applicable to all 5 rules other than emergency rules to repromulgated 6 rules; requiring a notice of rule development to 7 include certain information; requiring a notice of 8 withdrawal if a notice of proposed rule is not filed 9 within a certain timeframe; requiring that certain 10 persons be available at a workshop or public hearing 11 to receive public input; requiring a notice of 12 proposed rule to include certain information; 13 requiring certain notices to be published within a 14 specified timeframe; requiring that material proposed 15 to be incorporated by reference be made available in a 16 specified manner; authorizing electronic delivery of 17 notices to persons who have requested advance notice 18 of agency rulemaking proceedings; revising the 19 circumstances under which a proposed rules adverse 20 impact on small businesses is considered to exist; 21 requiring an agency to provide notice of a regulatory 22 alternative to the Administrative Procedures Committee 23 within a certain timeframe; requiring an agency to 24 publish a notice of convening a separate proceeding in 25 certain circumstances; providing that rulemaking 26 timelines are tolled during such separate proceedings; 27 requiring a notice of change for certain changes to a 28 statement of estimated regulatory costs; revising the 29 requirements for the contents of a notice of change; 30 requiring the committee to notify the Department of 31 State that the date for an agency to adopt a rule has 32 expired under certain circumstances; requiring the 33 department to publish a notice of withdrawal under 34 certain circumstances; requiring that certain 35 information be available on the agencys website; 36 requiring emergency rules to be published in the 37 Florida Administrative Code; prohibiting agencies from 38 making changes to emergency rules by superseding the 39 rule; authorizing an agency to make technical changes 40 to an emergency rule during a specified timeframe; 41 requiring an agency to file a copy of a certain 42 petition with the committee; amending s. 120.541, 43 F.S.; requiring an agency to provide a copy of any 44 proposal for a lower cost regulatory alternative to 45 the committee within a certain timeframe; specifying 46 the circumstances under which such a proposal is made 47 in good faith; revising requirements for an agencys 48 consideration of a lower cost regulatory alternative; 49 providing for an agencys revision and publication of 50 a revised statement of estimated regulatory costs in 51 response to certain circumstances; requiring that a 52 revised statement of lower cost regulatory alternative 53 be submitted to the rules ombudsman and published in a 54 specified manner; revising the information required in 55 a statement of estimated regulatory costs; deleting 56 the definition of the term transactional costs; 57 revising the applicability of specified provisions; 58 providing additional requirements for the calculation 59 of estimated regulatory costs; requiring the 60 department to include specified information on a 61 website; requiring certain agencies to include certain 62 information in a statement of estimated regulatory 63 costs and on their websites; providing certain 64 requirements for an agency that revises a statement of 65 estimated regulatory costs; conforming a cross 66 reference; creating s. 120.5435, F.S.; providing 67 legislative intent; requiring agency review of rules 68 and repromulgation of rules that do not require 69 substantive changes within a specified timeframe; 70 providing that failure of an agency to meet certain 71 deadlines applicable to a rule required to be 72 repromulgated constitutes the repeal of the rule; 73 requiring an agency to publish a notice of 74 repromulgation in the Florida Administrative Register 75 and file a rule for promulgation with the department 76 within a specified timeframe; requiring an agency to 77 file a notice of repromulgation with the committee 78 within a specified timeframe; providing requirements 79 for the notice of repromulgation; providing that a 80 repromulgated rule is not subject to challenge as a 81 proposed rule and that certain hearing requirements do 82 not apply; requiring an agency to file a specified 83 number of certified copies of a proposed repromulgated 84 rule and any material incorporated by reference; 85 providing that a repromulgated rule is adopted upon 86 filing with the department and becomes effective after 87 a specified time; requiring the department to update 88 certain information in the Florida Administrative 89 Code; requiring the department to adopt rules by a 90 certain date; amending s. 120.545, F.S.; requiring, 91 rather than authorizing, the committee to examine 92 existing rules; amending s. 120.55, F.S.; requiring 93 the Florida Administrative Code to be published once 94 daily and indicate certain information; requiring 95 materials incorporated by reference to be filed in a 96 specified manner; requiring the department to include 97 the date of a technical change in the Florida 98 Administrative Code; providing that a technical change 99 does not affect the effective date of a rule; 100 requiring specified rulemaking; amending s. 120.74, 101 F.S.; requiring an agency to identify and describe 102 each rule it plans to develop, adopt, or repeal during 103 the forthcoming year in the agencys annual regulatory 104 plan; requiring that an agencys annual regulatory 105 plan identify any rules required to be repromulgated 106 during the forthcoming year; requiring the agency to 107 make certain declarations concerning the annual 108 regulatory plan; amending ss. 120.80, 120.81, 109 420.9072, 420.9075, and 443.091, F.S.; conforming 110 cross-references; providing an effective date. 111 112 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 113 114 Section 1.Present subsections (16) through (19) and (20) 115 through (22) of section 120.52, Florida Statutes, are 116 redesignated as subsections (17) through (20) and subsections 117 (22) through (24), respectively, and new subsections (16) and 118 (21) are added to that section, to read: 119 120.52Definitions.As used in this act: 120 (16)Repromulgation means the publication and adoption of 121 an existing rule following an agencys review of the rule for 122 consistency with the powers and duties granted by its enabling 123 statute. 124 (21)Technical change means a change limited to 125 correcting grammatical, typographical, or similar errors not 126 affecting the substance of the rule. 127 Section 2.Paragraph (i) of subsection (1), subsections (2) 128 and (3), and paragraph (a) of subsection (7) of section 120.54, 129 Florida Statutes, are amended, and paragraphs (e) and (f) are 130 added to subsection (4) of that section, to read: 131 120.54Rulemaking. 132 (1)GENERAL PROVISIONS APPLICABLE TO ALL RULES OTHER THAN 133 EMERGENCY RULES. 134 (i)1.A rule may incorporate material by reference but only 135 as the material exists on the date the rule is adopted. For 136 purposes of the rule, changes in the material are not effective 137 unless the rule is amended to incorporate the changes. 138 2.An agency rule that incorporates by specific reference 139 another rule of that agency automatically incorporates 140 subsequent amendments to the referenced rule unless a contrary 141 intent is clearly indicated in the referencing rule. A notice of 142 amendments to a rule that has been incorporated by specific 143 reference in other rules of that agency must explain the effect 144 of those amendments on the referencing rules. 145 3.In rules adopted after December 31, 2010, and rules 146 repromulgated on or after July 1, 2022, material may not be 147 incorporated by reference unless: 148 a.The material has been submitted in the prescribed 149 electronic format to the Department of State and the full text 150 of the material can be made available for free public access 151 through an electronic hyperlink from the rule making the 152 reference in the Florida Administrative Code; or 153 b.The agency has determined that posting the material on 154 the Internet for purposes of public examination and inspection 155 would constitute a violation of federal copyright law, in which 156 case a statement to that effect, along with the address of 157 locations at the Department of State and the agency at which the 158 material is available for public inspection and examination, 159 must be included in the notice required by subparagraph (3)(a)1. 160 4.A rule may not be amended by reference only. Amendments 161 must set out the amended rule in full in the same manner as 162 required by the State Constitution for laws. 163 5.Notwithstanding any contrary provision in this section, 164 when an adopted rule of the Department of Environmental 165 Protection or a water management district is incorporated by 166 reference in the other agencys rule to implement a provision of 167 part IV of chapter 373, subsequent amendments to the rule are 168 not effective as to the incorporating rule unless the agency 169 incorporating by reference notifies the committee and the 170 Department of State of its intent to adopt the subsequent 171 amendment, publishes notice of such intent in the Florida 172 Administrative Register, and files with the Department of State 173 a copy of the amended rule incorporated by reference. Changes in 174 the rule incorporated by reference are effective as to the other 175 agency 20 days after the date of the published notice and filing 176 with the Department of State. The Department of State shall 177 amend the history note of the incorporating rule to show the 178 effective date of such change. Any substantially affected person 179 may, within 14 days after the date of publication of the notice 180 of intent in the Florida Administrative Register, file an 181 objection to rulemaking with the agency. The objection shall 182 specify the portions of the rule incorporated by reference to 183 which the person objects and the reasons for the objection. The 184 agency does shall not have the authority under this subparagraph 185 to adopt those portions of the rule specified in such objection. 186 The agency shall publish notice of the objection and of its 187 action in response in the next available issue of the Florida 188 Administrative Register. 189 6.The Department of State may adopt by rule requirements 190 for incorporating materials pursuant to this paragraph. 191 (2)RULE DEVELOPMENT; WORKSHOPS; NEGOTIATED RULEMAKING. 192 (a)1.Except when the intended action is the repeal of a 193 rule, agencies shall provide notice of the development of 194 proposed rules by publication of a notice of rule development in 195 the Florida Administrative Register before providing notice of a 196 proposed rule as required by paragraph (3)(a). The notice of 197 rule development must shall indicate the subject area to be 198 addressed by rule development, provide a short, plain 199 explanation of the purpose and effect of the proposed rule, cite 200 the grant of rulemaking authority for the proposed rule and the 201 law being implemented specific legal authority for the proposed 202 rule, and include the proposed rule number and the preliminary 203 text of the proposed rules, if available, or a statement of how 204 a person may promptly obtain, without cost, a copy of any 205 preliminary draft, when if available. 206 2.If a notice of a proposed rule is not filed within 12 207 months after the notice of rule development, the agency must 208 withdraw the rule and give notice of the withdrawal in the next 209 available issue of the Florida Administrative Register. 210 (b)All rules must should be drafted in readable language. 211 The language is readable if: 212 1.It avoids the use of obscure words and unnecessarily 213 long or complicated constructions; and 214 2.It avoids the use of unnecessary technical or 215 specialized language that is understood only by members of 216 particular trades or professions. 217 (c)An agency may hold public workshops for purposes of 218 rule development. If requested in writing by any affected 219 person, an agency must hold public workshops, including 220 workshops in various regions of the state or the agencys 221 service area, for purposes of rule development if requested in 222 writing by any affected person, unless the agency head explains 223 in writing why a workshop is unnecessary. The explanation is not 224 final agency action subject to review pursuant to ss. 120.569 225 and 120.57. The failure to provide the explanation when required 226 may be a material error in procedure pursuant to s. 227 120.56(1)(c). When a workshop or public hearing is held, the 228 agency must ensure that the persons responsible for preparing 229 the proposed rule are available to receive public input, to 230 explain the agencys proposal, and to respond to questions or 231 comments regarding the rule being developed. The workshop may be 232 facilitated or mediated by a neutral third person, or the agency 233 may employ other types of dispute resolution alternatives for 234 the workshop which that are appropriate for rule development. 235 Notice of a workshop for rule development must workshop shall be 236 by publication in the Florida Administrative Register not less 237 than 14 days before prior to the date on which the workshop is 238 scheduled to be held and must shall indicate the subject area 239 that which will be addressed; the agency contact person; and the 240 place, date, and time of the workshop. 241 (d)1.An agency may use negotiated rulemaking in developing 242 and adopting rules. The agency should consider the use of 243 negotiated rulemaking when complex rules are being drafted or 244 strong opposition to the rules is anticipated. The agency should 245 consider, but is not limited to considering, whether a balanced 246 committee of interested persons who will negotiate in good faith 247 can be assembled, whether the agency is willing to support the 248 work of the negotiating committee, and whether the agency can 249 use the group consensus as the basis for its proposed rule. 250 Negotiated rulemaking uses a committee of designated 251 representatives to draft a mutually acceptable proposed rule. 252 2.An agency that chooses to use the negotiated rulemaking 253 process described in this paragraph shall publish in the Florida 254 Administrative Register a notice of negotiated rulemaking which 255 that includes a listing of the representative groups that will 256 be invited to participate in the negotiated rulemaking process. 257 Any person who believes that his or her interest is not 258 adequately represented may apply to participate within 30 days 259 after publication of the notice. All meetings of the negotiating 260 committee shall be noticed and open to the public pursuant to 261 the provisions of this chapter. The negotiating committee shall 262 be chaired by a neutral facilitator or mediator. 263 3.The agencys decision to use negotiated rulemaking, its 264 selection of the representative groups, and approval or denial 265 of an application to participate in the negotiated rulemaking 266 process are not agency action. Nothing in This subparagraph is 267 not intended to affect the rights of a substantially an affected 268 person to challenge a proposed rule developed under this 269 paragraph in accordance with s. 120.56(2). 270 (3)ADOPTION PROCEDURES. 271 (a)Notices. 272 1.Before Prior to the adoption, amendment, or repeal of 273 any rule other than an emergency rule, an agency, upon approval 274 of the agency head, shall give notice of its intended action, 275 setting forth a short, plain explanation of the purpose and 276 effect of the proposed action; the rule number and full text of 277 the proposed rule or amendment and a summary thereof; a 278 reference to the grant of rulemaking authority pursuant to which 279 the rule is adopted; and a reference to the section or 280 subsection of the Florida Statutes or the Laws of Florida being 281 implemented or interpreted. The notice must include a concise 282 summary of the agencys statement of the estimated regulatory 283 costs, if one has been prepared, based on the factors set forth 284 in s. 120.541(2). The notice must describe the regulatory impact 285 of the rule in readable language; an agency website address 286 where the statement of estimated regulatory costs can be viewed 287 in its entirety, if one has been prepared; a statement that any 288 person who wishes to provide the agency with information 289 regarding the statement of estimated regulatory costs, or to 290 provide a proposal for a lower cost regulatory alternative as 291 provided by s. 120.541(1), must do so in writing within 21 days 292 after publication of the notice; and a statement as to whether, 293 based on the statement of the estimated regulatory costs or 294 other information expressly relied upon and described by the 295 agency if no statement of regulatory costs is required, the 296 proposed rule is expected to require legislative ratification 297 pursuant to s. 120.541(3). The notice must state the procedure 298 for requesting a public hearing on the proposed rule. Except 299 when the intended action is the repeal of a rule, the notice 300 must include a reference both to the date on which and to the 301 place where the notice of rule development that is required by 302 subsection (2) appeared. 303 2.The notice shall be published in the Florida 304 Administrative Register at least 7 days after the publication of 305 the notice of rule development and at least not less than 28 306 days before prior to the intended action. The proposed rule, 307 including all materials proposed to be incorporated by reference 308 and the statement of estimated regulatory costs, if one has been 309 prepared, must shall be available for inspection and copying by 310 the public at the time of the publication of notice. Material 311 proposed to be incorporated by reference in the notice must be 312 made available in the manner prescribed by sub-subparagraph 313 (1)(i)3.a. or sub-subparagraph (1)(i)3.b. 314 3.The notice shall be mailed to all persons named in the 315 proposed rule and mailed or delivered electronically to all 316 persons who, at least 14 days before publication of the notice 317 prior to such mailing, have made requests of the agency for 318 advance notice of its proceedings. The agency shall also give 319 such notice as is prescribed by rule to those particular classes 320 of persons to whom the intended action is directed. 321 4.The adopting agency shall file with the committee, at 322 least 21 days before prior to the proposed adoption date, a copy 323 of each rule it proposes to adopt; a copy of any material 324 incorporated by reference in the rule; a detailed written 325 statement of the facts and circumstances justifying the proposed 326 rule; a copy of any statement of estimated regulatory costs that 327 has been prepared pursuant to s. 120.541; a statement of the 328 extent to which the proposed rule relates to federal standards 329 or rules on the same subject; and the notice required by 330 subparagraph 1. 331 (b)Special matters to be considered in rule adoption. 332 1.Statement of estimated regulatory costs.Before the 333 adoption , amendment, or repeal of any rule other than an 334 emergency rule, an agency is encouraged to prepare a statement 335 of estimated regulatory costs of the proposed rule, as provided 336 by s. 120.541. However, an agency must prepare a statement of 337 estimated regulatory costs of the proposed rule, as provided by 338 s. 120.541, if: 339 a.The proposed rule will have an adverse impact on small 340 business; or 341 b.The proposed rule is likely to directly or indirectly 342 increase regulatory costs in excess of $200,000 in the aggregate 343 in this state within 1 year after the implementation of the 344 rule. 345 2.Small businesses, small counties, and small cities. 346 a.For purposes of this subsection and s. 120.541(2), an 347 adverse impact on small businesses, as defined in s. 288.703 or 348 sub-subparagraph b., exists if, for any small business: 349 (I)An owner, an officer, an operator, or a manager must 350 complete any education, training, or testing to comply with the 351 rule in the first year or is likely to spend at least 10 hours 352 or to purchase professional advice to understand and comply with 353 the rule in the first year; 354 (II)Taxes or fees assessed on transactions are likely to 355 increase by $500 or more in the aggregate in 1 year; 356 (III)Prices charged for goods and services are restricted 357 or are likely to increase because of the rule; 358 (IV)Specially trained, licensed, or tested employees will 359 be required because of the rule; 360 (V)Operating costs are expected to increase by at least 361 $1,000 annually because of the rule; or 362 (VI)Capital expenditures in excess of $1,000 are necessary 363 to comply with the rule. 364 b.Each agency, before the adoption, amendment, or repeal 365 of a rule, shall consider the impact of the rule on small 366 businesses as defined in by s. 288.703 and the impact of the 367 rule on small counties or small cities as defined in by s. 368 120.52. Whenever practicable, an agency shall tier its rules to 369 reduce disproportionate impacts on small businesses, small 370 counties, or small cities to avoid regulating small businesses, 371 small counties, or small cities that do not contribute 372 significantly to the problem the rule is designed to address. An 373 agency may define small business to include businesses 374 employing more than 200 persons, may define small county to 375 include those with populations of more than 75,000, and may 376 define small city to include those with populations of more 377 than 10,000, if the agency it finds that such a definition is 378 necessary to adapt a rule to the needs and problems of small 379 businesses, small counties, or small cities. The agency shall 380 consider each of the following methods for reducing the impact 381 of the proposed rule on small businesses, small counties, and 382 small cities, or any combination of these entities: 383 (I)Establishing less stringent compliance or reporting 384 requirements in the rule. 385 (II)Establishing less stringent schedules or deadlines in 386 the rule for compliance or reporting requirements. 387 (III)Consolidating or simplifying the rules compliance or 388 reporting requirements. 389 (IV)Establishing performance standards or best management 390 practices to replace design or operational standards in the 391 rule. 392 (V)Exempting small businesses, small counties, or small 393 cities from any or all requirements of the rule. 394 c.(I)b.(I)If the agency determines that the proposed 395 action will affect small businesses as defined by the agency as 396 provided in sub-subparagraph b. a., the agency must shall send 397 written notice of the rule to the rules ombudsman in the 398 Executive Office of the Governor at least 28 days before the 399 intended action. 400 (II)Each agency shall adopt those regulatory alternatives 401 offered by the rules ombudsman in the Executive Office of the 402 Governor and provided to the agency no later than 21 days after 403 the rules ombudsmans receipt of the written notice of the rule 404 which it finds are feasible and consistent with the stated 405 objectives of the proposed rule and which would reduce the 406 impact on small businesses. When regulatory alternatives are 407 offered by the rules ombudsman in the Executive Office of the 408 Governor, the 90-day period for filing the rule in subparagraph 409 (e)2. is extended for a period of 21 days. The agency shall 410 provide notice to the committee of any regulatory alternative 411 offered to the agency pursuant to this sub-subparagraph at least 412 21 days before filing the rule for adoption. 413 (III)If an agency does not adopt all alternatives offered 414 pursuant to this sub-subparagraph, it shall, before rule 415 adoption or amendment and pursuant to subparagraph (d)1., file a 416 detailed written statement with the committee explaining the 417 reasons for failure to adopt such alternatives. Within 3 working 418 days after the filing of such notice, the agency shall send a 419 copy of such notice to the rules ombudsman in the Executive 420 Office of the Governor. 421 (c)Hearings. 422 1.If the intended action concerns any rule other than one 423 relating exclusively to procedure or practice, the agency shall, 424 on the request of any affected person received within 21 days 425 after the date of publication of the notice of intended agency 426 action, give affected persons an opportunity to present evidence 427 and argument on all issues under consideration. The agency may 428 schedule a public hearing on the proposed rule and, if requested 429 by any affected person, shall schedule a public hearing on the 430 proposed rule. When a public hearing is held, the agency must 431 ensure that the persons responsible for preparing the proposed 432 rule and the statement of estimated regulatory costs, if one has 433 been prepared, staff are available to explain the agencys 434 proposal and to respond to questions or comments regarding the 435 proposed rule, the statement of estimated regulatory costs, if 436 one has been prepared, and the agencys decision whether to 437 adopt a lower cost regulatory alternative submitted pursuant to 438 s. 120.541(1)(a). If the agency head is a board or other 439 collegial body created under s. 20.165(4) or s. 20.43(3)(g), and 440 one or more requested public hearings is scheduled, the board or 441 other collegial body shall conduct at least one of the public 442 hearings itself and may not delegate this responsibility without 443 the consent of those persons requesting the public hearing. Any 444 material pertinent to the issues under consideration submitted 445 to the agency within 21 days after the date of publication of 446 the notice or submitted to the agency between the date of 447 publication of the notice and the end of the final public 448 hearing shall be considered by the agency and made a part of the 449 record of the rulemaking proceeding. 450 2.Rulemaking proceedings shall be governed solely by the 451 provisions of this section unless a person timely asserts that 452 the persons substantial interests will be affected in the 453 proceeding and affirmatively demonstrates to the agency that the 454 proceeding does not provide adequate opportunity to protect 455 those interests. If the agency determines that the rulemaking 456 proceeding is not adequate to protect the persons interests, it 457 shall suspend the rulemaking proceeding and convene a separate 458 proceeding under the provisions of ss. 120.569 and 120.57. The 459 agency shall publish notice of convening a separate proceeding 460 in the Florida Administrative Register. Similarly situated 461 persons may be requested to join and participate in the separate 462 proceeding. Upon conclusion of the separate proceeding, the 463 rulemaking proceeding shall be resumed. All timelines in this 464 section are tolled during any suspension of the rulemaking 465 proceeding under this subparagraph, beginning on the date the 466 notice of convening a separate proceeding is published and 467 resuming on the day after the conclusion of the separate 468 proceeding. 469 (d)Modification or withdrawal of proposed rules. 470 1.After the final public hearing on the proposed rule, or 471 after the time for requesting a hearing has expired, if the 472 proposed rule text has not been changed from that of the 473 proposed rule as previously filed with the committee, or 474 contains only technical changes, the adopting agency shall file 475 a notice to that effect with the committee at least 7 days 476 before prior to filing the proposed rule for adoption. Any 477 change, other than a technical change that does not affect the 478 substance of the rule, must be supported by the record of public 479 hearings held on the proposed rule, must be in response to 480 written material submitted to the agency within 21 days after 481 the date of publication of the notice of intended agency action 482 or submitted to the agency between the date of publication of 483 the notice and the end of the final public hearing, or must be 484 in response to a proposed objection by the committee. Any 485 change, other than a technical change, to a statement of 486 estimated regulatory costs requires a notice of change. In 487 addition, when any change, other than a technical change, to the 488 text of is made in a proposed rule or any material incorporated 489 by reference requires, other than a technical change, the 490 adopting agency to shall provide a copy of a notice of change by 491 certified mail or actual delivery to any person who requests it 492 in writing no later than 21 days after the notice required in 493 paragraph (a). The agency shall file the notice of change with 494 the committee, along with the reasons for the change, and 495 provide the notice of change to persons requesting it, at least 496 21 days before prior to filing the proposed rule for adoption. 497 The notice of change shall be published in the Florida 498 Administrative Register at least 21 days before prior to filing 499 the proposed rule for adoption. The notice of change must 500 include a summary of any revision to a statement of estimated 501 regulatory costs required by s. 120.541(1)(c). This subparagraph 502 does not apply to emergency rules adopted pursuant to subsection 503 (4). Material proposed to be incorporated by reference in the 504 notice required by this subparagraph must be made available in 505 the manner prescribed by sub-subparagraph (1)(i)3.a. or sub 506 subparagraph (1)(i)3.b. 507 2.After the notice required by paragraph (a) and before 508 prior to adoption, the agency may withdraw the proposed rule in 509 whole or in part. 510 3.After the notice required by paragraph (a), the agency 511 must withdraw the proposed rule if the agency has failed to 512 adopt it within the prescribed timeframes in this chapter. The 513 committee shall notify the agency that it has exceeded the 514 timeframe to adopt the proposed rule. If, 30 days after notice 515 by the committee, the agency has not given notice of the 516 withdrawal of the rule, the committee must notify the Department 517 of State that the date for adoption of the rule has expired, and 518 the Department of State shall publish a notice of withdrawal of 519 the proposed rule. 520 4.3.After adoption and before the rule becomes effective, 521 a rule may be modified or withdrawn only in the following 522 circumstances: 523 a.When the committee objects to the rule; 524 b.When a final order, which is not subject to further 525 appeal, is entered in a rule challenge brought pursuant to s. 526 120.56 after the date of adoption but before the rule becomes 527 effective pursuant to subparagraph (e)6.; 528 c.If the rule requires ratification, when more than 90 529 days have passed since the rule was filed for adoption without 530 the Legislature ratifying the rule, in which case the rule may 531 be withdrawn but may not be modified; or 532 d.When the committee notifies the agency that an objection 533 to the rule is being considered, in which case the rule may be 534 modified to extend the effective date by not more than 60 days. 535 5.4.The agency shall give notice of its decision to 536 withdraw or modify a rule in the first available issue of the 537 publication in which the original notice of rulemaking was 538 published, shall notify those persons described in subparagraph 539 (a)3. in accordance with the requirements of that subparagraph, 540 and shall notify the Department of State if the rule is required 541 to be filed with the Department of State. 542 6.5.After a rule has become effective, it may be repealed 543 or amended only through the rulemaking procedures specified in 544 this chapter. 545 (e)Filing for final adoption; effective date. 546 1.If the adopting agency is required to publish its rules 547 in the Florida Administrative Code, the agency, upon approval of 548 the agency head, must shall file with the Department of State 549 three certified copies of the rule it proposes to adopt; one 550 copy of any material incorporated by reference in the rule, 551 certified by the agency; a summary of the rule; a summary of any 552 hearings held on the rule; and a detailed written statement of 553 the facts and circumstances justifying the rule. Agencies not 554 required to publish their rules in the Florida Administrative 555 Code shall file one certified copy of the proposed rule, and the 556 other material required by this subparagraph, in the office of 557 the agency head, and such rules shall be open to the public. 558 2.A rule may not be filed for adoption less than 28 days 559 or more than 90 days after the notice required by paragraph (a), 560 until 21 days after the notice of change required by paragraph 561 (d), until 14 days after the final public hearing, until 21 days 562 after a statement of estimated regulatory costs required under 563 s. 120.541 has been provided to all persons who submitted a 564 lower cost regulatory alternative and made available to the 565 public at a readily accessible page on the agencys website, or 566 until the administrative law judge has rendered a decision under 567 s. 120.56(2), whichever applies. When a required notice of 568 change is published before prior to the expiration of the time 569 to file the rule for adoption, the period during which a rule 570 must be filed for adoption is extended to 45 days after the date 571 of publication. If notice of a public hearing is published 572 before prior to the expiration of the time to file the rule for 573 adoption, the period during which a rule must be filed for 574 adoption is extended to 45 days after adjournment of the final 575 hearing on the rule, 21 days after receipt of all material 576 authorized to be submitted at the hearing, or 21 days after 577 receipt of the transcript, if one is made, whichever is latest. 578 The term public hearing includes any public meeting held by 579 any agency at which the rule is considered. If a petition for an 580 administrative determination under s. 120.56(2) is filed, the 581 period during which a rule must be filed for adoption is 582 extended to 60 days after the administrative law judge files the 583 final order with the clerk or until 60 days after subsequent 584 judicial review is complete. 585 3.At the time a rule is filed, the agency shall certify 586 that the time limitations prescribed by this paragraph have been 587 complied with, that all statutory rulemaking requirements have 588 been met, and that there is no administrative determination 589 pending on the rule. 590 4.At the time a rule is filed, the committee shall certify 591 whether the agency has responded in writing to all material and 592 timely written comments or written inquiries made on behalf of 593 the committee. The Department of State shall reject any rule 594 that is not filed within the prescribed time limits; that does 595 not comply with all statutory rulemaking requirements and rules 596 of the Department of State; upon which an agency has not 597 responded in writing to all material and timely written 598 inquiries or written comments; upon which an administrative 599 determination is pending; or which does not include a statement 600 of estimated regulatory costs, if required. 601 5.If a rule has not been adopted within the time limits 602 imposed by this paragraph or has not been adopted in compliance 603 with all statutory rulemaking requirements, the agency proposing 604 the rule must shall withdraw the proposed rule and give notice 605 of its action in the next available issue of the Florida 606 Administrative Register. 607 6.The proposed rule shall be adopted upon on being filed 608 with the Department of State and become effective 20 days after 609 being filed, on a later date specified in the notice required by 610 subparagraph (a)1., on a date required by statute, or upon 611 ratification by the Legislature pursuant to s. 120.541(3). Rules 612 not required to be filed with the Department of State shall 613 become effective when adopted by the agency head, on a later 614 date specified by rule or statute, or upon ratification by the 615 Legislature pursuant to s. 120.541(3). If the committee notifies 616 an agency that an objection to a rule is being considered, the 617 agency may postpone the adoption of the rule to accommodate 618 review of the rule by the committee. When an agency postpones 619 adoption of a rule to accommodate review by the committee, the 620 90-day period for filing the rule is tolled until the committee 621 notifies the agency that it has completed its review of the 622 rule. 623 624 For the purposes of this paragraph, the term administrative 625 determination does not include subsequent judicial review. 626 (4)EMERGENCY RULES. 627 (e)Emergency rules shall be published in the Florida 628 Administrative Code. 629 (f)An agency may not supersede an emergency rule currently 630 in effect. Technical changes to an emergency rule may be made 631 within the first 7 days after adoption of the rule. 632 (7)PETITION TO INITIATE RULEMAKING. 633 (a)Any person regulated by an agency or having substantial 634 interest in an agency rule may petition an agency to adopt, 635 amend, or repeal a rule or to provide the minimum public 636 information required by this chapter. The petition shall specify 637 the proposed rule and action requested. The agency shall file a 638 copy of the petition with the committee. Not later than 30 639 calendar days following the date of filing a petition, the 640 agency shall initiate rulemaking proceedings under this chapter, 641 otherwise comply with the requested action, or deny the petition 642 with a written statement of its reasons for the denial. 643 Section 3.Section 120.541, Florida Statutes, is amended to 644 read: 645 120.541Statement of estimated regulatory costs. 646 (1)(a)Within 21 days after publication of the notice of a 647 proposed rule or notice of change required under s. 648 120.54(3)(a), a substantially affected person may submit to an 649 agency a good faith written proposal for a lower cost regulatory 650 alternative to a proposed rule which substantially accomplishes 651 the objectives of the law being implemented. The agency shall 652 provide a copy of any proposal for a lower cost regulatory 653 alternative to the committee at least 21 days before filing the 654 rule for adoption. The proposal may include the alternative of 655 not adopting any rule if the proposal explains how the lower 656 costs and objectives of the law will be achieved by not adopting 657 any rule. If submitted after a notice of change, a proposal for 658 a lower cost regulatory alternative is deemed to be made in good 659 faith only if the person reasonably believes, and the proposal 660 states the persons reasons for believing, that the proposed 661 rule as changed by the notice of change increases the regulatory 662 costs or creates an adverse impact on small businesses which was 663 not created by the previous proposed rule. If such a proposal is 664 submitted, the 90-day period for filing the rule is extended 21 665 days. Upon the submission of the lower cost regulatory 666 alternative, the agency shall prepare a statement of estimated 667 regulatory costs as provided in subsection (2), or shall revise 668 its prior statement of estimated regulatory costs, and either 669 adopt the alternative proposal, reject the alternative proposal, 670 or modify the proposed rule to reduce the regulatory costs. If 671 the agency rejects the alternative proposal or modifies the 672 proposed rule, the agency must or provide a statement of the 673 reasons for rejecting the alternative in favor of the proposed 674 rule. 675 (b)If a proposed rule will have an adverse impact on small 676 business or if the proposed rule is likely to directly or 677 indirectly increase regulatory costs in excess of $200,000 in 678 the aggregate within 1 year after the implementation of the 679 rule, the agency shall prepare a statement of estimated 680 regulatory costs as required by s. 120.54(3)(b). 681 (c)The agency shall revise a statement of estimated 682 regulatory costs if any change to the rule made under s. 683 120.54(3)(d) increases the regulatory costs of the rule or if 684 the rule is modified in response to the submission of a lower 685 cost regulatory alternative. A summary of the revised statement 686 must be included with any subsequent notice published under s. 687 120.54(3). 688 (d)At least 21 days before filing the proposed rule for 689 adoption, an agency that is required to revise a statement of 690 estimated regulatory costs shall provide the statement to the 691 person who submitted the lower cost regulatory alternative, to 692 the rules ombudsman in the Executive Office of the Governor, and 693 to the committee. The revised statement shall be published and 694 made available in the same manner as the original statement of 695 estimated regulatory costs and shall provide notice on the 696 agencys website that it is available to the public. 697 (e)Notwithstanding s. 120.56(1)(c), the failure of the 698 agency to prepare and publish a statement of estimated 699 regulatory costs or to respond to a written lower cost 700 regulatory alternative as provided in this subsection is a 701 material failure to follow the applicable rulemaking procedures 702 or requirements set forth in this chapter. 703 (f)An agencys failure to prepare a statement of estimated 704 regulatory costs or to respond to a written lower cost 705 regulatory alternative may not be raised in a proceeding 706 challenging the validity of a rule pursuant to s. 120.52(8)(a) 707 unless: 708 1.Raised in a petition filed no later than 1 year after 709 the effective date of the rule; and 710 2.Raised by a person whose substantial interests are 711 affected by the rules regulatory costs. 712 (g)A rule that is challenged pursuant to s. 120.52(8)(f) 713 may not be declared invalid unless: 714 1.The issue is raised in an administrative proceeding 715 within 1 year after the effective date of the rule; 716 2.The challenge is to the agencys rejection of a lower 717 cost regulatory alternative offered under paragraph (a) or s. 718 120.54(3)(b)2.c. s. 120.54(3)(b)2.b.; and 719 3.The substantial interests of the person challenging the 720 rule are materially affected by the rejection. 721 (2)A statement of estimated regulatory costs must shall 722 include: 723 (a)An economic analysis showing whether the rule directly 724 or indirectly: 725 1.Is likely to have an adverse impact on economic growth, 726 private sector job creation or employment, or private sector 727 investment in excess of $1 million in the aggregate within 5 728 years after the implementation of the rule; 729 2.Is likely to have an adverse impact on business 730 competitiveness, including the ability of persons doing business 731 in the state to compete with persons doing business in other 732 states or domestic markets, productivity, or innovation in 733 excess of $1 million in the aggregate within 5 years after the 734 implementation of the rule; or 735 3.Is likely to increase regulatory costs, including all 736 any transactional costs and impacts estimated in the statement, 737 in excess of $1 million in the aggregate within 5 years after 738 the implementation of the rule. 739 (b)A good faith estimate of the number of individuals, 740 small businesses, and other entities likely to be required to 741 comply with the rule, together with a general description of the 742 types of individuals likely to be affected by the rule. 743 (c)A good faith estimate of the cost to the agency, and to 744 any other state and local government entities, of implementing 745 and enforcing the proposed rule, and any anticipated effect on 746 state or local revenues. 747 (d)A good faith estimate of the compliance transactional 748 costs likely to be incurred by individuals and entities, 749 including local government entities, required to comply with the 750 requirements of the rule. As used in this section, 751 transactional costs are direct costs that are readily 752 ascertainable based upon standard business practices, and 753 include filing fees, the cost of obtaining a license, the cost 754 of equipment required to be installed or used or procedures 755 required to be employed in complying with the rule, additional 756 operating costs incurred, the cost of monitoring and reporting, 757 and any other costs necessary to comply with the rule. 758 (e)An analysis of the impact on small businesses as 759 defined by s. 288.703, and an analysis of the impact on small 760 counties and small cities as defined in s. 120.52. The impact 761 analysis for small businesses must include the basis for the 762 agencys decision not to implement alternatives that would 763 reduce adverse impacts on small businesses. 764 (f)Any additional information that the agency determines 765 may be useful. 766 (g)In the statement or revised statement, whichever 767 applies, a description of any regulatory alternatives submitted 768 under paragraph (1)(a) and a statement adopting the alternative 769 or a statement of the reasons for rejecting the alternative in 770 favor of the proposed rule. 771 (3)If the adverse impact or regulatory costs of the rule 772 exceed any of the criteria established in paragraph (2)(a), the 773 rule shall be submitted to the President of the Senate and 774 Speaker of the House of Representatives no later than 30 days 775 before prior to the next regular legislative session, and the 776 rule may not take effect until it is ratified by the 777 Legislature. 778 (4)Subsection (3) does not apply to the adoption of: 779 (a)Federal standards pursuant to s. 120.54(6). 780 (b)Triennial updates of and amendments to the Florida 781 Building Code which are expressly authorized by s. 553.73. 782 (c)Triennial updates of and amendments to the Florida Fire 783 Prevention Code which are expressly authorized by s. 633.202. 784 (d)Emergency rules adopted pursuant to s. 120.54(4). 785 (5)For purposes of subsections (2) and (3), adverse 786 impacts and regulatory costs likely to occur within 5 years 787 after implementation of the rule include adverse impacts and 788 regulatory costs estimated to occur within 5 years after the 789 effective date of the rule. However, if any provision of the 790 rule is not fully implemented upon the effective date of the 791 rule, the adverse impacts and regulatory costs associated with 792 such provision must be adjusted to include any additional 793 adverse impacts and regulatory costs estimated to occur within 5 794 years after implementation of such provision. 795 (6)(a)In evaluating the impacts described in paragraphs 796 (2)(a) and (2)(e), an agency shall include good faith estimates 797 of market impacts likely to result from compliance with the 798 proposed rule, including: 799 1.Increased customer charges for goods or services. 800 2.Decreased market value of goods or services produced, 801 provided, or sold. 802 3.Increased costs resulting from the purchase of 803 substitute or alternative goods or services. 804 4.The reasonable value of time to be spent by owners, 805 officers, operators, and managers to understand and comply with 806 the proposed rule, including, but not limited to, time to be 807 spent to complete required education, training, or testing. 808 5.Capital costs. 809 6.Any other impacts suggested by the rules ombudsman in 810 the Executive Office of the Governor or interested persons. 811 (b)In estimating and analyzing the information required in 812 paragraphs (2)(b)-(e), the agency may use surveys of 813 individuals, businesses, business organizations, counties, or 814 municipalities to collect data useful to estimate and analyze 815 the costs and impacts. 816 (c)In estimating compliance costs under paragraph (2)(d), 817 the agency shall consider, among other matters, all direct and 818 indirect costs necessary to comply with the proposed rule which 819 are readily ascertainable based upon standard business 820 practices, including, but not limited to, costs related to: 821 1.Filing fees. 822 2.Expenses to obtain a license. 823 3.Necessary equipment. 824 4.Installation, utilities, and maintenance of necessary 825 equipment. 826 5.Necessary operations and procedures. 827 6.Accounting, financial, information management, and other 828 administrative processes. 829 7.Other processes. 830 8.Labor based on relevant rates of wages, salaries, and 831 benefits. 832 9.Materials and supplies. 833 10.Capital expenditures, including financing costs. 834 11.Professional and technical services, including 835 contracted services necessary to achieve and maintain 836 compliance. 837 12.Monitoring and reporting. 838 13.Qualifying and recurring education, training, and 839 testing. 840 14.Travel. 841 15.Insurance and surety requirements. 842 16.A fair and reasonable allocation of administrative 843 costs and other overhead. 844 17.Reduced sales or other revenues. 845 18.Other items suggested by the rules ombudsman in the 846 Executive Office of the Governor or any interested person, 847 business organization, or business representative. 848 (7)(a)The Department of State shall include on the Florida 849 Administrative Register website the agency website addresses 850 where statements of estimated regulatory costs can be viewed in 851 their entirety. 852 (b)As part of the notice required under s. 120.54(3)(a), 853 an agency that prepares a statement of estimated regulatory 854 costs must provide to the Department of State for publication in 855 the Florida Administrative Register the agency website address 856 where the statement of estimated regulatory costs can be read in 857 its entirety. 858 (c)If an agency revises its statement of estimated 859 regulatory costs, the agency must provide notice that a revision 860 has been made as provided in s. 120.54(3)(d). Such notice must 861 include the agency website address where the revision can be 862 viewed in its entirety. 863 Section 4.Section 120.5435, Florida Statutes, is created 864 to read: 865 120.5435Repromulgation of rules. 866 (1)It is the intent of the Legislature that each agency 867 periodically review its rules for consistency with the powers 868 and duties granted by its enabling statutes. 869 (2)If an agency determines after review that substantive 870 changes to update a rule are not required, the agency must 871 repromulgate the rule to reflect the date of the review. Each 872 agency shall review its rules pursuant to this section either 5 873 years after July 1, 2022, if the rule was adopted before January 874 1, 2014, or 10 years after the rule was adopted, if the rule was 875 adopted on or after January 1, 2014. Failure of an agency to 876 adhere to the deadlines imposed in this section constitutes the 877 repeal of any affected rule. In the event of such a failure, the 878 committee shall notify the Department of State that the agency, 879 by its failure to repromulgate the affected rule, has elected to 880 repeal the rule. Upon receipt of the committees notice, the 881 Department of State shall publish a notice to that effect in the 882 next available issue of the Florida Administrative Register. 883 Upon publication of the notice, the rule shall be stricken from 884 the files of the Department of State and the files of the 885 agency. 886 (3)Before repromulgation of a rule, the agency must, upon 887 approval by the agency head or his or her designee: 888 (a)Publish a notice of repromulgation in the Florida 889 Administrative Register. A notice of repromulgation is not 890 required to include the text of the rule being repromulgated. 891 (b)File the rule for repromulgation with the Department of 892 State. A rule may not be filed for repromulgation fewer than 28 893 days, nor more than 90 days, after the date of publication of 894 the notice required by paragraph (a). 895 (4)The agency shall file a notice of repromulgation with 896 the committee at least 14 days before filing the rule for 897 repromulgation. At the time the rule is filed for 898 repromulgation, the committee shall certify whether the agency 899 has responded in writing to all material and timely written 900 comments or written inquiries made on behalf of the committee. 901 (5)A repromulgated rule is not subject to challenge as a 902 proposed rule pursuant to s. 120.56(2). 903 (6)The hearing requirements of s. 120.54 do not apply to 904 repromulgation of a rule. 905 (7)(a)The agency, upon approval of the agency head or his 906 or her designee, shall file with the Department of State three 907 certified copies of the repromulgated rule it proposes to adopt 908 and one certified copy of any material incorporated by reference 909 in the rule. 910 (b)The repromulgated rule shall be adopted upon filing 911 with the Department of State and becomes effective 20 days after 912 the date it is filed. 913 (c)The Department of State shall update the history note 914 of the rule in the Florida Administrative Code to reflect the 915 effective date of the repromulgated rule. 916 (8)The Department of State shall adopt rules to implement 917 this section by December 31, 2022. 918 Section 5. Subsection (1) of section 120.545, Florida 919 Statutes, is amended to read: 920 120.545Committee review of agency rules. 921 (1)As a legislative check on legislatively created 922 authority, the committee shall examine each existing rule and 923 proposed rule, except for those proposed rules exempted by s. 924 120.81(1)(e) and (2), and its accompanying material, and each 925 emergency rule, and may examine any existing rule, for the 926 purpose of determining whether: 927 (a)The rule is an invalid exercise of delegated 928 legislative authority. 929 (b)The statutory authority for the rule has been repealed. 930 (c)The rule reiterates or paraphrases statutory material. 931 (d)The rule is in proper form. 932 (e)The notice given before prior to its adoption was 933 sufficient to give adequate notice of the purpose and effect of 934 the rule. 935 (f)The rule is consistent with expressed legislative 936 intent pertaining to the specific provisions of law which the 937 rule implements. 938 (g)The rule is necessary to accomplish the apparent or 939 expressed objectives of the specific provision of law which the 940 rule implements. 941 (h)The rule is a reasonable implementation of the law as 942 it affects the convenience of the general public or persons 943 particularly affected by the rule. 944 (i)The rule could be made less complex or more easily 945 comprehensible to the general public. 946 (j)The rules statement of estimated regulatory costs 947 complies with the requirements of s. 120.541 and whether the 948 rule does not impose regulatory costs on the regulated person, 949 county, or city which could be reduced by the adoption of less 950 costly alternatives that substantially accomplish the statutory 951 objectives. 952 (k)The rule will require additional appropriations. 953 (l)If the rule is an emergency rule, there exists an 954 emergency justifying the adoption of such rule, the agency is 955 within its statutory authority, and the rule was adopted in 956 compliance with the requirements and limitations of s. 957 120.54(4). 958 Section 6.Paragraphs (a) and (c) of subsection (1) of 959 section 120.55, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 960 120.55Publication. 961 (1)The Department of State shall: 962 (a)1.Through a continuous revision and publication system, 963 compile and publish electronically, on a website managed by the 964 department, the Florida Administrative Code. The Florida 965 Administrative Code shall contain all rules adopted by each 966 agency, citing the grant of rulemaking authority and the 967 specific law implemented pursuant to which each rule was 968 adopted, all history notes as authorized in s. 120.545(7), 969 complete indexes to all rules contained in the code, and any 970 other material required or authorized by law or deemed useful by 971 the department. The electronic code shall display each rule 972 chapter currently in effect in browse mode and allow full text 973 search of the code and each rule chapter. The department may 974 contract with a publishing firm for a printed publication; 975 however, the department shall retain responsibility for the code 976 as provided in this section. The electronic publication shall be 977 the official compilation of the administrative rules of this 978 state. The Florida Administrative Code shall be published once 979 daily by 8 a.m. If, after publication, a rule is corrected and 980 replaced, the Florida Administrative Code must indicate: 981 a.That the Florida Administrative Code has been 982 republished. 983 b.The rule that has been corrected by the Department of 984 State. 985 986 The Department of State shall retain the copyright over the 987 Florida Administrative Code. 988 2.Not publish in the Florida Administrative Code rules 989 general in form but applicable to only one school district, 990 community college district, or county, or a part thereof, or 991 state university rules relating to internal personnel or 992 business and finance shall not be published in the Florida 993 Administrative Code. Exclusion from publication in the Florida 994 Administrative Code does shall not affect the validity or 995 effectiveness of such rules. 996 3.At the beginning of the section of the code dealing with 997 an agency that files copies of its rules with the department, 998 the department shall publish the address and telephone number of 999 the executive offices of each agency, the manner by which the 1000 agency indexes its rules, a listing of all rules of that agency 1001 excluded from publication in the code, and a statement as to 1002 where those rules may be inspected. 1003 4.Not publish forms shall not be published in the Florida 1004 Administrative Code; but any form which an agency uses in its 1005 dealings with the public, along with any accompanying 1006 instructions, shall be filed with the committee before it is 1007 used. Any form or instruction which meets the definition of 1008 rule provided in s. 120.52 shall be incorporated by reference 1009 into the appropriate rule. The reference shall specifically 1010 state that the form is being incorporated by reference and shall 1011 include the number, title, and effective date of the form and an 1012 explanation of how the form may be obtained. Each form created 1013 by an agency which is incorporated by reference in a rule notice 1014 of which is given under s. 120.54(3)(a) after December 31, 2007, 1015 must clearly display the number, title, and effective date of 1016 the form and the number of the rule in which the form is 1017 incorporated. 1018 5.Require all materials incorporated by reference in any 1019 part of an adopted rule and in any part of a repromulgated rule 1020 The department shall allow adopted rules and material 1021 incorporated by reference to be filed in the manner prescribed 1022 by s. 120.54(1)(i)3.a. or s. 120.54(1)(i)3.b. electronic form as 1023 prescribed by department rule. When a rule is filed for adoption 1024 or repromulgation with incorporated material in electronic form, 1025 the departments publication of the Florida Administrative Code 1026 on its website must contain a hyperlink from the incorporating 1027 reference in the rule directly to that material. The department 1028 may not allow hyperlinks from rules in the Florida 1029 Administrative Code to any material other than that filed with 1030 and maintained by the department, but may allow hyperlinks to 1031 incorporated material maintained by the department from the 1032 adopting agencys website or other sites. 1033 6.Include the date of any technical changes to a rule in 1034 the history note of the rule in the Florida Administrative Code. 1035 A technical change does not affect the effective date of the 1036 rule. 1037 (c)Prescribe by rule the style and form required for 1038 rules, notices, and other materials submitted for filing, 1039 including a rule requiring documents created by an agency which 1040 are proposed to be incorporated by reference in notices 1041 published pursuant to s. 120.54(3)(a) and (d) to be coded in the 1042 same manner as notices published pursuant to s. 120.54(3)(a)1. 1043 Section 7.Subsection (1) and paragraph (a) of subsection 1044 (2) of section 120.74, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 1045 120.74Agency annual rulemaking and regulatory plans; 1046 reports. 1047 (1)REGULATORY PLAN.By October 1 of each year, each agency 1048 shall prepare a regulatory plan. 1049 (a)The plan must include a listing of each law enacted or 1050 amended during the previous 12 months which creates or modifies 1051 the duties or authority of the agency. If the Governor or the 1052 Attorney General provides a letter to the committee stating that 1053 a law affects all or most agencies, the agency may exclude the 1054 law from its plan. For each law listed by an agency under this 1055 paragraph, the plan must state: 1056 1.Whether the agency must adopt rules to implement the 1057 law. 1058 2.If rulemaking is necessary to implement the law: 1059 a.Whether a notice of rule development has been published 1060 and, if so, the citation to such notice in the Florida 1061 Administrative Register. 1062 b.The date by which the agency expects to publish the 1063 notice of proposed rule under s. 120.54(3)(a). 1064 3.If rulemaking is not necessary to implement the law, a 1065 concise written explanation of the reasons why the law may be 1066 implemented without rulemaking. 1067 (b)The plan must also identify and describe each rule, 1068 including each rule number or proposed rule number, include a 1069 listing of each law not otherwise listed pursuant to paragraph 1070 (a) which the agency expects to develop, adopt, or repeal for 1071 the 12-month period beginning on October 1 and ending on 1072 September 30 implement by rulemaking before the following July 1073 1, excluding emergency rules except emergency rulemaking. For 1074 each rule law listed under this paragraph, the plan must state 1075 whether the rulemaking is intended to simplify, clarify, 1076 increase efficiency, improve coordination with other agencies, 1077 reduce regulatory costs, or delete obsolete, unnecessary, or 1078 redundant rules. 1079 (c)The plan must include any desired update to the prior 1080 years regulatory plan or supplement published pursuant to 1081 subsection (7). If, in a prior year, a law was identified under 1082 this paragraph or under subparagraph (a)1. as a law requiring 1083 rulemaking to implement but a notice of proposed rule has not 1084 been published: 1085 1.The agency shall identify and again list such law, 1086 noting the applicable notice of rule development by citation to 1087 the Florida Administrative Register; or 1088 2.If the agency has subsequently determined that 1089 rulemaking is not necessary to implement the law, the agency 1090 shall identify such law, reference the citation to the 1091 applicable notice of rule development in the Florida 1092 Administrative Register, and provide a concise written 1093 explanation of the reason why the law may be implemented without 1094 rulemaking. 1095 (d)The plan must identify any rules required to be 1096 repromulgated pursuant to s. 120.5435 for the 12-month period 1097 beginning on October 1 and ending on September 30. 1098 (e)(d)The plan must include a certification executed on 1099 behalf of the agency by both the agency head, or, if the agency 1100 head is a collegial body, the presiding officer; and the 1101 individual acting as principal legal advisor to the agency head. 1102 The certification must declare: 1103 1.Verify That the persons executing the certification have 1104 reviewed the plan. 1105 2.Verify That the agency regularly reviews all of its 1106 rules and identify the period during which all rules have most 1107 recently been reviewed to determine if the rules remain 1108 consistent with the agencys rulemaking authority and the laws 1109 implemented. 1110 3.That the agency understands that regulatory 1111 accountability is necessary to ensure public confidence in the 1112 integrity of state government and, to that end, the agency is 1113 diligently working toward lowering the total number of rules 1114 adopted. 1115 4.The total number of rules adopted and repealed during 1116 the previous 12 months. 1117 (2)PUBLICATION AND DELIVERY TO THE COMMITTEE. 1118 (a)By October 1 of each year, each agency shall: 1119 1.Publish its regulatory plan on its website or on another 1120 state website established for publication of administrative law 1121 records. A clearly labeled hyperlink to the current plan must be 1122 included on the agencys primary website homepage. 1123 2.Electronically deliver to the committee a copy of the 1124 certification required in paragraph (1)(e) (1)(d). 1125 3.Publish in the Florida Administrative Register a notice 1126 identifying the date of publication of the agencys regulatory 1127 plan. The notice must include a hyperlink or website address 1128 providing direct access to the published plan. 1129 Section 8.Subsection (11) of section 120.80, Florida 1130 Statutes, is amended to read: 1131 120.80Exceptions and special requirements; agencies. 1132 (11)NATIONAL GUARD.Notwithstanding s. 120.52(17) s. 1133 120.52(16), the enlistment, organization, administration, 1134 equipment, maintenance, training, and discipline of the militia, 1135 National Guard, organized militia, and unorganized militia, as 1136 provided by s. 2, Art. X of the State Constitution, are not 1137 rules as defined by this chapter. 1138 Section 9.Paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of section 1139 120.81, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 1140 120.81Exceptions and special requirements; general areas. 1141 (1)EDUCATIONAL UNITS. 1142 (c)Notwithstanding s. 120.52(17) s. 120.52(16), any tests, 1143 test scoring criteria, or testing procedures relating to student 1144 assessment which are developed or administered by the Department 1145 of Education pursuant to s. 1003.4282, s. 1008.22, or s. 1146 1008.25, or any other statewide educational tests required by 1147 law, are not rules. 1148 Section 10.Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section 1149 420.9072, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 1150 420.9072State Housing Initiatives Partnership Program.The 1151 State Housing Initiatives Partnership Program is created for the 1152 purpose of providing funds to counties and eligible 1153 municipalities as an incentive for the creation of local housing 1154 partnerships, to expand production of and preserve affordable 1155 housing, to further the housing element of the local government 1156 comprehensive plan specific to affordable housing, and to 1157 increase housing-related employment. 1158 (1)(a)In addition to the legislative findings set forth in 1159 s. 420.6015, the Legislature finds that affordable housing is 1160 most effectively provided by combining available public and 1161 private resources to conserve and improve existing housing and 1162 provide new housing for very-low-income households, low-income 1163 households, and moderate-income households. The Legislature 1164 intends to encourage partnerships in order to secure the 1165 benefits of cooperation by the public and private sectors and to 1166 reduce the cost of housing for the target group by effectively 1167 combining all available resources and cost-saving measures. The 1168 Legislature further intends that local governments achieve this 1169 combination of resources by encouraging active partnerships 1170 between government, lenders, builders and developers, real 1171 estate professionals, advocates for low-income persons, and 1172 community groups to produce affordable housing and provide 1173 related services. Extending the partnership concept to encompass 1174 cooperative efforts among small counties as defined in s. 120.52 1175 s. 120.52(19), and among counties and municipalities is 1176 specifically encouraged. Local governments are also intended to 1177 establish an affordable housing advisory committee to recommend 1178 monetary and nonmonetary incentives for affordable housing as 1179 provided in s. 420.9076. 1180 Section 11.Subsection (7) of section 420.9075, Florida 1181 Statutes, is amended to read: 1182 420.9075Local housing assistance plans; partnerships. 1183 (7)The moneys deposited in the local housing assistance 1184 trust fund shall be used to administer and implement the local 1185 housing assistance plan. The cost of administering the plan may 1186 not exceed 5 percent of the local housing distribution moneys 1187 and program income deposited into the trust fund. A county or an 1188 eligible municipality may not exceed the 5-percent limitation on 1189 administrative costs, unless its governing body finds, by 1190 resolution, that 5 percent of the local housing distribution 1191 plus 5 percent of program income is insufficient to adequately 1192 pay the necessary costs of administering the local housing 1193 assistance plan. The cost of administering the program may not 1194 exceed 10 percent of the local housing distribution plus 5 1195 percent of program income deposited into the trust fund, except 1196 that small counties, as defined in s. 120.52 s. 120.52(19), and 1197 eligible municipalities receiving a local housing distribution 1198 of up to $350,000 may use up to 10 percent of program income for 1199 administrative costs. 1200 Section 12.Paragraph (d) of subsection (1) of section 1201 443.091, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 1202 443.091Benefit eligibility conditions. 1203 (1)An unemployed individual is eligible to receive 1204 benefits for any week only if the Department of Economic 1205 Opportunity finds that: 1206 (d)She or he is able to work and is available for work. In 1207 order to assess eligibility for a claimed week of unemployment, 1208 the department shall develop criteria to determine a claimants 1209 ability to work and availability for work. A claimant must be 1210 actively seeking work in order to be considered available for 1211 work. This means engaging in systematic and sustained efforts to 1212 find work, including contacting at least five prospective 1213 employers for each week of unemployment claimed. The department 1214 may require the claimant to provide proof of such efforts to the 1215 one-stop career center as part of reemployment services. A 1216 claimants proof of work search efforts may not include the same 1217 prospective employer at the same location in 3 consecutive 1218 weeks, unless the employer has indicated since the time of the 1219 initial contact that the employer is hiring. The department 1220 shall conduct random reviews of work search information provided 1221 by claimants. As an alternative to contacting at least five 1222 prospective employers for any week of unemployment claimed, a 1223 claimant may, for that same week, report in person to a one-stop 1224 career center to meet with a representative of the center and 1225 access reemployment services of the center. The center shall 1226 keep a record of the services or information provided to the 1227 claimant and shall provide the records to the department upon 1228 request by the department. However: 1229 1.Notwithstanding any other provision of this paragraph or 1230 paragraphs (b) and (e), an otherwise eligible individual may not 1231 be denied benefits for any week because she or he is in training 1232 with the approval of the department, or by reason of s. 1233 443.101(2) relating to failure to apply for, or refusal to 1234 accept, suitable work. Training may be approved by the 1235 department in accordance with criteria prescribed by rule. A 1236 claimants eligibility during approved training is contingent 1237 upon satisfying eligibility conditions prescribed by rule. 1238 2.Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, an 1239 otherwise eligible individual who is in training approved under 1240 s. 236(a)(1) of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended, may not be 1241 determined ineligible or disqualified for benefits due to 1242 enrollment in such training or because of leaving work that is 1243 not suitable employment to enter such training. As used in this 1244 subparagraph, the term suitable employment means work of a 1245 substantially equal or higher skill level than the workers past 1246 adversely affected employment, as defined for purposes of the 1247 Trade Act of 1974, as amended, the wages for which are at least 1248 80 percent of the workers average weekly wage as determined for 1249 purposes of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended. 1250 3.Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, an 1251 otherwise eligible individual may not be denied benefits for any 1252 week because she or he is before any state or federal court 1253 pursuant to a lawfully issued summons to appear for jury duty. 1254 4.Union members who customarily obtain employment through 1255 a union hiring hall may satisfy the work search requirements of 1256 this paragraph by reporting daily to their union hall. 1257 5.The work search requirements of this paragraph do not 1258 apply to persons who are unemployed as a result of a temporary 1259 layoff or who are claiming benefits under an approved short-time 1260 compensation plan as provided in s. 443.1116. 1261 6.In small counties as defined in s. 120.52 s. 120.52(19), 1262 a claimant engaging in systematic and sustained efforts to find 1263 work must contact at least three prospective employers for each 1264 week of unemployment claimed. 1265 7.The work search requirements of this paragraph do not 1266 apply to persons required to participate in reemployment 1267 services under paragraph (e). 1268 Section 13.This act shall take effect July 1, 2022.