THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, April 20, 1995 TAG: 9504200451
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY BETTY MITCHELL GRAY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RALEIGH LENGTH: Medium: 99 lines
Proponents of a bill giving the General Assembly more scrutiny over rules governing marine fisheries, coastal development and a range of other issues hope a newly drafted compromise will be approved by a legislative panel today.
The measure, to be presented to a House judiciary committee this morning, would give more authority to a commission that reviews new administrative rules and would delay the implementation of new rules until legislators can review them.
It stops short of requiring state lawmakers to approve new rules before they become law, said Rep. E. David Redwine, a Brunswick County Democrat and the bill's principal sponsor.
``I think it's a good compromise between those who want an increased amount of oversight by the General Assembly and those who don't want any,'' he said. ``It's management, but it's not micro-management.''
Redwine said Wednesday that he hopes the opponents of an earlier proposal, requiring legislative action before new rules become law, will support the latest compromise and clear the way for committee approval.
But opponents of the measure, including the state's top fisheries official, said Wednesday that the compromise measure fails to address their concerns about giving the legislature additional scrutiny over the rule-making process.
``I think it changes very little,'' Robert V. Lucas, chairman of the state Marine Fisheries Commission, said after reviewing Redwine's latest proposal.
Lucas, a Selma, N.C., lawyer, heads the 17-member panel that oversees North Carolina's coastal fishing industry. He has been an outspoken critic of additional legislative oversight of the rule-making practices of his and other commissions.
He has repeatedly said that requiring the General Assembly to review and approve fisheries rules before they can be implemented would be devastating to the marine fish populations along the state's coast.
From his office in Selma, Lucas said that even if the legislature is not required to approve all new administrative rules, an additional delay of five to seven months would add an unneeded burden to the rule-making process and would reduce the effectiveness of the state's policy-making boards and commissions.
State boards now enact rules after they have undergone public scrutiny either at hearings or during a public comment period.
These rules are reviewed by a Rules Review Commission, whose authority is now limited to recommending that the boards reconsider rules that could be unconstitutional or outside the jurisdiction of the board or commission that enacted the rule.
But Redwine's latest proposal would give the Rules Review Commission veto authority over rules approved by regulatory panels.
Rules approved by the commission would be forwarded to the legislature, where state lawmakers would review them. To stop a rule from taking effect, the General Assembly could adopt legislation overturning the rule before the legislature adjourns for the year, Redwine said.
Rules approved by the Rules Review Commission would have to be presented to the legislature no later then 25 days before the start of the session for the rules to become law that year - which could mean a delay in implementation of those rules by as much as six months, he said.
State commissions and agencies could address immediate concerns by implementing temporary rules that could remain in effect until the permanent rules are implemented, Redwine said.
Redwine's bill would cover all commissions with the authority to adopt administrative rules that have the effect of law.
``With this new proposal, I don't think there's a need for any exemptions,'' he said.
A package of regulatory reform measures - including the bill calling for closer scrutiny of new rules by the legislature - has been stalled in the state House of Representatives for about a month while Redwine and other proponents have tried to forge a compromise with their opponents. MEMO: ASSEMBLY ACTION
On Wednesday at the General Assembly:
Gov. James B. Hunt Jr. rejected a compromise on Smart Start from
House Republicans, saying the program's funding should have no strings
attached.
House leaders said that unless Hunt agrees to raise 20 percent of the
program's cost from private sources, they will not approve expanding
Smart Start to 12 new counties.
Senate Democrats rolled out their version of welfare reform, which
includes programs to move welfare recipients toward work. But the
measure does not penalize unwed mothers, as a House Republican version
does.
A House committee approved a bill that would require landlords to
install smoke detectors in all apartments and homes they rent.
The House rejected a bill that would have blocked teachers from
having NCAE dues deducted from their paychecks.
Local communities would be barred from imposing tougher penalties on
tobacco sales to minors under a bill tentatively approved in the House.
Federal retirees who lost a lawsuit against the state seeking
repayment of back income taxes swarmed the legislature attempting to win
through lobbying what they could not win in court.
by CNB