Docket No. A-970591
December 10, 1997
Page 1
Agenda Date: December 10, 1997
Item Number: 

Docket No.:  A-970591
   
Company Names: Administrative - General

Amendment of the Commission's procedural and organizational rules in Chapters 
480-04 WAC (Public Access to Information and Records), and 480-11 WAC (SEPA); 
repeal of Chapter 480-35 WAC (Limousine charter party carriers); Chapter 480-69 
WAC (Railroad companies - Track scales) and Chapter 480-150 WAC (Compliance 
with Economic Stabilization Act of 1970)
   
Staff:   Bob Wallis, Review Judge
   Jeffrey Showman, Policy Analyst

Recommendation:

Repeal chapters 480-35, 480-69, and 480-150 and amend chapters 480-04 and 
480-11.

Discussion:

Under the requirements of Executive Order 97-02, the Commission has begun its 
review of its rules for need; effectiveness and efficiency; clarity; intent and 
statutory authority; coordination with other governmental requirements; cost to 
the regulated; and fairness.

These chapters are among the first to be reviewed.  The chapters slated for 
repeal relate to programs for which the Commission no longer has 
responsibilities.  

Chapter 480-11 is the Commission’s acknowledgment of its responsibilities under 
SEPA, the State Environmental Policy Act.  It adopts by reference rules that 
have been adopted by the Department of Ecology.

Chapter 480-04 is the Commission’s rule relating to access to public 
information.

Neither of these chapters required significant substantive changes.

Chapter 480-04 is amended to reflect current addresses and Commission 
structure. 

Both chapters are amended to reflect new approaches to clear rule writing, and 
to make them more “user-friendly.”  We have proposed some changes to the text 
of chapter 480-04 to reflect what we believe to be additional improvements in 
readability since the Commission filed the notice of proposed rulemaking with 
the Code Reviser. We received no comments on the proposed amendment or repeal 
of these chapters.

Commission Staff recommends that the Commission repeal the obsolete chapters 
and adopt the amendments to chapters 480-04 and 480-11 WAC.

Attachment