INDEPENDENT REGULATORY REVIEW COMMISSION Notice of Comments Issued [40 Pa.B. 124]
[Saturday, January 2, 2010]Section 5(g) of the Regulatory Review Act (71 P. S. § 745.5(g)) provides that the Independent Regulatory Review Commission (Commission) may issue comments within 30 days of the close of the public comment period. The Commission comments are based upon the criteria contained in section 5.2 of the Regulatory Review Act (71 P. S. § 645.5b).
The Commission has issued comments on the following proposed regulations. The agency must consider these comments in preparing the final-form regulation. The final-form regulation must be submitted within 2 years of the close of the public comment period or it will be deemed withdrawn.
Reg.
No.Agency/Title Close of the Public Comment Period IRRC
Comments
Issued16-50 Department of State
Biennial Filing Fee
39 Pa.B. 6049
(October 17, 2009)
11/16/09 12/16/09 125-106 Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board
Employee Credentials, Design Standards and Internal Controls
39 Pa.B. 6073
(October 17, 2009)
11/16/09 12/16/09 ____
Department of State
Regulation #16-50 (IRRC #2799)Biennial Filing Fee December 16, 2009 We submit for your consideration the following comments on the proposed rulemaking published in the October 17, 2009 Pennsylvania Bulletin. Our comments are based on criteria in section 5.2 of the Regulatory Review Act (71 P. S. § 745.5b). Section 5.1(a) of the Regulatory Review Act (71 P. S. § 745.5a(a)) directs the Department of State (Department) to respond to all comments received from us or any other source.
1. Publication date and effective date.—Consistency with statute; Clarity.
The current $100 biennial registration fee is the initial fee established by the enabling legislation, Act 134 of 2006 (65 Pa.C.S. § 13A10(a)). The Lobbying Disclosure Act (Act) provides an inflation adjustment at 65 Pa.C.S. § 13A08(j) (relating to inflation adjustment) which states, in part:
. . . On an annual basis commencing in January 2009, the department shall review the filing fee established under section 13A10 (relating to registration fees; fund established; system; regulations) and may by regulation adjust this amount if the department determines that a higher fee is needed to cover the costs of carrying out the provisions of this chapter. The department shall publish adjusted amounts in the Pennsylvania Bulletin by June 1, 2009, and by June 1 every two years thereafter as necessary.
This proposed regulation was published on October 17, 2009, and proposes to adjust the fee from $100 to $200. Both the Preamble and the Regulatory Analysis Form (Response 9) state the increased registration fee will go into effect on January 1, 2011. There are two concerns.
First, the Pennsylvania Association for Government Relations commented that since the Department did not publish the fee prior to June 1, 2009, a new fee cannot be published until the next opportunity, which is by June 1, 2011. Effectively, the issue raised is whether the Act directs the Department to publish an adjusted fee 18 months prior to its effective date. The Department should explain its interpretation of how the October 17, 2009, publication of the adjusted fee to become effective January 1, 2011, is consistent with the Act.
Second, the wording of the regulation itself does not reflect the Department's intent for the new fee to become effective on January 1, 2011. As worded, the $200 fee would apply as soon as the final regulation is published and would apply to new registrants. The wording of the regulation needs to be amended to implement the Department's intent.
2. Fees to cover costs.—Consistency with statute.
The Act directs the Department to make a determination that a higher fee is needed to cover the costs of carrying out the provisions of the Act. In the Preamble, the Department states that for fiscal years 2007-2008, the Department's costs totaled $1,054,000 while registration fees for that same biennial totaled $234,000. The Department states that ''While the increase in the registration fee will not come close to covering the total costs of administering the act to the department, it will help defray some of the costs.''
We recognize that two commentators believe the costs of the biennial registration are significant to their operations. However, even the $200 fee will cover less than half of the Department's costs with the balance being paid from other resources. The Department should explain why $200 is the appropriate fee amount and how the $200 fee is consistent with the Act.
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Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board
Regulation #125-106 (IRRC #2803)Employee Credentials, Design Standards and Internal Controls December 16, 2009 We submit for your consideration the following comments on the proposed rulemaking published in the October 17, 2009 Pennsylvania Bulletin. Our comments are based on criteria in section 5.2 of the Regulatory Review Act (71 P. S. § 745.5b). Section 5.1(a) of the Regulatory Review Act (71 P. S. § 745.5a(a)) directs the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (Board) to respond to all comments received from us or any other source.
1. Section 435a.6. Board credentials.—Protection of the public health; safety and welfare; Implementation procedures; Fiscal impact; Need.
Subsection (c) is being amended to revise the requirements for the display of Board credentials. Commentators have raised several concerns. First, they believe that the exemption provided for food and beverage employees should be expanded to other customer service employees. How did the Board determine which employees would not be required to display their credentials? Has the Board considered expanding the exemption, as suggested by the commentator?
Second, a commentator believes that the requirement to display credentials by employees is problematic because it jeopardizes employee safety and could also lead to identity theft. Is the Board aware of any instances where the safety of slot machine licensee employees has been jeopardized by the requirement to display credentials? If so, how will the requirements of this section and the amendments being proposed help to protect the safety of those employees?
Third, Subsection (c)(2) will require access badges to contain a unique identification number. A commentator has stated that this requirement could be costly. What is the need for this requirement?
2. Section 465a.33. Access to areas containing central compute control equipment.—Clarity.
Subsection (a)(5) is being amended to allow individuals access to the area containing central computer control equipment for emergency situations that require ''environmental adjustments.'' A commentator believes that the term ''environmental adjustments'' is vague. We agree. This term should be further explained in the final-form regulation.
ARTHUR COCCODRILLI,
Chairperson[Pa.B. Doc. No. 10-31. Filed for public inspection December 31, 2009, 9:00 a.m.]
