Section 23 Regulatory Modernization 1

Chapter 30A of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out section 1 and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

Section 1. In this chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the following meaning, unless the context requires otherwise:-

"Adjudicatory proceeding", a proceeding before an agency in which the legal rights, duties or privileges of specifically named persons are required by constitutional right or by any provision of the General Laws to be determined after opportunity for an agency hearing. Without enlarging the scope of this definition, adjudicatory proceeding does not include (a) proceedings solely to determine whether the agency shall institute or recommend institution of proceedings in a court; or (b) proceedings for the arbitration of labor disputes voluntarily submitted by the parties to such disputes; or (c) proceedings for the disposition of grievances of employees of the commonwealth; or (d) proceedings to classify or reclassify, or to allocate or reallocate, appointive offices and positions in the government of the commonwealth; or (e) proceedings to determine the equalized valuations of the several cities and towns; or (f) proceedings for the determination of wages under section 26T of chapter 121.

"Agency" or "state agency", as defined in section 1 of chapter 29; provided that "state agency" or "agency" shall not include the legislative and judicial departments; the governor and council; military or naval boards, commissions or officials; the department of correction; the department of youth services; the parole board; the division of dispute resolution of the division of industrial accidents; the personnel administrator; the civil service commission; and the appellate tax board.

"Executive office", those offices enumerated in section 2 of chapter 6A.

"Interpretive rules", rules or statements issued by an agency to advise the public of the agency's construction of the statutes and regulations which it administers.

"Last known address", the most recent postal address or electronic mail address provided by a person or group.

"Party" to an adjudicatory proceeding means: (a) the specifically named persons whose legal rights, duties or privileges are being determined in the proceeding; and (b) any other person who as a matter of constitutional right or by any provision of the General Laws is entitled to participate fully in the proceeding, and who upon notice as required in paragraph (1) of section 11 makes an appearance; and (c) any other person allowed by the agency to intervene as a party. Agencies may by regulation not inconsistent with this section further define the classes of persons who may become parties.

"Person" includes all political subdivisions of the commonwealth.

"Proposed regulation", a proposal by an agency to adopt, amend or repeal an existing regulation.

"Regulation" includes the whole or any part of every rule, regulation, standard or other requirement of general application and future effect, including the amendment or repeal thereof, adopted by an agency to implement or interpret the law enforced or administered by it, but does not include: (a) advisory rulings issued under section 8; or (b) regulations concerning only the internal management or discipline of the adopting agency or any other agency, and not substantially affecting the rights of or the procedures available to the public or that portion of the public affected by the agency's activities; or (c) interpretive rules; or (d) regulations relating to the use of the public works, including streets and highways, when the substance of such regulations is indicated to the public by means of signs or signals; or (e) decisions issued in adjudicatory proceedings.

"Small business", a business entity or agriculture operation, including its affiliates, that: (i) is independently owned and operated; (ii) has a principal place of business in the commonwealth; and (iii) would be defined as a "small business" under applicable federal law, as established in the United States Code and promulgated from time to time by the United States Small Business Administration.

"Substantial evidence", such evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion.

This section, along with seven others, makes updates to the State Administrative Procedure Act (APA), including making the Massachusetts Register available to the public online.