Rulemaking Definitions

The list below define terms used in the rulemaking process. Terms that are defined by statute or rule end with the reference in parentheses. If there are terms you think need to be added, please contact the Division.

These definitions are provided for your convenience. Considerable effort has been made to assure the accruacy of this information. When dealing with legal definitions, however, it is always wise to verify this information by going to the source (i.e., the reference provided).

[ A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z ]

A

Act: means the Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act, Title 63G, Chapter 3.
Administrative law: means the body of law that concerns agency duties and powers, of limitations imposed by the Utah Constitution and by the other branches on these powers, and of laws made under these powers (adapted from Phillip J. Cooper. Public Law and Public Administration, 2nd ed. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1988. p. 4.)
Administrative record: means information an agency relies upon when making a rule under this chapter including copies of: (a) the proposed rule, change in the proposed rule, and the rule analysis form; (b) the public comment received and recorded by the agency during the public comment period; (c) the agency's response to the public comment; (d) the agency's analysis of the public comment; and (e) the agency's report of its decision-making process. (Subsection 63G-3-102(1))
Administrative Rules Review Committee or ARRC: means the Administrative Rules Review Committee--a joint legislative committee that typically meets between general sessions--established by Section 63G-3-501.
Agency: means each state board, authority, commission, institution, department, division, officer, or other state government entity other than the Legislature, its committees, the political subdivisions of the state, or the courts, which is authorized or required by law to make rules, adjudicate, grant or withhold licenses, grant or withhold relief from legal obligations, or perform other similar actions or duties delegated by law. (Subsection 63G-3-102(2))
Anniversary Date: means the date that is five years after the date of a rule's original enactment, or the date of its last five-year review. See Section 63G-3-305.

B

Bulletin: means the Utah State Bulletin. (Subsection 63G-3-102(3))

C

Catchline: means a short summary of each section, part, rule, or title of the code that follows the section, part, rule, or title reference placed before the text of the rule and serves the same function as boldface in legislation as described in Section 68-3-13. (Subsection 63G-3-102(4)) The catchline is not enforceable text.
Code: means the body of all effective rules as compiled and organized by the division and entitled Utah Administrative Code. (Subsection 63G-3-102(5))

D

DAR: means the Division of Administrative Rules. This reference is used on the rule analysis forms and other forms because of space constraints.
DAR File No.: means a number assigned to each rule action filed with the Division, sometimes referred to as "File No." The DAR File No. is assigned in sequence based on receipt date and time, except that a Change in Proposed Rule is assigned the same number as the proposed rule upon which it is based.
Director: means the director of the Division of Administrative Rules. (Subsection 63G-3-102(6))
Division: means the Division of Administrative Rules. (Subsection 63G-3-102(7))

E

Effective: means operative and enforceable. (Subsection 63G-3-102(8))

F

File: means to submit a document to the division as prescribed by this chapter. (Subsection 63G-3-102(9)(a))
Filing date: means the day and time the document is recorded as received by the division. (Subsection 63G-3-102(9)(b))

G

GOPB: means the Governor's Office of Planning and Budget.

I

Interested person: means any person affected by or interested in a proposed rule, amendment to an existing rule, or a nonsubstantive change made under Section 63G-3-402. (Subsection 63G-3-102(10))

K

Keywords: mean indexing terms derived from "Key Word for the Utah Administrative Code" assigned to a rule by the promulgating agency. These terms are used to prepare a basic subject index which is published in the Utah State Bulletin and in the Utah Administrative Rules Index of Changes.

N

Nonsubstantive Change: means a change that does not affect the manner in which the provisions of a rule are applied to a regulated class. (Subsections 63G-3-201(4)(d) and 63G-3-303(2))

O

Order: means an agency action that determines the legal rights, duties, privileges, immunities, or other interests of one or more specific persons, but not a class of persons. (Subsection 63G-3-102(11))

P

Person: means any individual, partnership, corporation, association, governmental entity, or public or private organization of any character other than an agency. (Subsection 63G-3-102(12))
Policy: means a statement applying to persons or agencies that: (i) broadly prescribes a future course of action, guidelines, principles, or procedures; or (ii) prescribes the internal management of an agency. A policy is a rule if it conforms to the definition of a rule. (Subsection 63G-3-102(13))
Publication: means making a rule available to the public by printing the rule or a summary of the rule in the bulletin. (Subsection 63G-3-102(14))
Publication date: means the inscribed date of the bulletin. (Subsection 63G-3-102(15))

R

Repeal and reenact: means a specific type of proposed rule. The Act permits agencies to repeals and reenacts a rule provided that the agency provides an extended summary in the rule analysis. The summary must include "a summary of substantive provisions in the repealed rule which are eliminated from the enacted rule, and a summary of new substantive provisions appearing only in the enacted rule." Agencies typically use the repeal and reenact provision when changes to a rule are so extensive that showing specific amendments would be confusing to the reader. (Subsection 63G-3-301(4))
Rule: means an agency's written statement that: (i) is explicitly or implicitly required by state or federal statute or other applicable law; (ii) implements or interprets a state or federal legal mandate; and (iii) applies to a class of persons or another agency. "Rule" includes the amendment or repeal of an existing rule. "Rule" does not mean: (i) orders; (ii) an agency's written statement that applies only to internal management and that does not restrict the legal rights of a public class of persons or another agency; (iii) the governor's executive orders or proclamations; (iv) opinions issued by the attorney general's office; (v) declaratory rulings issued by the agency according to Section 63-46b-21 except as required by Section 63G-3-201; (vi) rulings by an agency in adjudicative proceedings, except as required by Subsection 63G-3-201(6); or (vii) an agency written statement that is in violation of any state or federal law. (Subsection 63G-3-102(16)) Additionally, "Rule" does not include legislative rules adopted by the Legislature or judicial rules adopted by the Judicial Council.
Rule action: means the different types of rulemaking actions permitted by the Rulemaking Act including: Proposed Rule (Section 63G-3-301), Change in Proposed Rule (Section 63G-3-303), 120-Day (Emergency) Rule (Section 63G-3-304), Nonsubstantive Change (Subsections 63G-3-201(4)(d) and 63G-3-303(2)), Five-Year Notice of Review and Statement of Continuation (Section 63G-3-305), Five-Year Review Extension (Section 63G-3-305), Five-Year Review Expiration (Section 63G-3-305), Legislative Expiration (Section 63G-3-502), and Governor's Extension (Section 63G-3-502). See page for more information.
Rule analysis: means the format prescribed by the division to summarize and analyze rules. (Subsection 63G-3-102(17)). The Division has developed two rule analysis forms: "Notice of Proposed Rule or Change," and "Notice of 120-Day (Emergency Rule)." See pages and for facsimiles of these forms.

S

Small business: means a business employing fewer than 50 persons. (Subsection 63G-3-102(18))

Substantive change: means a change in a rule that affects the application or results of agency actions. (Subsection 63G-3-102(19))

U

UAC: means Utah Administrative Code. See Code.
UARA: means Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act, Title 63G, Chapter 3.
UCA: means Utah Code Annotated. See Utah Code.
Utah Administrative Code: see Code.
Utah Code: means the statutory codification of legislative enactments; also known as the Utah Code Annotated, 1953. Frequently referred to as Utah Code Ann., or by the abbreviation UCA.

Questions?

For questions about the rulemaking process, please contact the Division of Administrative Rules. Please Note: The Division of Administrative Rules is NOT able to answer questions about the content or application of administrative rules.