Regulatory Comment Letter - California

COMMENTS ON CALIFORNIA PROPOSED REGULATORY ACTION

Filing Gate

This form assumes an ordinary rulemaking governed by the California Administrative Procedure Act. Do not use it without checking for an exemption, emergency procedure, readoption, or agency-specific process.

Cal. Gov't Code § 11346.4(a) requires notice at least 45 days before the hearing and close of the public comment period. Section 11346.5(a)(15) requires the notice to state the written-comment deadline. The official notice controls the exact deadline, recipient, and permitted submission methods.

Date: [________________________________]

To: [AGENCY RULEMAKING CONTACT]

Agency: [________________________________]

Submission method/address: [________________________________]

Re: Comments on [TITLE OF PROPOSED ACTION], Cal. Code Regs. tit. [____], § [____]

Notice Register citation: [YEAR] Cal. Reg. Notice Register [PAGE/NOTICE NUMBER]

Dear [RULEMAKING CONTACT]:

[COMMENTER LEGAL NAME] submits these comments on the proposed regulatory action identified above. These comments are submitted by the deadline and method stated in the official notice.

1. Commenter and Affected Interest

1. Commenter is a [resident / business / nonprofit / association / local agency / other] located at [address].

2. Commenter's relevant activities are [describe operations, license, program participation, regulated conduct, or other interest].

3. The proposal would affect Commenter by [identify the cost, duty, benefit, procedure, license, reporting requirement, or other direct effect].

4. [NAME AND TITLE] is authorized to submit these comments for Commenter.

2. Requested Action

Commenter asks the Agency to:

1. [Adopt / revise / withdraw] proposed Cal. Code Regs. tit. [____], § [____];
2. Replace [quoted proposed language] with [exact replacement language];
3. Address the evidence in Exhibits [____]; and
4. [Take another action within the Agency's authority].

3. Authority, Notice, and Initial Reasons

The notice cites [STATUTE AND SECTION] as authority and identifies [STATUTE OR OTHER LAW] as implemented, interpreted, or made specific.

Section 11346.5(a) requires the notice to identify the authority and implemented law, summarize existing law and the proposal's effect, state the proposal's objectives and anticipated benefits, evaluate inconsistency or incompatibility with existing state regulations, and provide the specified cost, economic-impact, contact, hearing-request, changed-text, and final-reasons information.

Section 11346.2(b)(1) requires the Initial Statement of Reasons to state the specific purpose, problem, necessity rationale, and anticipated benefits for each adoption, amendment, or repeal. If the proposal mandates specific technology or equipment, it must explain why that mandate or prescriptive standard is required.

Commenter submits that proposed section [____]:

☐ Fits the cited authority because [________________________________].

☐ Should be narrowed because [compare the proposed text with the statutory delegation].

☐ Lacks adequate purpose, necessity, benefit, study, or cost support because [identify the exact omission or unsupported premise].

4. Section-by-Section Comments

Comment 1 — [Short descriptive heading]

The proposal states: "[quote the proposed text]".

Commenter recommends: "[provide replacement text]".

The revision is warranted because [enabling authority, factual evidence, technical feasibility, administrative effect, unintended consequence, or other grounded reason]. Supporting material appears at Exhibit [____], page [____].

Comment 2 — [Short descriptive heading]

The proposal states: "[quote the proposed text]".

Commenter recommends: "[provide replacement text]".

The revision is warranted because [________________________________].

5. Economic Impact and Alternatives

Section 11346.3(a) requires the Agency to assess potential adverse economic impacts on California businesses and individuals, avoid unnecessary or unreasonable regulation and reporting, recordkeeping, or compliance requirements, use adequate information about need and consequences, and consider effects on business and interstate competitiveness.

Key assumptions: [wage rates, affected units, frequency, implementation period, data source, and uncertainty range].

Section 11346.2(b)(4) requires consideration of reasonable alternatives, including less burdensome equally effective approaches and alternatives that lessen adverse small-business impact. For technology, equipment, action, or procedure mandates, performance standards must be considered as an alternative. The Agency need not artificially construct or describe unreasonable alternatives.

Commenter asks the Agency to adopt [alternative] because it is [more effective / equally effective and less burdensome / more cost effective and equally effective].

Do not replace California's actual economic-impact, alternatives, notice-declaration, and final-reasons requirements with a generic federal “prepare an analysis or certify no significant impact” formula.

6. Public Hearing Request — Optional

Delete this section if a hearing is already scheduled or no request is desired.

Under § 11346.8(a), if no public hearing is scheduled, the Agency must hold one when an interested person or authorized representative submits a written request no later than 15 days before the close of the written comment period.

Comment-period closing date: [________________________________]

Hearing-request deadline: [________________________________]

Commenter timely requests a public hearing concerning [proposed sections and issues]. Oral presentation would assist consideration of [technical, economic, factual, or drafting issue]. Proposed speakers and subjects are [________________________________].

7. Changes to the Originally Proposed Text

Section 11346.8(c) permits a changed regulation only when the change is nonsubstantial or solely grammatical, or sufficiently related to the original text that the public was adequately placed on notice that the change could result. For a sufficiently related change, the full changed text must be available to the public for at least 15 days before adoption, and the final statement of reasons must respond to written comments on the change.

Commenter submits that the following anticipated or requested change [is / is not] sufficiently related to the original text: [________________________________].

Commenter requests that the Agency:

1. Make the full changed text clearly available for the statutory period;
2. Accept written comments on the changed text;
3. Respond to those comments in the final statement of reasons; and
4. Issue a new notice if the change cannot satisfy § 11346.8(c).

Use California's nonsubstantial-or-sufficiently-related standard and 15-day changed-text process. Do not import a federal “logical outgrowth” label or demand an automatic 60-day supplemental period.

8. Final Statement of Reasons

Section 11346.9(a)(3) requires the final statement of reasons to summarize each objection or recommendation specifically directed at the proposed action or procedure and explain how the action changed to accommodate it or why no change was made. Repetitive or irrelevant comments may be grouped, and irrelevant comments may be summarily dismissed as a group.

Commenter asks the Agency to address the following specific objection or recommendation: [identify comment number, proposed section, evidence, and requested revision].

Section 11346.9(a)(4)-(5) also requires the Agency's supported alternatives determination and its reasons for rejecting alternatives that would lessen adverse economic impact on small businesses.

9. Conclusion

For the reasons above, Commenter asks the Agency to [adopt, revise, or withdraw specified provisions] and use the exact revisions stated in Sections [____].

Please direct questions concerning this submission to [name, title, telephone, and email].

Respectfully submitted,

Signature: ______________________________

[Name]

[Title / organization]

[Address]

[Telephone / email]

Exhibit List

Filing Checklist

☐ Confirmed the action uses the ordinary California APA process

☐ Read the complete notice, proposed text, and Initial Statement of Reasons

☐ Verified the agency's enabling statute and any additional procedure

☐ Confirmed the 45-day period, deadline, recipient, and submission methods

☐ If requesting a hearing, filed the written request no later than 15 days before comment close

☐ Supported factual, economic, and alternative claims with exhibits and reproducible calculations

☐ Applied the nonsubstantial-or-sufficiently-related test and 15-day changed-text process

☐ Framed final-response requests under § 11346.9 rather than demanding an individualized response to irrelevant material

☐ Removed unsupported federal terminology, automatic 60-day demands, generic ex parte language, and generic review reservations

☐ Retained proof of timely submission and receipt

Current California Rulemaking Notes

• Section 11346.4 supplies a 45-day minimum before the hearing and comment close.
• Section 11346.8(a) gives an interested person a hearing-request right when the written request arrives no later than 15 days before comment close.
• Section 11346.8(c), not federal “logical outgrowth” terminology, controls changes to the originally proposed text and requires at least 15 days for sufficiently related changed text.
• Sections 11346.2-.3 and 11346.5 require California-specific economic, alternatives, notice, and supporting-evidence work.
• Section 11346.9 requires responses to specific objections and recommendations and supported alternatives determinations in the final statement of reasons.

Official Sources

• Cal. Gov't Code § 11346.2: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?sectionNum=11346.2.&lawCode=GOV
• Cal. Gov't Code § 11346.3: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?sectionNum=11346.3.&lawCode=GOV
• Cal. Gov't Code § 11346.4: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?sectionNum=11346.4.&lawCode=GOV
• Cal. Gov't Code § 11346.5: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?sectionNum=11346.5.&lawCode=GOV
• Cal. Gov't Code § 11346.8: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?sectionNum=11346.8.&lawCode=GOV
• Cal. Gov't Code § 11346.9: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?sectionNum=11346.9.&lawCode=GOV