{"id":1791,"date":"2019-01-16T12:24:40","date_gmt":"2019-01-16T17:24:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/groundbasedspacematters.com\/?p=1791"},"modified":"2019-03-14T09:38:14","modified_gmt":"2019-03-14T13:38:14","slug":"how-does-rulemaking-work","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/groundbasedspacematters.com\/index.php\/2019\/01\/16\/how-does-rulemaking-work\/","title":{"rendered":"How Does Rulemaking Work?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Someone asked me for a short primer for her students on how rulemaking works, preferably something that could be understood by people who aren’t lawyers.\u00a0 So here goes.<\/p>\n

Background<\/strong>.\u00a0 Rulemaking is a legislative activity that takes place in the executive branch.\u00a0 As we all remember from 8th grade, our government is supposed to be one of separated powers:\u00a0 Congress writes laws, the executive branch carries them out under the president, and the courts decide what the laws mean when people get confused or disagree about what they say.\u00a0 This is what’s in the Constitution.<\/p>\n

However, in the early 20th century the executive branch started wanting to write laws, too.\u00a0 Now we have regulatory agencies that write regulations, which are enforceable as laws.\u00a0 If you don’t follow the regulations, the government can fine you or stop you from doing what you want to do.<\/p>\n

Different agencies may regulate different industries.\u00a0 The Federal Communications Commission regulates radio transmissions, whether from radio or satellites.\u00a0 The Federal Aviation Administration regulates aircraft manufacturers, airlines, and launch companies. Some, like the Environmental Protection Agency, regulate many kinds of companies because different industries may cause pollution.<\/p>\n

The Rulemaking Process<\/strong>.\u00a0 Each of these agencies issues its regulations in accordance with a law Congress passed called the Administrative Procedure Act (the APA).\u00a0 The APA tells agencies how to do rulemaking.\u00a0 The APA doesn’t let a government official have an idea on his way to work in the morning and make that idea mandatory by the end of the day.\u00a0 Instead, he must go through rulemaking, and rulemaking takes a very long time.<\/p>\n

In rulemaking, the agency has to draft the regulations it proposes to implement and explain why its proposed requirements are necessary.\u00a0 The requirements appear in what we call “regulatory text,” and we call the explanation for them a “preamble.”\u00a0 Regulatory text looks like this<\/strong><\/a> or this<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0 Preambles look like this<\/strong><\/a> (scroll down to get to the interesting parts–there’s a lot of boilerplate at the beginning).<\/p>\n

The APA requires the regulations to be in accordance with the law and reasoned.\u00a0 A regulation may say something like “a launch operator must inform a space tourist of the risks of the launch vehicle, and that the U.S. government has not certified it as safe.” The FAA has a regulation that looks something like that, and it is in accordance with the law because Congress requires this disclosure.\u00a0 The FAA may not tell the space tourist what to have for breakfast because Congress did not give the FAA the authority to do so. \u00a0 Similarly, Congress told the FAA to protect the public from launch and reentry.\u00a0 Therefore the FAA does that, but does not have rules about the safety of a space launch company’s workers.\u00a0 There are other agencies that address worker safety.<\/p>\n

Let’s say the FAA wants to require a launch operator to use a flight termination system, a system by which a launch operator can destroy its rocket if it goes off course.\u00a0 The FAA has to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking (an NPRM) first.\u00a0 It is functionally a draft, even though it appears in the Federal Register and looks official.\u00a0 In that NPRM, the FAA must explain what it proposes to require in the regulatory text, why the requirement is necessary in the preamble, and ask for comments from the public.\u00a0 The public consists of the affected industry, members of Congress, you and me.\u00a0 Anyone may file comments.\u00a0 The FAA usually allows at least 60 days for comments.\u00a0 You should take advantage of this comment period.\u00a0 It is your biggest chance to influence the proposed requirements.\u00a0 Remember, in the NPRM they are just a proposal.<\/p>\n

Your comments should not only say that you don’t agree with the proposed requirement, but why.\u00a0 Show your work.\u00a0 If the agency has its facts or assumptions wrong, say so.\u00a0 This is an intellectual dialogue.\u00a0 Don’t be shy.\u00a0 (Don’t write in all caps, or anything mean because regulators have feelings, too, but do explain yourself.)\u00a0 Maybe the agency got something wrong in its math or has poor cost data for its cost-benefit analysis.\u00a0 Comments often make an agency realize that there is a better way to achieve the same goal as the requirement it proposed.\u00a0 Also, commenting might get you clarification on vague or confusing wording.<\/p>\n

After the agency reviews the comments, it must respond to them.\u00a0 It does so in the preamble to what is called the final rule.\u00a0 A final rule contains the new, mandatory requirements that will be published in the next edition of the Code of Federal Regulations.\u00a0 The preamble of the final rule should explain why it agrees or disagrees with the comments.<\/p>\n

(If you still can’t abide the new rules, you have a certain amount of time in which to take the agency to court.\u00a0 A court might agree with you that the agency’s new requirements are not reasoned or in accordance with law.\u00a0 It might not.)<\/p>\n

Gold mines<\/strong>.\u00a0 Those preambles are little gold mines.\u00a0 When you go work for a rocket company and you have to train a crew member, you will have to read the regulations.\u00a0 You will open up the Code of Federal Regulations, look at the requirements, and scratch your head all puzzled.\u00a0 However, you know there is some official explanation and maybe it will give you some clues as to what the requirements mean.\u00a0 You will go to the preambles to the NPRM and the final rule, and there you might find some examples of what the agency meant.\u00a0 They may even be helpful.<\/p>\n

Don’t forget.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Someone asked me for a short primer for her students on how rulemaking works, preferably something that could be understood…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[41],"class_list":["post-1791","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-rulemaking"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\nHow Does Rulemaking Work? 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