11346.35.
(a) For purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings:(1) “Agency” means only the State Air Resources Board, the Energy Commission, the Department of Fish and Game, and the Department of Housing and Community Development.
(2) “Major proposed regulation” means a proposed adoption, amendment, or repeal of a regulation that will have an adverse economic impact on California business enterprises and individuals in an amount exceeding ten million dollars ($10,000,000), as estimated by the agency in the assessment required pursuant to Section 11346.3.
(3) “Related economic impacts analysis” means an analysis of the reasonably identifiable and significant impacts of a major proposed regulation, that are premised upon, or derived from, empirical data or other scientific or economic findings, conclusions, or assumptions, including, but not limited to:
(A) Short-term and long-term jobs within this state in individual sectors of the economy affected by the major proposed regulation.
(B) The revenues to the General Fund and special funds that result from changes in economic activity attributable to the major proposed regulation.
(b) The agency shall complete, and include within the notice of proposed action required pursuant to Section 11346.5, a related economic impacts analysis for a major proposed regulation.
(c) An agency shall enter into an agreement with the National Bureau of Economic Research, the University of California, the California State University, or a group of economists of comparable stature and qualifications to conduct an external peer review of the related economic impacts analysis of the major proposed regulation if each of the following conditions occur:
(1) Within 15 days of the public disclosure of the notice of proposed action pursuant to Section 11346.4, a person submits, in the manner prescribed by the agency, a request for the agency to submit the related economic impacts analysis for external peer review pursuant to this section.
(2) The requester pays an administrative fee to the agency to cover the administrative costs of processing the request. The administrative fee shall be in an amount determined by the agency, not to exceed the administrative costs of processing the requests, and in no event to exceed five hundred dollars ($500).
(3) The requester and the agency, within 30 calendar days of the date that the request is submitted, enter into a contract whereby the requester shall be required to fully reimburse the agency for the nonadministrative costs incurred by the agency to obtain the completed peer review from the peer review entity.
(d) (1) Except as otherwise provided in this subdivision, the agency shall select external peer reviewers using the process established pursuant to Section 57004 of the Health and Safety Code.
(2) A person shall not serve as an external peer reviewer if that person participated in the development of the related economic impacts analysis of the major proposed regulation, or if that person has a financial interest in an entity or person that would be subject to the major proposed regulation or has any other conflict of interest.
(3) The person who requests the external peer review pursuant to this section, a person affiliated with that requester, and personnel of the adopting agency shall not participate in the selection of the individual external peer reviewers or contact or communicate with the individual external peer reviewer during the peer review.
(4) Notwithstanding paragraph (3), the agency may contact or communicate with an external peer reviewer for the purpose of entering into the contract with the reviewer as described in subdivision (c), and for purposes of providing the information described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (e).
(5) The identity of the individual external peer reviewers shall remain confidential until the external peer reviewer submits the written report to the specified department or commission.
(e) If the requirements of subdivision (c) are met, the agency shall not take any action to adopt the final version of a major proposed regulation unless all of the following conditions are met:
(1) The agency submits to the external peer reviewer for evaluation the text of the major proposed regulation, the related economic impacts analysis for the major proposed regulation, and other appropriate materials on which the related economic impacts analysis is based.
(2) The external peer review entity prepares a written report that contains an evaluation of the related economic impacts analysis within a timeframe determined by the agency. If the external peer review entity finds that the related economic impacts analysis prepared by the agency is not based upon sound economic knowledge, methods, or practices, the report shall state that finding and the reasons supporting that finding.
(3) The agency accepts the findings of the external peer review entity, in whole or in part, and revises the major proposed regulation accordingly, or rejects the finding. If the agency disagrees with any aspect of the findings of the external peer review entity, it shall explain, and include as part of the rulemaking record, its basis for the disagreement, including support for its determination that the related economic impacts analysis is based on sound economic knowledge, methods, and practices.
(4) A public hearing is conducted to provide opportunity for public comment on the written report prepared by the external peer review entity or, as appropriate, the agency explanation relating to its disagreement with the written report. The public hearing conducted pursuant to this paragraph shall be in addition to any public hearing for purposes of adopting the final version of a major proposed regulation. The agency shall not issue notice of a public hearing on adoption of the final version of the major proposed regulation until the public hearing described in this paragraph has concluded.
(f) In the event that the external peer review entity fails to provide a written report to the agency by the deadline prescribed by paragraph (2) of subdivision (e), an agency shall not be required to comply with the remaining requirements of subdivision (e) and may proceed with the adoption of the final version of the major proposed regulation.
(g) The requirements of this section shall not apply to an emergency regulation adopted pursuant to Section 11346.1.
(h) This section shall not be construed to limit the authority of an agency to adopt a regulation pursuant to the requirements of any other law that authorizes or requires the adoption of the regulation.
(i) Once an external peer review of the related economic impacts analysis has been completed for a major proposed regulation, the agency shall not be required to conduct additional peer reviews pursuant to this section for that major proposed regulation.
(j) The office shall notify the fiscal committees of each house of the Legislature and the Joint Legislative Budget Committee of each major proposed regulation that is approved or deemed approved by the office pursuant to Section 11349.3. The notification shall include the text of the regulation, the related economic impacts analysis conducted by the agency, and the written report, if any, of the external peer reviewer.
(k) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2016, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2016, deletes or extends that date.