Catch Title: SF0063 Administrative Rules Legislative Review

Sponsor: Management Audit Committee

Effective Date: July 1, 2026

Bill URL: https://www.wyoleg.gov/Legislation/2026/SF0063

Overview:

SF0063 significantly expands legislative oversight of state agency rulemaking by drastically lowering the financial threshold for “major rules” . The bill mandates that agencies provide a detailed statement of need and all data necessary for regulatory analysis at the start of the rulemaking process, while also requiring standardized formatting to ensure that all changes to existing rules are clearly visible to the public and the legislature .

Key Provisions:

• Major Rule Threshold Reduction: Lowers the economic impact threshold for a “major rule” from $1,000,000 to $200,000 in annual direct or indirect costs .
• Mandatory Statement of Need: Requires agencies to include a “statement of need” and all information necessary for the legislative regulatory analysis in their initial 45-day public notice .
• Standardized Rule Formatting: Directs the state registrar to prescribe a format for proposed amendments that clearly indicates all additions to and deletions from existing language .
• Regulatory Information Rules: Mandates that the state registrar adopt rules to ensure agencies provide the necessary data for the regulatory analysis required by the Management Council .
• Notification Requirements: Requires that notices be mailed to the Attorney General, the Secretary of State, and the Legislative Service Office (LSO) in a specific prescribed format .

Implications:

• Significant Increase in Administrative Volume: By dropping the threshold by 80%, a much larger percentage of agency rules will be classified as “major,” triggering mandatory and labor-intensive regulatory analyses .
• Growth of Government and Workload: This expansion of the “major rule” category increases the operational workload for both executive agencies and the LSO, representing a notable growth in administrative and legislative oversight .
• Fiscal Hurdle: The bill presents a potential fiscal hurdle for agencies; the costs of conducting more frequent and detailed regulatory analyses are [Not Specified] in terms of additional appropriations or staffing resources .
• Requirement for Empirical Data: The mandated “statement of need” introduces a higher standard for agencies; these justifications should be supported by empirical data to satisfy the new legislative review requirements .
• Ambiguity in “Indirect Costs”: The inclusion of “indirect costs” in the $200,000 threshold calculation is [Ambiguous: The bill does not define the methodology for calculating indirect economic impacts, which may lead to disputes over whether a rule qualifies as “major”].