S.B. No. 303 Summary

• Establishes new requirements for agencies to identify and restate unwritten principles of law or policy into formal rules, with a six-month deadline once determination is made.

• Creates petition process allowing persons affected by agency adjudications to request the agency restate a principle of law or policy in a rule, with agency response required within 30 days.

• Expands joint committee on agency rule review authority to request agencies explain why they rely on unstated principles of law instead of formal rules, and to recommend rulemaking within six months.

• Requires agencies to conduct periodic reviews of their operations to identify principles of law and policy that should be restated in rules; agencies must complete at least one review per governor's term.

• Authorizes private parties to sue in court of common pleas if a rule creates an unauthorized exception or amplification to a principle of law, with courts empowered to void the exception and award costs and attorney fees.