Appointment of Council Members

Six of the seven Council members are appointed by the Governor for three-year terms. The members, who serve at the pleasure of the Governor, meet at least once a month. The seventh Council member and Chair of the Council is the Assistant Director for Legal Services (General Counsel) of the Department of Administration.

The Governor is required to appoint at least one member to represent the public interest, one member to represent the business community, one member from a list of three persons submitted by the President of the Senate, and one member from a list of three persons submitted by the Speaker of the House (legislative nominees cannot be legislators). At least one member of the Council must be an attorney licensed to practice law in the state.

Responsibilities of Council Members

In 1981, Governor Bruce Babbitt established the Council by Executive Order Number 81-3, as it was determined to be in the public interest “to assure that administrative rules and regulations avoid unnecessary duplication and adverse impact upon the public.” In 1986, the legislature codified the Council in statute (Title 41, Chapter 6, Article 5 of the Arizona Revised Statutes). The Council was established primarily for the purpose of providing oversight and administrative efficiency in the rulemaking process for state agencies, boards, and commissions (”agencies”), to ensure consistency and compliance with existing statutes, and to ensure that stakeholders’ interests are considered as a part of the rulemaking process. 

The vast majority of the matters that come before the Council are proposed rulemakings (A.R.S. § 41-1052), and five-year-review reports, submitted pursuant to A.R.S. § 41-1056(A). Copies of the relevant statutes and rules are included, and a discussion of the Council’s responsibilities on these matters is addressed in this manual. In short, the Council's primary responsibilities are to:

1. Review and approve or return a rule, preamble, and economic, small business, and consider impact statement (EIS) submitted by an agency (A.R.S. § 41-1052(B));
2. Schedule a periodic review of each agency’s rules and approve or return the agency’s report on its review (A.R.S. § 41-1056(A));
3. Ensure that if any agency proposes a new rule or an amendment to an existing rule that requires the issuance of a regulatory permit, license or agency authorization, the agency shall use a general permit if the facilities, activities or practices in the class are substantially similar in nature (A.R.S. § 41-1037);
4. Receive and hear appeals regarding an agency’s practice or substantive policy statement (A.R.S. § 41-1033(B));
5. Receive and hear appeals regarding the economic, small business and consumer impact statement of an agency’s rules (A.R.S. § 41-1056.01(D)); and
6. Receive and hear appeals regarding agency delegation agreements (A.R.S. § 41-1081).