1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to state government; the Office of 
  1.3             Administrative Hearings; providing state copies of 
  1.4             Minnesota Rules to the office; regulating hearings and 
  1.5             cases; providing rulemaking; assessing costs; amending 
  1.6             Minnesota Statutes 2004, sections 14.47, subdivision 
  1.7             8; 14.50; 14.51; 14.53; 14.62, subdivision 2a; 
  1.8             176.411, subdivision 1. 
  1.9   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.10     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 14.47, 
  1.11  subdivision 8, is amended to read: 
  1.12     Subd. 8.  [SALES AND DISTRIBUTION OF COMPILATION.] Any 
  1.13  compilation, reissue, or supplement published by the revisor 
  1.14  shall be sold by the revisor for a reasonable fee and its 
  1.15  proceeds deposited in the general fund.  An agency shall 
  1.16  purchase from the revisor the number of copies of the 
  1.17  compilation or supplement needed by the agency.  The revisor 
  1.18  shall provide without charge copies of each edition of any 
  1.19  compilation, reissue, or supplement to the persons or bodies 
  1.20  listed in this subdivision.  Those copies must be marked with 
  1.21  the words "State Copy" and kept for the use of the office.  The 
  1.22  revisor shall distribute:  
  1.23     (a) 25 copies to the Office of the Attorney General; 
  1.24     (b) two copies to the leader of each caucus in the house of 
  1.25  representatives and the senate, two copies to the Legislative 
  1.26  Reference Library, and one copy each to the House of 
  1.27  Representatives Research Department and the Office of Senate 
  2.1   Counsel and Research; 
  2.2      (c) three copies to the revisor of statutes for 
  2.3   transmission to the Library of Congress for copyright and 
  2.4   depository purposes; 
  2.5      (d) 150 copies to the State Law Library; 
  2.6      (e) ten copies to the law school of the University of 
  2.7   Minnesota; and 
  2.8      (f) one copy of any compilation or supplement to each 
  2.9   county library maintained pursuant to section 134.12 upon its 
  2.10  request, except in counties containing cities of the first 
  2.11  class.  If a county has not established a county library 
  2.12  pursuant to section 134.12, the copy will be provided to any 
  2.13  public library in the county upon its request; and 
  2.14     (g) three copies to the Office of Administrative Hearings. 
  2.15     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 14.50, is amended 
  2.16  to read: 
  2.17     14.50 [HEARINGS BEFORE ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE.] 
  2.18     All hearings of state agencies required to be conducted 
  2.19  under this chapter shall be conducted by an administrative law 
  2.20  judge assigned by the chief administrative law judge or by a 
  2.21  workers' compensation judge assigned by the chief administrative 
  2.22  law judge as provided in section 14.48.  All hearings required 
  2.23  to be conducted under chapter 176 shall be conducted by a 
  2.24  compensation judge assigned by the chief administrative law 
  2.25  judge or by an administrative law judge assigned by the chief 
  2.26  administrative law judge as provided in section 14.48.  In 
  2.27  assigning administrative law judges or compensation judges to 
  2.28  conduct such hearings, the chief administrative law judge shall 
  2.29  attempt to utilize personnel having expertise in the subject to 
  2.30  be dealt with in the hearing.  It shall be the duty of the judge 
  2.31  to:  (1) advise an agency as to the location at which and time 
  2.32  during which a hearing should be held so as to allow for 
  2.33  participation by all affected interests; (2) conduct only 
  2.34  hearings for which proper notice has been given; (3) see to it 
  2.35  that all hearings are conducted in a fair and impartial manner.  
  2.36  Except in the case of workers' compensation hearings involving 
  3.1   claims for compensation it shall also be the duty of the judge 
  3.2   to make a report on each proposed agency action in which the 
  3.3   administrative law judge functioned in an official capacity, 
  3.4   stating findings of fact and conclusions and recommendations, 
  3.5   taking notice of the degree to which the agency has (i) 
  3.6   documented its statutory authority to take the proposed action, 
  3.7   (ii) fulfilled all relevant substantive and procedural 
  3.8   requirements of law or rule, and (iii) in rulemaking 
  3.9   proceedings, demonstrated the need for and reasonableness of its 
  3.10  proposed action with an affirmative presentation of facts. 
  3.11     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 14.51, is amended 
  3.12  to read: 
  3.13     14.51 [PROCEDURAL RULES.] 
  3.14     The chief administrative law judge shall adopt rules to 
  3.15  govern:  (1) the procedural conduct of all hearings, relating to 
  3.16  both rule adoption, amendment, suspension or repeal hearings, 
  3.17  contested case hearings, and workers' compensation hearings, and 
  3.18  to govern the conduct of voluntary mediation sessions for 
  3.19  rulemaking and contested cases other than those within the 
  3.20  jurisdiction of the Bureau of Mediation Services; and (2) the 
  3.21  review of rules adopted without a public hearing.  The chief 
  3.22  administrative law judge may adopt rules to govern the 
  3.23  procedural conduct of other hearings conducted by the Office of 
  3.24  Administrative Hearings.  The procedural rules shall be binding 
  3.25  upon all agencies and shall supersede any other agency 
  3.26  procedural rules with which they may be in conflict.  The 
  3.27  procedural rules shall include in addition to normal procedural 
  3.28  matters provisions relating to the procedure to be followed when 
  3.29  the proposed final rule of an agency is substantially different, 
  3.30  as determined under section 14.05, subdivision 2, from that 
  3.31  which was proposed.  The procedural rules shall establish a 
  3.32  procedure whereby the proposed final rule of an agency shall be 
  3.33  reviewed by the chief administrative law judge on the issue of 
  3.34  whether the proposed final rule of the agency is substantially 
  3.35  different than that which was proposed or failure of the agency 
  3.36  to meet the requirements of chapter 14.  The rules must also 
  4.1   provide:  (1) an expedited procedure, consistent with section 
  4.2   14.001, clauses (1) to (5), for the adoption of substantially 
  4.3   different rules by agencies; and (2) a procedure to allow an 
  4.4   agency to receive prior binding approval of its plan regarding 
  4.5   the additional notice contemplated under sections 14.101, 
  4.6   14.131, 14.14, 14.22, and 14.23.  Upon the chief administrative 
  4.7   law judge's own initiative or upon written request of an 
  4.8   interested party, the chief administrative law judge may issue a 
  4.9   subpoena for the attendance of a witness or the production of 
  4.10  books, papers, records or other documents as are material to the 
  4.11  any matter being heard by the Office of Administrative 
  4.12  Hearings.  The subpoenas shall be enforceable through the 
  4.13  district court in the district in which the subpoena is issued. 
  4.14     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 14.53, is amended 
  4.15  to read: 
  4.16     14.53 [COSTS ASSESSED.] 
  4.17     In consultation with the commissioner of administration the 
  4.18  chief administrative law judge shall assess agencies the cost of 
  4.19  services rendered to them in the conduct of hearings.  Except as 
  4.20  otherwise specifically provided by statute, the chief 
  4.21  administrative law judge, in consultation with the commissioner 
  4.22  of finance, shall assess agencies the cost of services rendered 
  4.23  to them.  All agencies shall include in their budgets provisions 
  4.24  for such assessments. 
  4.25     Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 14.62, 
  4.26  subdivision 2a, is amended to read: 
  4.27     Subd. 2a.  [ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE DECISION FINAL; 
  4.28  EXCEPTION.] Unless otherwise provided by law, the report or 
  4.29  order of the administrative law judge constitutes the final 
  4.30  decision in the case unless the agency modifies or rejects it 
  4.31  under subdivision 1 within 90 days after the record of the 
  4.32  proceeding closes under section 14.61.  When the agency fails to 
  4.33  act within 90 days on a licensing case, the agency must return 
  4.34  the record of the proceeding to the administrative law judge for 
  4.35  consideration of disciplinary action.  In all contested cases 
  4.36  where the report or order of the administrative law judge 
  5.1   constitutes the final decision in the case, the administrative 
  5.2   law judge shall issue findings of fact, conclusions, and an 
  5.3   order within 90 days after the hearing record closes under 
  5.4   section 14.61.  Upon a showing of good cause by a party or the 
  5.5   agency, the chief administrative law judge may order a 
  5.6   reasonable extension of either of the two 90-day deadlines 
  5.7   specified in this subdivision. 
  5.8      Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 176.411, 
  5.9   subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  5.10     Subdivision 1.  [CONDUCT OF HEARINGS AND INVESTIGATIONS.] 
  5.11  Except as otherwise provided by this chapter, when a 
  5.12  compensation judge makes an investigation or conducts a hearing, 
  5.13  the compensation judge is bound neither by the common law or 
  5.14  statutory rules of evidence nor by technical or formal rules of 
  5.15  pleading or procedure.  Hearsay evidence which is reliable is 
  5.16  admissible.  The investigation or hearing shall be conducted in 
  5.17  a manner to ascertain the substantial rights of the 
  5.18  parties.  When the hearing record contains information which is 
  5.19  not public, the compensation judge may conduct a closed hearing 
  5.20  to discuss the information, issue necessary protective orders, 
  5.21  and seal all or part of the hearing record. 
  5.22     Findings of fact shall be based upon relevant and material 
  5.23  evidence only, as presented by competent witnesses, and shall 
  5.24  comport with section 176.021.