OR Bar Administrative Law 3

Question 1

Under the federal APA, informal (notice-and-comment) rulemaking under §553 requires an agency to:

Accepted Answer

Publish a proposed rule and provide a meaningful opportunity for public comment before finalizing

Answer

APA §553 requires agencies to publish proposed rules in the Federal Register and allow public comment; the final rule must respond to significant comments.

Question 2

Which category of agency action is typically exempt from APA notice-and-comment rulemaking requirements?

Accepted Answer

Interpretive rules and general statements of policy

Answer

APA §553(b)(A) exempts interpretive rules and general statements of policy because they do not independently carry the force of law.

Question 3

Under Oregon's APA, when an agency adopts a permanent rule, it must prepare:

Accepted Answer

A statement of need and a fiscal impact statement

Answer

ORS 183.335 requires agencies adopting permanent rules to prepare a statement of need explaining why the rule is necessary and a fiscal impact statement.

Question 4

The 'logical outgrowth' test in APA rulemaking is used to determine whether:

Accepted Answer

A final rule is sufficiently related to the proposed rule to satisfy APA notice requirements

Answer

The logical outgrowth test ensures that a final rule must be a foreseeable development of the proposed rule so that interested parties had adequate notice and opportunity to comment.

Question 5

An agency issues a guidance document without notice-and-comment that effectively requires regulated parties to follow specific procedures or face enforcement consequences. Courts would most likely treat this as:

Accepted Answer

An invalid legislative rule requiring notice-and-comment that was adopted without proper procedure

Answer

When a guidance document is substantively binding and carries the practical force of law, it must be adopted through notice-and-comment rulemaking regardless of how the agency labels it.

(OR Bar) Oregon Bar Exam Practice Test

(OR Bar) Oregon Bar Exam Practice Test

OR Bar Administrative Law 3