Six conservation organizations filed a petition in Thurston County Superior Court, asking that court to hold, pursuant to a provision in the Administrative Procedures Act (APA), that the Washington Forest Practices Board, the Washington Department of Ecology, and the Washington Department of Natural Resources (agencies) "failed to promulgate forest practice rules that advanced the environmental protection purposes and policies of the Forest Practices Act of 1974." The agencies countered by arguing that a formal petition for rule making must precede any petition for judicial review.

1. If a dispute with an agency arises, as it did here, must you exhaust administrative remedies before proceeding to court?
2. What is the reason for this approach?
3. What Act controls the activities of agencies such as rulemaking?

use evidence for each question from the following:

SUMMARY Introduction to Administrative Law Administrative law consists of the substantive and procedural rules created by administrative agencies (government bodies of the city, county, state, or federal government) involving applications, licenses, permits, available information, hearings, appeals, and decision making. An administrative agency is generally defined as any body created by the legislative branch (e.g., Congress, a state legislature, or a city council) to carry out specific duties. Administrative agencies are created by Congress through passage of enabling legislation, which is a statute that specifies the name, functions, and specific powers of the administrative agency. Enabling statutes grant agencies broad powers for the purpose of serving the "public interest, convenience, and necessity."

An agency holds an administrative hearing before an administrative law judge (ALJ). The ALJ may attempt to get the parties to settle but has the power to issue a binding decision.

Types of Administrative Agencies Executive agency: The administrative head of an executive agency is appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the U.S. Senate. Executive-agency heads may be discharged by the president at any time, for any reason. Executive agencies are generally located within the executive branch, under one of the cabinet-level departments (and thus are referred to as cabinet-level agencies). Examples are the Federal Aviation Agency (FAA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Independent agency: Independent agencies are governed by a board of commissioners. The president appoints the commissioners with the advice and consent of the Senate. Commissioners serve fixed terms and cannot be removed except for cause. No more than a simple majority of an independent agency can be members of any single political party. Hybrid agency: Hybrid agencies do not fall clearly into classification as an independent or an executive agency. Created as one type of agency, the body may share characteristics of the other type. The EPA, for example, was created as an independent agency, not located within any department of the executive branch, yet the head of the EPA serves at the whim of the president.

How Do Agencies Operate? In 1946, Congress passed the Administrative Procedures Act (APA) as a major limitation on how agencies are run. The APA provides very specific guidelines on rule making by agencies. Informal rule making: Under the APA, the proposed rule is published in the Federal Register, and there is opportunity for public comment. Formal rule making: All rules must be enacted by an agency as part of a formal hearing process that includes a complete transcript. The process begins with publication in the Federal Register of a notice of proposed rule making by the agency. Next, there is a public hearing at which witnesses give testimony on the pros and cons of the proposed rule and are subject to cross-examination. The agency makes and publishes formal findings. If a regulation is adopted, the final rule is published in the Federal Register. Hybrid rule making: Hybrid rule making is an attempt to combine the best features of formal and informal rule making. The starting point is publication in the Federal Register, followed by the opportunity for submission of written comments and then an informal public hearing with a more restricted opportunity for cross-examination than that in formal rule making. Exempted rule making: The APA contains an exemption from rule making that allows an agency to decide whether public participation will be allowed. Exemptions include rule-making proceedings with regard to military or foreign affairs, agency management or personnel, and public property, loans, grants, benefits, or contracts of an agency. Interpretive rules are rules that do not create any new rights or duties but merely state the agency's interpretation of an existing law. They are generally very detailed, step-by-step statements of what actions a party is to take to be considered in compliance with an existing law. In reg-neg, each concerned interest group and the agency itself sends a representative to bargaining sessions led by a mediator. If the parties achieve a consensus, that agreement is forwarded to the agency. The agency is then expected to publish the compromise as a proposed rule in the Federal Register and follow through with the appropriate rule-making procedures. If the agency does not agree with the proposal the group negotiated, the agency is free to try to modify or replace it. Limitations on Agency Powers There are four basic limits on agency power: political, statutory, judicial, and informational. Freedom of Information Act: Passed in 1966, FOIA requires federal agencies to publish in the Federal Register places where the public can get information from the agencies. Any individual or business may make a FOIA request to a federal agency for information on how the agency gets and spends its money, statistics and/or information collected by the agency on a given topic, and any records the government has about the individual seeking the information. Exemptions to FOIA include, but are not limited to, national security, internal agency matters (e.g., personnel issues), criminal investigations, financial institutions, and an individual's private life. Government in Sunshine Act: This act requires agency business meetings to be open to the public if the agency is headed by a collegiate body (i.e., two or more persons, the majority of whom are appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate). The law also requires agencies to keep records of closed meetings.

Privacy Act: Under the Privacy Act, a federal agency may not disclose information about an individual to other agencies or organizations without that individual's written consent.

Federal and State Administrative Agencies Administrative agencies exist at the federal and state levels.