Lawmakers Unveil New Website for Tracking State Rules

Looking to make Ohio’s rule-making process easier to follow for both business owners and the public, State Representative Ross McGregor (R- Springfield) and State Senators Frank LaRose (R- Copley) and Bob Peterson (R- Sabina) today unveiled the new RuleWatch Ohio Web site. McGregor, LaRose and Peterson all serve as members of the Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review (JCARR), which is responsible for ensuring state agencies do not exceed their statutory authority through rules.

“The rules and regulations proposed by state agencies impact both business owners and families, and RuleWatch Ohio will give anyone interested in improving our regulatory environment the ability to participate in the rule-making process,” said LaRose and Peterson. “The new RuleWatch Ohio system was designed to be easy to use, and is another tool for people to better interact with state government.”

RuleWatch Ohio allows individuals to track a specific rule they are interested in, or rules that cover a particular area of interest. By creating an account on the RuleWatch Ohio site, users can receive e-mail alerts when there is activity on any of the rules they have selected.

“I am extremely pleased with the launch of JCARR’s RuleWatch,” McGregor said. “RuleWatch will provide our constituents with an unprecedented ability to monitor proposed regulations that have a potential direct impact on their ability to conduct business in the state of Ohio.”

JCARR reviews roughly 9,000 rule actions each year for 120 state agencies. Previously, those looking to follow a particular rule had to search through weekly filing summaries and other reports to determine if any action was being taken on a rule of interest. By simplifying the process to track particular rules, legislators and JCARR hope to give business owners, associations and members of the public the opportunity to better engage in the rule-making process.

“It is great that all Ohioans, both businesses and individuals, have access to a user-friendly method of tracking and seeing what rules and regulations their government proposes to put on them,” said Chris Ferruso, legislative director for NFIB Ohio, which helped test the new system. “By allowing individuals to follow specific issues, and not be overwhelmed by communications on topics that are not of concern, it should engage more individuals in the process.”

More information about RuleWatch Ohio can be found at http://RuleWatchOhio.gov.