Administrative Law Outline

Administrative Law Outline
Agencies: Their Origins, Forms, and Functions
· What is an agency?
o Executive agency made to carry out the laws of Congress
o Legislative agencies help Congress pass and make laws
o Judicial agencies help judicial branch decide and interpret laws, sometimes make them too
· An agency run by a commission is usually independent; the commission can’t be removed by the president
o Agencies run by one person are usually executive agencies – removable by the president
o Independent and executive agencies have the same powers though
· Agencies…
o Pass regulations and legislate – power to create laws in confines of Congressional grant
o Adjudicate a dispute; judicial functions
o Investigate, research, figure out to what degree the agency should exercise the other powers it has
o Enforce the regulations and laws they have made
· Administrative Procedures Act – an Agency is an authority of the government even if it’s within another authority
Rulemaking and Adjudication
· Rulemaking à General policies that affect unspecified groups of people; applied proactively for the future
o Affects the rights of broad classes of people
· Adjudications à Dealing with a narrow number of people for activities they have done in the past; takes place immediately
o Specific groups of people invovled
o Go to the statute first to see if there are any special procedures that you have to follow, then go to § 554 to see procedure
· Administrative procedures act as blueprint for rulemaking and adjudication
· Agencies and parties have lots of times for appeal
Bi-Metallic Investment Co. v. State Board of Equalization of Colorado à When a rule of conduct applies to a group of people, it’s impractical that everyone should speak; the government has to work somehow
· Π said they weren’t given an opportunity to be heard and so their property would be taken without proper due process
· Question: If all individuals have a constitutional right to be heard before a matter can be decided in which all are equally concerned – NO
Yesler Terrace Community v. Cisneros à HUD made rules, not adjudicated, and so tenants had their rights to be heard taken away, which they shouldn’t have
· When HUD made new rules, it was interpreted as rulemaking, which requires some kind of notice and comment, which the tenants didn’t have in this case
Londoner v. City and County of Denver à Constitutional issues arise when people are not allowed due process; homeowners needed their day in court regarding new assessments
· Different from Bi-Metallic because the process is different
Theories of Agency Behavior
· Capture Doctrine à Where the government or private interests “capture” agencies and make them into puppets of the companies or the government
o After some time, agencies become close with the industry they regulate – where capture occurs
· 2 philosophies:
o Agency does everything it can so that every procedure possible should be afforded so the public and those arguing for/against has the opportunity for hearings
o Examine substance of what the agency is doing and the decision its making, info it’s basing its decision on; if we don’t they they’re correct, then we should say so
· Agencies exist because:
o Legislature created them and gave them the power to check Congress
o Reduce some of the workload for Congress
o Need to provide expertise to industries
o Even if you had super-educated legislature, couldn’t