5 U.S.C. § 608 — Procedure for waiver or delay of comple-

Page 225 TITLE 5—GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATION AND EMPLOYEES § 609 § 606. Effect on other law The requirements of sections 603 and 604 of this title do not alter in any manner standards otherwise applicable by law to agency action. (Added Pub. L. 96–354, § 3(a), Sept. 19, 1980, 94 Stat. 1168.) Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective Jan. 1, 1981, see section 4 of Pub. L. 96–354, set out as a note under section 601 of this title. § 607. Preparation of analyses In complying with the provisions of sections 603 and 604 of this title, an agency may provide either a quantifiable or numerical description of the effects of a proposed rule or alternatives to the proposed rule, or more general descriptive statements if quantification is not practicable or reliable. (Added Pub. L. 96–354, § 3(a), Sept. 19, 1980, 94 Stat. 1168.) Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective Jan. 1, 1981, see section 4 of Pub. L. 96–354, set out as a note under section 601 of this title. § 608. Procedure for waiver or delay of comple- tion (a) An agency head may waive or delay the completion of some or all of the requirements of section 603 of this title by publishing in the Fed- eral Register, not later than the date of publica- tion of the final rule, a written finding, with reasons therefor, that the final rule is being pro- mulgated in response to an emergency that makes compliance or timely compliance with the provisions of section 603 of this title imprac- ticable. (b) Except as provided in section 605(b), an agency head may not waive the requirements of section 604 of this title. An agency head may delay the completion of the requirements of sec- tion 604 of this title for a period of not more than one hundred and eighty days after the date of publication in the Federal Register of a final rule by publishing in the Federal Register, not later than such date of publication, a written finding, with reasons therefor, that the final rule is being promulgated in response to an emergency that makes timely compliance with the provisions of section 604 of this title imprac- ticable. If the agency has not prepared a final regulatory analysis pursuant to section 604 of this title within one hundred and eighty days from the date of publication of the final rule, such rule shall lapse and have no effect. Such rule shall not be repromulgated until a final reg- ulatory flexibility analysis has been completed by the agency. (Added Pub. L. 96–354, § 3(a), Sept. 19, 1980, 94 Stat. 1168.) Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective Jan. 1, 1981, see section 4 of Pub. L. 96–354, set out as a note under section 601 of this title. § 609. Procedures for gathering comments (a) When any rule is promulgated which will have a significant economic impact on a sub- stantial number of small entities, the head of the agency promulgating the rule or the official of the agency with statutory responsibility for the promulgation of the rule shall assure that small entities have been given an opportunity to participate in the rulemaking for the rule through the reasonable use of techniques such as— (1) the inclusion in an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking, if issued, of a statement that the proposed rule may have a significant economic effect on a substantial number of small entities; (2) the publication of general notice of pro- posed rulemaking in publications likely to be obtained by small entities; (3) the direct notification of interested small entities; (4) the conduct of open conferences or public hearings concerning the rule for small entities including soliciting and receiving comments over computer networks; and (5) the adoption or modification of agency procedural rules to reduce the cost or com- plexity of participation in the rulemaking by small entities. (b) Prior to publication of an initial regu- latory flexibility analysis which a covered agen- cy is required to conduct by this chapter— (1) a covered agency shall notify the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration and provide the Chief Counsel with information on the potential impacts of the proposed rule on small entities and the type of small entities that might be affected; (2) not later than 15 days after the date of re- ceipt of the materials described in paragraph (1), the Chief Counsel shall identify individuals representative of affected small entities for the purpose of obtaining advice and rec- ommendations from those individuals about the potential impacts of the proposed rule; (3) the agency shall convene a review panel for such rule consisting wholly of full time Federal employees of the office within the agency responsible for carrying out the pro- posed rule, the Office of Information and Reg- ulatory Affairs within the Office of Manage- ment and Budget, and the Chief Counsel; (4) the panel shall review any material the agency has prepared in connection with this chapter, including any draft proposed rule, collect advice and recommendations of each individual small entity representative identi- fied by the agency after consultation with the Chief Counsel, on issues related to subsections 603(b), paragraphs (3), (4) and (5) and 603(c); (5) not later than 60 days after the date a covered agency convenes a review panel pursu- ant to paragraph (3), the review panel shall re- port on the comments of the small entity rep- resentatives and its findings as to issues re- lated to subsections 603(b), paragraphs (3), (4) and (5) and 603(c), provided that such report shall be made public as part of the rulemaking record; and (6) where appropriate, the agency shall mod- ify the proposed rule, the initial regulatory