Decision A434H – Regents of the University of California

Because an agency’s rules or regulations cannot expand the scope of its authority beyond what has been authorized by the enabling statute, regulations that specify the procedure whereby an agency will carry out its mission necessarily have the effect of narrowing the scope of the agency's discretion by requiring it to act according to the procedure specified in its own regulations, as opposed to following other procedures which, while within the broad discretion granted by the statute are not the procedure chosen by the agency. Agency regulations validly enacted pursuant to a legislative grant of authority have the force and effect of law and are binding on the agency that promulgated them. Administrative agencies must follow their own rules and may only modify or repeal them through the rulemaking process rather than by decisional law.

PERB has generally construed its regulations governing representation matters narrowly and declined to look to private-sector authority for guidance when PERB’ s regulations expressly address the policy concerns underlying the practice and procedure of private-sector labor boards such as the National Labor Relations Board or Agricultural Labor Relations Board. Because PERB regulations, require that all representation elections affecting HEERA units “be conducted by secret ballot under the supervision of the Board,” and that the ballots for such elections also “shall be prepared under the supervision of the Board,” PERB refused to accept and count tie-breaking vote from employee who constructed his own homemade ballot after allegedly not receiving an official ballot.

PERB has generally construed its regulations governing representation matters narrowly and declined to look to private-sector authority for guidance when PERB’ s regulations expressly address the policy concerns underlying the practice and procedure of private-sector labor boards such as the National Labor Relations Board or Agricultural Labor Relations Board. Because PERB regulations, require that all representation elections affecting HEERA units “be conducted by secret ballot under the supervision of the Board,” and that the ballots for such elections also “shall be prepared under the supervision of the Board,” PERB refused to accept and count tie-breaking vote from employee who constructed his own homemade ballot after allegedly not receiving an official ballot.

PERB has generally construed its regulations governing representation matters narrowly and declined to look to private-sector authority for guidance when PERB’ s regulations expressly address the policy concerns underlying the practice and procedure of private-sector labor boards such as the National Labor Relations Board or Agricultural Labor Relations Board. Because PERB regulations, require that all representation elections affecting HEERA units “be conducted by secret ballot under the supervision of the Board,” and that the ballots for such elections also “shall be prepared under the supervision of the Board,” PERB refused to accept and count tie-breaking vote from employee who constructed his own homemade ballot after allegedly not receiving an official ballot.

PERB has generally construed its regulations governing representation matters narrowly and declined to look to private-sector authority for guidance when PERB’ s regulations expressly address the policy concerns underlying the practice and procedure of private-sector labor boards such as the National Labor Relations Board or Agricultural Labor Relations Board. Because PERB regulations require that all representation elections affecting HEERA units “be conducted by secret ballot under the supervision of the Board,” and that the ballots for such elections also “shall be prepared under the supervision of the Board,” PERB refused to accept and count tie-breaking vote from employee who constructed his own homemade ballot after allegedly not receiving an official ballot. (PERB Reg. 32722, subds. (a) and (b).

PERB has generally construed its regulations governing representation matters narrowly and declined to look to private-sector authority for guidance when PERB’ s regulations expressly address the policy concerns underlying the practice and procedure of private-sector labor boards such as the National Labor Relations Board or Agricultural Labor Relations Board. Because PERB regulations require that all representation elections affecting HEERA units “be conducted by secret ballot under the supervision of the Board,” and that the ballots for such elections also “shall be prepared under the supervision of the Board,” PERB refused to accept and count tie-breaking vote from employee who constructed his own homemade ballot after allegedly not receiving an official ballot. (PERB Reg. 32722, subds. (a) and (b).

PERB has generally construed its regulations governing representation matters narrowly and declined to look to private-sector authority for guidance when PERB’ s regulations expressly address the policy concerns underlying the practice and procedure of private-sector labor boards such as the National Labor Relations Board or Agricultural Labor Relations Board. Because PERB regulations require that all representation elections affecting HEERA units “be conducted by secret ballot under the supervision of the Board,” and that the ballots for such elections also “shall be prepared under the supervision of the Board,” PERB refused to accept and count tie-breaking vote from employee who constructed his own homemade ballot after allegedly not receiving an official ballot. (PERB Reg. 32722, subds. (a) and (b).