Office of Legislative and Regulatory Affairs (OLRA)

The Office of Legislative and Regulatory Affairs (OLRA) coordinates the legislative and rulemaking activities of DIR’s divisions, boards and programs and communicates on emerging issues with the Governor’s Office, the Labor and Workforce Development Agency, other government agencies, workers, employers and community stakeholders.

Programs and Initiatives

Legislative Affairs

OLRA serves as the primary liaison between DIR and the California Legislature and handles all legislative inquiries. The legislative team assists DIR’s divisions, boards and programs in analyzing proposed legislation that would affect workers and advises DIR’s director on potential impacts. The team works with DIR’s Budget Office to estimate the fiscal impacts of bill proposals and to develop budget change proposals as well as budget trailer bills. OLRA also helps implement newly enacted legislation and coordinates the production and public posting of statutorily mandated reports. To inform its activities, the office routinely engages with legislators and stakeholders.

Regulatory Affairs

OLRA coordinates rulemaking, which includes developing and amending regulations to implement legislative mandates. The regulations team facilitates communication among the divisions and boards that draft proposed regulations, the department’s Budget Office that analyzes their potential fiscal and economic impacts and the Labor and Workforce Development Agency that oversees the process. The team ensures that stakeholders are heard by subject-matter experts and that the rulemaking requirements of the Department of Finance and Office of Administrative Law are met. Finally, OLRA serves as a resource for the director, providing information on the content, context and current status of DIR’s rulemaking packages.

Contact Information

Leginquiry@dir.ca.gov

August 2023