# Montgomery County Code — Part II. Local Laws, Ordinances, Resolutions, Etc.

## Chapter 2A. Administrative Procedures Act.

### Article III. Administrative Forms.

**Sec. 2A-22. Use of approved administrative forms required.**

  (a)   All executive departments and offices must use or distribute to the public only administrative forms that are approved under this article and are listed on a register of approved forms.

  (b)   However, until January 1, 1988, departments and offices may continue to use and distribute administrative forms that have not been approved under this article, if the forms were in use before January 1, 1987.

  (c)   In this article, "administrative form" or "form" means a standardized document created by the County government for systematically and repetitively collecting, maintaining or transmitting information.

**Sec. 2A-23. Central forms authority.**

  (a)   The County Executive must designate a central forms authority to oversee a comprehensive forms control program for County government.

  (b)   The central forms authority must:

    (1)   Develop a standard system for identifying forms;

    (2)   Help each department or office to develop a proposed forms control plan and to coordinate the proposed plan with other plans;

    (3)   Review each proposed plan;

    (4)   Approve each proposed plan that meets the requirements of section 2A-25; and

    (5)   Monitor and help administer each forms control plan to ensure compliance.

**Sec. 2A-24. Forms control officers.**

  (a)   The head of each executive department or office must appoint, from among existing staff, a forms control officer for the department or office.

  (b)   Each forms control officer must:

    (1)   Maintain and administer a current plan for managing forms used by the department or office; and

    (2)   Submit this forms control plan, including each revision, for approval by the central forms authority.

**Sec. 2A-25. Forms control plans.**

  (a)   Each forms control officer will approve a form for use by the department or office only if that form:

    (1)   Requests information that is necessary or relevant for effective, efficient and lawful operations;

    (2)   Is clearly and plainly written in language consistent with guidelines of the plain language drafting manual approved by the County Council;

    (3)   Arranges questions in a logical order, provides adequate space for typical answers, and is as brief as possible;

    (4)   Does not duplicate unnecessarily another form used by the department or other agency of County government;

    (5)   Does not ask unnecessarily for information already known by the County government; and

    (6)   Can be retrieved from or transferred to an electronic storage medium, unless the central forms authority has waived this requirement for that form.

  (b)   Each forms control plan must:

    (1)   Require a register of forms approved by the forms control officer;

    (2)   Require identification of each form under a standard identification system administered by the central forms authority;

    (3)   Provide for preparing, reproducing, and using forms in the most economical way possible;

    (4)   Require the forms control officer to review each form within three (3) years after its initial approval and reapprove the form or remove it from the register.

**Sec. 2A-26. Annual reports required.**

  (a)   Each forms control officer must submit to the central forms authority an annual report on forms control activities during the previous fiscal year.

  (b)   By September 1 of each year, the central forms authority must submit to the chief administrative officer an annual report that consolidates and analyzes the reports of the forms control officers. That report must list:

    (1)   Each form extended under section 2A-26(c)(3);

    (2)   Each waiver granted under section 2A-25(a)(6);

    (3)   Each exemption granted under section 2A-26(c)(4); and the reason for each extension, waiver or exemption.

  (c)   If necessary to ensure timely compliance with this article, the central forms authority may:

    (1)   Identify forms that are used or distributed in high volumes;

    (2)   Assign priority to evaluating and rewriting those forms to meet these requirements;

    (3)   Extend the period in which other specified forms must comply with this article; and

    (4)   Exempt a form from the requirements of this article if that form is used or distributed in low volumes.

**Sec. 2A-27. Forms for other agencies.**

  The County Executive should assist other public agencies under the budgetary authority of the County to develop similar systems of forms control in order to:

    (1)   Maximize use of identification information;

    (2)   Minimize duplication of other required information; and

    (3)   Ensure compatibility of electronic functions and equipment.

**Sec. 2A-28. Administrative procedures.**

  The County Executive should adopt administrative procedures to implement this article.

**Sec. 2A-29. Legal effect.**

  The use of a form that does not conform to this article or that has not been approved under this article does not invalidate any action to enforce any law when that action involves information on such a form.