N.J. Admin. Code § 1:30-5.7

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 21, November 4, 2024

Section 1:30-5.7 - Negotiating a rule

(a) When an agency desires to negotiate the language of a rulemaking, the agency may voluntarily seek the assistance of the OAL in accordance with the following provisions. The procedure to negotiate a rule established in this section is separate and apart from any methods an agency may utilize to conduct a pre-proposal proceeding.

(b) An agency wishing to negotiate a notice of proposal shall submit a written request to the Division of Administrative Rules, together with a summary of the subject matter; the problem and purpose that the agency contemplates addressing; a list of the interests affected; and the suggested representatives (negotiating team) of these interests.

(c) Each agency and interest group shall have one representative.

(d) A negotiation team shall be composed of no more than 10 members, including the OAL representative.

(e) The Division of Administrative Rules shall review the request, contact the agency and representative(s) of interest groups, if needed, and then determine whether the subject matter is feasible to negotiate (that is, appropriate for non-adversarial fact-finding and consensus); the interests involved are clearly defined; representatives of the interests are sufficiently diverse; and that each representative is accountable to his or her interest group.

(f) Once the Division of Administrative Rules has determined that negotiations should commence, a notice of rule negotiation shall appear in the New Jersey Register. The notice shall identify the subject matter, interests, participants in the negotiation, and the OAL representative. Any interested party who is not heretofore represented on the negotiation team may file a petition for participation with the OAL representative.

(g) The petition for participation shall be in the form of a letter addressed to the OAL representative, which outlines the petitioner's interests, and why they are not represented by the current composition of the negotiating team. The petition shall be received by the OAL no later than 10 days after the notice of negotiation appears in the Register. The OAL representative will then determine within five business days of receipt of the petition whether to include the petitioner.

(h) The OAL representative shall convene the negotiation team within 20 days of notice of negotiation in the Register. The negotiation shall be completed within 10 days of commencement of same, unless all participants agree to continue.

(i) The OAL representative will provide all participants with a final version of a negotiated rule in the form required by 1:30-5.1 within 10 days of the completion of the negotiations.

(j) The agency shall either propose the rules negotiated or notify the OAL and all representatives that it rejects the negotiation within 30 days or such further period as agreed between the OAL Director and the head of the agency that had requested the negotiation.

(k) If, after 60 days from the commencement of the negotiation, no negotiated rule has been approved, the OAL representative may terminate the negotiation and disband the negotiating team. A notice of this action shall appear in the next available Register.

N.J. Admin. Code § 1:30-5.7

Amended by 50 N.J.R. 1433(a), effective 6/18/2018