Public Comment Period Begins for Periodic Review of Election Rules

The State Board of Elections invites members of the public to comment on the State Board’s initial determination that 38 existing administrative rules are necessary.

The comment period – which begins Monday, August 11 and ends on Friday, October 17, 2025 – is part of a required review every 10 years to determine whether each rule under review is necessary.

Under N.C.G.S. § 150B-21.3A, state agencies must review their rules every 10 years and decide if those rules are necessary or unnecessary. A rule is unnecessary if it is “obsolete, redundant, or otherwise not needed.” A necessary rule is any rule that does not fit the definition of an unnecessary rule.

Links to the text of each of the 38 election rules under review are available at Rulemaking on the State Board’s website.

Members of the public may comment on the State Board’s initial determination that the rules are necessary in any of the following ways through October 17, 2025:

After the public comment period, the agency will review the comments and prepare a brief response to each comment. The State Board will then take a final vote on whether the rules are necessary and submit a report to the Rules Review Commission (RRC).

Ultimately, the RRC will prepare a final report on the necessity of the rules and submit it to the Joint Legislative Administrative Procedure Oversight Committee. Any rules determined to be necessary will go through a readoption process. Rules may be amended as part of the readoption process. Rules determined to be unnecessary will be removed from the administrative code.