N.J. Admin. Code § 10A:1-1.2

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

Section 10A:1-1.2 - Procedure to petition for rulemaking

(a) Pursuant to 52:14B-4(f), an interested person may petition for the promulgation of a new rule, or amendment or repeal of any existing rule of the Department of Corrections. A petition shall:

1. Be in writing;

2. Be legible and intelligible; and

3. Be signed by the petitioner.

(b) Each petition shall contain the following information:

1. The full name and address of the petitioner;

2. Citation of the rule for which the petition is made, using N.J.A.C. references, where applicable;

3. A clear and concise statement summarizing the substance of the rule sought or change to be suggested that may include the text of the suggested new rule or amended rule;

4. A specific statement explaining why the suggestion is being offered and summary of reasons therefor; and

5. A citation of statutory authority under which the Department of Correction is authorized to act.

(c) The petition shall be sent to the Supervisor, Administrative Rules Unit, Office of the Commissioner, Department of Corrections, Cubberly Building, PO Box 863, Trenton, New Jersey 08625-0863.

(d) A document submitted as a petition for rulemaking shall be reviewed by the Commissioner or designee. The document shall be deemed to be a petition for rulemaking based upon, but not limited to, substantial compliance with (a) through (c) above and the following guidelines, as applicable to the suggested new rule, amended rule or repealed rule (see definition of an "administrative rule" at 52:14B-2(e) ) :

1. The Department has the legal authority to promulgate the suggested rule;

2. The suggested rule has general Departmental application to all similarly situated persons or is intended to have wide, uniform coverage that encompasses a large segment of the regulated population (rather than to a particular circumstance related to a specific occurrence or incident, or to a personal situation, case or litigation proceeding);

3. The suggested rule has continuing effect and applies to future cases only;

4. The suggested rule implements or interprets a law or a general Departmental policy, or describes the function, procedure or practice requirements of a law or a general Departmental policy (rather than applying to an internal management procedure);

5. The suggested rule falls within the purview of the Department of Corrections and does not relate to an intra-agency or inter-agency statement or issue; or

6. The suggested rule falls outside the scope of an inmate's issue, concern, complaint or problem, which is related to a condition of confinement in or an internal management procedure of a correctional facility or unit that must be processed pursuant to N.J.A.C. 10A:1-4, Inmate Remedy System.

(e) When the Commissioner or designee deems the document submitted to be a petition for rulemaking that substantially complies with the provisions of this section, the Department of Corrections shall file for publication with the Office of Administrative Law a notice of receipt of petition for rulemaking in the New Jersey Register pursuant to 1:30-4.1(c). A document submitted as a petition for rulemaking that does not substantially comply with the provisions of this section shall not be deemed a petition that requires further agency action.

(f) No later than 60 calendar days following receipt of an accepted petition, the Department of Corrections shall mail to the petitioner and file for publication in the New Jersey Register, a notice of action on the petition that shall contain the information described by (b) above. The notice of action shall include either:

1. A statement denying the petition and including a written statement of the reason(s);

2. A notice granting the petition and including a statement that the Department shall initiate a rulemaking proceeding within 90 calendar days of granting the petition; or

3. A statement that the matter is being referred for further deliberations, the nature of which shall be specified and which shall be concluded within 90 calendar days of referring the matter for further deliberations.

(g) Upon conclusion of further deliberations, as established in (f)3 above, the Department shall mail to the petitioner and file for publication in the New Jersey Register another notice of action on the petition, which shall either deny the petition and include a statement of the reason(s), or grant the petition and include a statement that the Department shall initiate rulemaking proceedings within 90 calendar days of granting the petition.

N.J. Admin. Code § 10A:1-1.2

Amended by R.1992 d.269, effective 7/6/1992.
See: 24 N.J.R. 1465(a), 24 N.J.R. 2451(c).
Revised (c)-(d).
Administrative Correction in (d) and (e).
See: 24 N.J.R. 4390(a).
Administrative Change.
See: 25 N.J.R. 4105(a).
Amended by R.2001 d.220, effective 7/2/2001.
See: 33 N.J.R. 1288(a), 33 N.J.R. 2290(a).
Rewrote (c); in (d), inserted ", or designee," preceding "accepts the petition", substituted references to (a), (b) and (c) for references to (a) and (b), and amended the N.J.A.C. reference; rewrote (e); added (f).
Administrative change.
See: 36 N.J.R. 1779(a).
Amended by R.2008 d.190, effective 7/21/2008.
See: 40 N.J.R. 1736(b), 40 N.J.R. 4323(a).
In the introductory paragraph of (a), substituted "Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 52:14B-4(f), an" for "An", deleted "apply to" following "person may" and inserted "of a new rule, or" and "existing"; in (b)2, substituted "petition" for "proposal"; in (b)3, inserted "that may include the text of the suggested new rule or amended rule"; added new (d); recodified former (d) through (f) as (e) through (g); rewrote (e); in the introductory paragraph of (f), inserted "calendar" and a comma following "Register", and substituted "that" for "which"; in (f)2 and (f)3, inserted "calendar"; and in (g), substituted "(f)3" for "(e)3" and "reason(s)" for "reasons(s)", inserted a comma following the first occurrence of "petition" and inserted "calendar".
Amended by R.2011 d.022, effective 1/18/2011.
See: 42 N.J.R. 2194(a), 43 N.J.R. 188(a).
In (d)2, inserted "to all similarly situated persons"; in (d)3, substituted "to future cases" for "prospectively"; in (d)5, substituted "intra-agency" for "intraagency", "inter-agency" for "interagency", and "; or" for a period at the end; and added (d)6.