1.3.312    RULEMAKING, AGENCY ACTION

(1) Thirty days after publication of the proposal notice and following receipt of the presiding officer's report, the rulemaker may adopt, amend, or repeal rules covered by the notice of intended action.

(2) Upon adoption, amendment, or repeal of a rule, the agency shall file notice of its rulemaking action with the Secretary of State, per 2-4-306, MCA.

(a) As illustrated by templates 312a, 312b, and 312c (https://sosmt.gov/arm/templates), the adoption notice must include:

(i) the text of the rule adopted or amended, or reference to the notice of proposed agency action in which the text of the proposed rule or rule as proposed to be amended was printed in full;

(ii) if the rule adopts a model code, rule, or other publication by reference, a citation to the material adopted, its year, a statement of its general subject matter, and where a copy of the material may be obtained. The material adopted by reference need not be published if publication would be unduly cumbersome, expensive, or otherwise inexpedient. Upon request of the Secretary of State, a copy of the omitted material must be filed with the Secretary of State, per 2-4-307(2), MCA;

(iii) a statement of the principal reasons presented by interested persons for and against the adoption, amendment, or repeal of a rule. The statement also must include the agency's reasons for overruling any considerations urged against the agency action. If substantial differences exist between the rule as proposed and as adopted, and the differences have not been described or set forth in the adopted rule, the differences must be described in the statement of reasons for and against the agency action. The statement may be omitted if no written or oral submissions were presented, per 2-4-305(1), MCA. See Patterson v. Montana Department of Revenue, 557 P.2d 798 (1976);

(iv) an accompanying Administrative Order. See ARM 1.2.404 and template 312g (https://sosmt.gov/arm/templates).

(3) Objection by an administrative rule review committee made pursuant to 2-4-305(9), 2-4-306(4), or 2-4-406(1), MCA.

(a) If the appropriate administrative rule review committee objects to a proposed notice of adoption, the proposed rules cannot be adopted until either:

(i) notification of withdrawal of the objection; or

(ii) publication of the last issue of the register before expiration of the six-month period during which the adoption notice must be published.

(b) If the agency adopts the rule to which the appropriate administrative rule review committee objects, the adopted rule cannot become effective until either:

(i) withdrawal of the objection;

(ii) amendment of the rule to meet the concerns of the committee; or

(iii) the day after final adjournment of the regular session of the Legislature that begins after the notice proposing the rule was published.

(4) Absent an objection of the type referred to in (3) by an administrative rule review committee, the agency action is effective on the day following publication of the notice in the register, unless a later date is required by statute or specified in the notice.

(5) If an agency decides not to adopt, amend, or repeal the rules covered by the notice of intended action, the agency can publish a notice of agency decision stating why the action will not be finalized at that time, and whether the agency intends to repropose the changes in a subsequent rulemaking cycle. See template 312d (https://sosmt.gov/arm/templates).

(6)  An agency may not adopt, amend, or repeal rules from October 1 to December 31 in the year that precedes the year in which the legislature meets in regular session, except as provided in 2-4-305, MCA.

(7) Notice of agency action must be published within six months of the date on which notice of the proposed action was published, per 2-4-305(7), MCA.

 

History: 2-4-202, MCA; IMP, 2-4-202, 2-4-305, 2-4-307, MCA; Eff. 12/31/72; AMD, 1977 MAR p. 1192, Eff. 12/24/77; AMD, 1979 MAR p. 1223, Eff. 10/12/79; AMD, 1981 MAR p. 1196, Eff. 10/16/81; AMD, 1992 MAR p. 1242, Eff. 6/12/92; AMD, 1999 MAR p. 1225, Eff. 6/4/99; AMD & TRANS, from ARM 1.3.208, 2008 MAR p. 1593, Eff. 8/1/08; AMD, 2021 MAR p. 1687, Eff. 11/20/21.