a) Notice of
proposed rulemaking.
Rulemaking shall be initiated by the issuance of a notice of
proposed rulemaking and interested persons will be invited to participate in
the rulemaking proceedings with respect to each substantive rule.
b) Contents of notices.
Each notice of proposed rulemaking is published in the
Illinois Register pursuant to the provision of Section 5-40 of the Illinois
Administrative Procedure Act.
c) Petitions for extension of time to
comment.
1) Any person may petition the
Secretary for an extension of time to submit comments in response to a notice
of proposed rulemaking. The petition must be submitted not later than 14 days
after publication of the notice in the Illinois Register. The filing of the
petition does not automatically extend the time for petitioner's
comments.
2) The Secretary grants
the petition only if the petitioner shows a substantive interest in the
proposed rule and good cause for the extension, and if the extension is in the
public interest. If an extension is granted, it is granted to all persons and
is published in the Illinois Register.
d) Contents of written comments.
When the Secretary specifies in the notice that written
comments will be received, it is requested, but not required, that three copies
of the comments be submitted. Persons submitting written comments should submit
along with the written comments, any material that the person believes supports
the comments.
e) Nature of
oral comments; Informal hearings.
1) The
Secretary may specify in the notice that an informal hearing be held for the
purpose of receiving oral comments on the proposed rulemaking. The notice shall
state the time and place for informal hearing and the Department representative
who can be contacted for future information. It is requested that interested
persons, whenever possible, notify the Department representative of their
desire to give oral comment within 14 days of publication of the
notice.
2) Informal hearings on
proposed rulemaking shall be presided over by officials designated by the
Secretary. An accurate and complete transcript of the proceeding shall be kept
as a record of the oral comments.
3) Unless otherwise specified, hearings held
under this Section are informal, nonadversary, fact-finding proceedings, at
which there are no formal pleadings or adverse parties. Any regulation issued
in a case in which an informal hearing is held will not necessarily be based
exclusively on the record of the hearing.
f) Petitions for hearing.
1) If a notice of proposed rulemaking does
not provide for a hearing, any interested person may petition the Secretary for
an informal hearing. The petitions must be received by the Secretary within 14
days of the publication of the notice. The filing of the petition does not
automatically result in the scheduling of a hearing. A petition is granted only
if the petitioner shows good cause for a hearing. If a petition for a hearing
is granted, notice of the hearing is published in the Illinois
Register.
2) All informal hearings
held pursuant to this Section shall be subject to all the provisions for
informal hearings set out in Section
1225.130(e).
g) Consideration of comments
received.
All timely comments are considered before final action is
taken on a rulemaking proposal. Late filed comments may be considered so far as
possible without incurring additional expense or delay.
h) Additional rulemaking proceedings.
The Secretary may initiate any further rulemaking proceedings
that he finds necessary or desirable. For example, he may invite interested
persons to present oral arguments, participate in conferences, appear at
informal hearings, or participate in any other proceeding.
i) Adoption of final rules.
Final rules are prepared by representatives of the offices
concerned and the Office of Chief Counsel. The rule is then submitted to the
Secretary for his consideration. If the Secretary adopts the rule, it is
published in the Illinois Register.
