Special to IFN
RALEIGH — The State Board of Elections invites the public to comment on proposed administrative rules related to the petition process for new political parties and certain candidates, as well as the campaign finance disclosure process in North Carolina. The public comment period for both sets of proposed rules is now open and closes on May 16.

Proposed Petition Rules

State law provides minimal guidelines for conducting petitions. The State Board has proposed rules for petitions that are designed to ensure consistency and transparency in the process for petitioners conducting petition drives and election officials tasked with reviewing and certifying petitions.

Read the full text PDF of the proposed petition rules. The rules comprise a new Chapter 22 of Title 8 in the administrative code for State Board rules, and have been divided into sections based on subject matter:

Comment on Proposed Petition Rules

Members of the public may comment on the proposed petition rules in any of the following ways through May 16.

  • Online: Public Comment Portal: Petition Rules
  • Email: rulemaking.sboe@ncsbe.gov
  • Mail: Attn: Rulemaking Coordinator, P.O. Box 27255, Raleigh, NC 27611-7255
  • Public Hearing: An in-person public hearing on the proposed rules will be held at 10 a.m. April 14, 2025, in the State Board of Elections Office, Third Floor, Dobbs Building, 430 N. Salisbury St., Raleigh, NC 27603.

Proposed Campaign Finance Rules and Amendments

The State Board proposes the following rule amendments and rules related to campaign finance disclosure.

Proposed rule amendments:

  • The proposed amendment to Reporting of Independent Expenditures (08 NCAC 21 .0102) (PDF) and the proposed amendment to Electronic Filing (08 NCAC 21 .0106) (PDF) facilitate the filing of electronic disclosure reports by clarifying the email address that electronically signed report covers should be sent to and by clarifying that there is no requirement to file a copy of the report with the county board of elections when a data file and electronically signed disclosure report cover is filed with the State Board.

Proposed rules:

  • Proposed rule Reporting Periods (08 NCAC 21 .0108) (PDF) requires that a committee treasurer not sign or file a disclosure report cover until the calendar day after the statutorily prescribed period end date.
  • Proposed rule Inactive Status for a Candidate or Committee (08 NCAC 21 .0204) (PDF) implements G.S. § 163-278.10 and establishes that, to obtain inactive status, the treasurer must file a disclosure report that shows no contributions or expenditures during the reporting period and a certification regarding the inactive status. The proposed rule also describes what actions must be taken after committee activity resumes accepting contributions and making expenditures.

Read the full text PDF of the proposed campaign finance rules and amendments.

Comment on the Proposed Campaign Finance Rules

Members of the public may comment on the campaign finance rules in any of the following ways through May 16.

  • Online: Public Comment Portal: Campaign Finance Rules
  • Email: rulemaking.sboe@ncsbe.gov
  • Mail: Attn: Rulemaking Coordinator, P.O. Box 27255, Raleigh, NC 27611-7255
  • Public Hearing: An in-person public hearing on the proposed rules will be held at 10 a.m. April 14, 2025, in the State Board of Elections Office, Third Floor, Dobbs Building, 430 N. Salisbury St., Raleigh, NC 27603.

Comments on all rules will be compiled and provided to the State Board before its final consideration of the rules, which will take place at a public meeting after the end of the comment period. The Rules Review Commission would then consider the proposed rules for final adoption.

LEARN MORE

For more information about the rulemaking process, please visit Rulemaking.

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