Rulemaking

Under Powers and duties of State Board of Elections (N.C.G.S. § 163-22), the State Board of Elections has general supervision over the primaries and elections in North Carolina. It also may make rules regarding elections and campaign finance provided they do not contradict the law. When rules are proposed, a public comment period and a public hearing about the rule takes place.

The Rules Review Commission reviews rules that the State Board adopts for compliance with the requirements in the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 150B of the N.C. General Statutes). For more about the Rules Review Commission, including a list of date of their upcoming meetings, visit N.C. Office of Administrative Hearings (NCOAH).

Two ways to be added to the list of interested parties for rule-making conducted by the State Board of Elections:

  1. Email: legal@ncsbe.gov
  2. Mail: P.O. Box 27255, Raleigh, NC 27611-7255

Rules in Progress

Click the links below to navigate the proposed rules and related comment periods detailed on this page.

List Maintenance Rules

The State Board of Elections invites the public to comment on several proposed permanent rules related to voter roll list maintenance on the basis of non-citizenship. These rules would be in a new chapter of Title 8 of the Administrative Code. The following rules are included in this public comment period:

The public comment period will run from January 15, 2026, through March 16, 2026. The public hearing will be at the State Board’s office in the hearing room on February 2, 2026, at 10 a.m.

Members of the public may comment in any of the following ways through Mar. 16, 2026:

Once the comment period closes and prior to adopting the rules, the State Board will review any public comments received in connection with the proposed rules and consider making revisions to the proposed rules in response to those comments. Once the rules are adopted, they will be submitted to the Rules Review Commission.

Periodic Review of Existing Rules

Under N.C.G.S. § 150B-21.3A, state agencies must review their rules every 10 years and decide if those rules are necessary. An “unnecessary rule” is defined as “a rule that the agency determines to be obsolete, redundant, or otherwise not needed.” N.C.G.S. § 150B-21.3A(a)(6). A “necessary rule” is “any rule other than an unnecessary rule.” N.C.G.S. § 150B-21.3A(a)(2a).

The State Board has 38 rules that were subject to periodic review in 2025, and the agency has determined that each of the rules is necessary. The State Board’s rules subject to periodic review in 2025 are in Chapters 01, 02, 03, 04, 05, 06, 09, and 10 of Title 08 of the Administrative Code. Rules in these chapters that were adopted after Jan. 1, 2024, and not in the Administrative Code by that date, are not part of this review.

The public comment period on the State Board’s initial determinations for these rules has closed and the State Board’s final determinations have been filed with and approved by the Rules Review Commission. For more information about the periodic review process, please visit the Rules Review Commission's website at FAQs.

Procedure for Subjecting a Proposed Rule to Legislative Review

If an objection is not resolved prior to the adoption of the rule, a person may also submit written objections to the Rules Review Commission after the adoption of the Rule. If the Rules Review Commission receives written and signed objections after the adoption of the Rule in accordance with Effective date of rules (N.C.G.S. § 150B-21.3(b2)) from 10 or more persons clearly requesting review by the legislature and the Rules Review Commission approves the rule, the rule will become effective as provided in (b1). The Commission will receive written objections until 5 p.m. on the day following the day the Commission approves the rule. The Commission will receive those objections by mail, delivery service, hand delivery, or facsimile transmission. If you have any further questions concerning the submission of objections to the Commission, please call a Commission staff attorney at (984) 236-1850.

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