950 CMR 59.07 - Miscellaneous Provisions

(1) Preamble. Adjudicatory rules of practice and procedure of the State Ballot Law Commission are applicable to all proceedings held under M.G.L. c. 55B and 950 CMR 59.00.

(2) Amendment. 950 CMR 59.00 may be amended at any time, but unless provided otherwise, the amendment shall not affect any pending proceeding.

(a) Any interested person may petition the Commission requesting the adoption, amendment, or repeal of any regulation, under M.G.L. c. 30A, § 4.

(b) This petition shall be filed with the Secretary and shall be considered by the Commission at its next meeting.

(c) All amendments shall be effective as of the date of publication thereof unless otherwise specifically provided.

(3) Ex-parte Communications. No party or other person directly or indirectly involved in an adjudicatory proceeding shall submit to the presiding officer or a Commissioner involved in the decision-making process, any evidence, argument, analysis or advice, whether written or oral, regarding any matter at issue in a adjudicatory proceeding, unless such submission is part of the record or made in the presence of all Parties. 950 CMR 59.07(3) does not apply to consultation among Commission members concerning the Commission's internal administrative functions or procedures.

(4) Records. The Secretary shall keep records of all decisions.

(a) All records of the Commission shall be open to the public.

(b) For this purpose, "records" does not include material excluded from the definition of "public records" under M.G.L. c. 4, § 7(26).

(5) Notice. Except in an emergency, notice of all meetings of the Commission, including hearings, shall be given to the public, as required by M.G.L. c. 30A, § 20. The notice shall contain the date, time, and place of the meeting and, if possible, an outline of its agenda.

(6) Open Meetings. All meetings of the Commission, including hearings, shall be open to the public, except that any deliberation regarding a decision in adjudicatory proceeding shall not be required to be open to the public.

Notes

950 CMR 59.07

Adopted by Mass Register Issue 1315, eff. 6/17/2016.