The North Carolina ABC Commission held its regular meeting on July 10, 2024, which included the agenda item “Mandatory Rules Review Pursuant to N.C.G.S. §150B-21.3A – Initial Determination of 14B NCAC 15A.”

Commission Assistant General Counsel Renee Metz spoke on this subject. She said the North Carolina General Assembly, pursuant to N.C.G.S. 150B-21.3A, requires every state agency to conduct a periodic review of that agency’s rules every 10 years to determine whether those rules are still necessary, or if any of the rules have been superseded by law or otherwise mooted.

The Rules Review Commission oversees this process for agencies and determines a review schedule. The Rules Review Commission instructed the Commission to review Chapter 15, Subchapter A of the Commission’s regulations this year, as part of this periodic review process. Ms. Metz stated the Commission’s legal staff reviewed these rules and determined most of the rules in Subchapter A to be necessary, with the exception of purchase transportation permits, which are now obsolete. A copy of the Commission’s determination is linked below.

Ms. Metz asked the Commission to ratify the decision of legal staff that the rules in Subchapter A are necessary, and she asked the Commission to vote to begin the next step in the rules review process, which is the public comment process on the necessity of these rules. The Commission voted to ratify this decision and begin the public comment process.

The next step is for the Commission to conduct a 60-day public comment period on the necessity of these rules, which will take place from July 19 to September 17, 2024. The Commission will accept comments over this time period on the necessity of these rules. The Commission will review any public comments received at a future Commission meeting and make a final determination on the necessity of these rules, so the Commission can report its findings to the Rules Review Commission in compliance with state law. 

A link to the Commission comment submission form can be found here. And an overview of the rules review process can be found here.