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.

Rules Currently Accepting Public Comment

Exempt Sales Plan Rule

The State Board of Elections invites the public to comment on a proposed rule that outlines what must be included in an exempt sales plan sought by a political party committee, as well as the deadline for submission to the State Board for approval.

Read the Notice of Text.

The following proposed rule is included in this public comment period: 

  • Proposed rule 08 NCAC 21 .0605 would require a political party committee seeking approval of an exempt sales plan pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 163-278.8A to fill out a form with information about the plan and return it to the State Board at least 15 business days before the proposed start date of the sales.  

How to Comment

Members of the public may comment on the proposed Exempt Sales Plan rule in any of the following ways from September 15, 2026, through November 16, 2026.

Once the comment period closes and prior to taking final action on the rules, the State Board will review public comments and consider revisions to the proposed rules in response to those comments. After rules are adopted, they are then submitted to the Rules Review Commission for final approval before they become effective.

 

Rules Being Considered for Adoption After Public Comment

Campaign Finance Complaints and Investigations Rules

The State Board of Elections soon will consider a series of proposed rules directing the process to be followed when the State Board receives a signed and sworn campaign finance complaint from a registered voter. Under N.C.G.S. § 163-278.22(7), it is the duty and power of the State Board to investigate potential violations of Article 22A and Article 22M of Chapter 163 of the General Statutes.

The proposed rules are ultimately intended to replace the Campaign Finance Complaint Policy adopted by the State Board in 2019. Read the Notice of Text.

See the proposed rules below:

How to Comment

The public comment period – held from July 1, 2026, through Aug. 31, 2026 – is now closed. A public hearing was held at 10 a.m. August 3. Download the recording of the hearing, or read the public comments.

Prior to taking final action on the rules, the State Board will review public comments and consider revisions to the proposed rules in response to those comments. After rules are adopted, they are then submitted to the Rules Review Commission for final approval before they become effective.

Building Fund Rules

The State Board of Elections soon will consider a series of proposed rules to outline the reporting requirements for building funds. N.C.G.S. § 163-278.19B permits a political party executive committee or affiliated party committee to establish and operate a headquarters building fund. The proposed rules require a building fund to register as a separate political committee for reporting purposes and for the contents of reports to follow N.C.G.S. § 163-278.11. Read the Notice of Text. 

See the proposed rules below:

How to Comment

The public comment period – held from July 1, 2026, through Aug. 31, 2026 – is now closed. A public hearing was held at 10 a.m. August 3. Download the recording of the hearing or read the public comments

Prior to taking final action on the rules, the State Board will review public comments and consider revisions to the proposed rules in response to those comments. After rules are adopted, they are then submitted to the Rules Review Commission for final approval before they become effective.

Threshold Rule Amendment

The State Board of Elections soon will consider a proposed amendment to a rule regarding when a committee must file a new certification of threshold if the committee intends to stay under the threshold for a subsequent election cycle. 

Pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 163-278.10A, candidate committees for county office, municipal office, local school board, and soil and water conservation district, as well political party committees, may be exempt from filing campaign finance disclosure reports if the committee determines that it does not intend to receive in contributions or in loans or spend more than $1,000 during the election cycle. Read the Notice of Text.

See the proposed rule amendment below:

08 NCAC 21 .0203 Certification of Threshold would change the deadline for filing a certification from January 31 to March 31.

How to Comment

The public comment period – held from July 1, 2026, through Aug. 31, 2026 – is now closed. A public hearing was held at 10 a.m. August 3. Download the recording of the hearing., or read the public comments.

Prior to taking final action on the rules, the State Board will review public comments and consider revisions to the proposed rules in response to those comments. After rules are adopted, they are then submitted to the Rules Review Commission for final approval before they become effective.

Waiver Rule Amendment

The State Board of Elections soon will consider a proposed amendment to a rule regarding waivers of civil penalties for late campaign finance disclosure reports. Late reports may be waived in whole or in part for good cause. See N.C.G.S. § 163-278.34(d). Read the Notice of Text.

See the proposed rule amendment below:

  • The amendment to 08 NCAC 21 .0206 Requesting a Waiver of a Civil Late Penalty delegates authority to State Board of Elections staff to grant a good cause waiver of a civil penalty assessment issued under G.S. 163-278.34(a) if a condition described in the rule is met. The proposed rule amendment further clarifies that all remaining waiver requests shall be presented to the State Board for a final determination.

How to Comment

The public comment period – held from July 1, 2026, through Aug. 31, 2026 – is now closed. A public hearing was held at 10 a.m. August 3. Download the recording of the hearing, or read the public comments.

Prior to taking final action on the rules, the State Board will review public comments and consider revisions to the proposed rules in response to those comments. After rules are adopted, they are then submitted to the Rules Review Commission for final approval before they become effective.

 

Approved Rules Subject to Legislative Review

The rules listed below have been adopted by the State Board and approved by the Rules Review Commission, but the rules are not yet effective because they are subject to the legislative review process in N.C.G.S. 150B-21.3. Once the rules become effective, they will be added to Title 08 of the Administrative Code.

List Maintenance Rules

The State Board of Elections has adopted a series of 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 adopted rules were approved by the Rules Review Commission at its meeting on May 28, 2026. Read the final rules that were approved by the Rules Review Commission. 

The public comment period for these rules is closed. It ran from January 15, 2026, through March 16, 2026. The in-person public comment hearing was held on March 9, 2026, at the State Board's office. Access the recording of the public hearing and the written comments.

Absentee Voting Rules

The State Board of Elections, at its meeting on July 20, 2026, adopted several proposed rules to govern how county boards of elections should proceed when a deficiency with a returned absentee ballot is identified by county board staff. These new rules will provide appropriate safeguards in the implementation of state laws regarding the completion of absentee applications and submission of absentee ballots. The adopted rules were approved by the Rules Review Commission at its meeting on August 27, 2026. Read the final rules that were approved by the Rules Review Commission.

The public comment period for these rules is closed. It ran from May 15, 2026, through July 16, 2026. The in-person public comment hearings were held on June 22, 2026, and July 16, 2026, at the State Board office. Access the recordings of the public hearings and the written comments.

Photo ID Rules

The State Board of Elections, at its meeting on July 16, 2026, adopted proposed amendments to rules pertaining to the photo identification requirement for in-person and absentee voting. The rules will make technical changes to the language of the rules and refinements to the processes involved. The Rules Review Commission approved the rules at its meeting on August 27, 2026. Read the final rules that were approved by the Rules Review Commission.

The public comment period for these rules is closed. It ran from May 15, 2026, through July 14, 2026. The in-person public comment hearing was held on June 9, 2026, at the State Board's office. Access the recording of the public hearing and the written comments.

Recount Rules

The State Board of Elections, at its meeting on July 16, 2026, adopted amendments to three existing rules guiding the conduct of recounts following an election.  The amendments were proposed to refine processes involved in conducting discretionary and mandatory recounts. The Rules Review Commission approved the rules at its meeting on August 27, 2026. Read the final rules that were approved by the Rules Review Commission.

The public comment period for these rules is closed. It ran from May 15, 2026, through July 14, 2026. The in-person public comment hearing was held on June 8, 2026, at the State Board's office.  Access the recording of the public hearing and the written comments.

Voting Site Rules

The State Board of Elections, at its meeting on July 16, 2026, adopted a series of new rules being proposed to guide how county boards of elections establish buffer zones, electioneering zones, and curbside voting areas, and how elections officials maintain peace and good order at voting sites. The Rules Review Commission approved the rules at its meeting on August 27, 2026. Read the final rules that were approved by the Rules Review Commission.

The public comment period for these rules is closed. It ran from May 15, 2026, through July 14, 2026. The in-person public comment hearing was held on June 29, 2026, at the State Board's office. Access the recording of the public hearing and the written comments.

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 “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 reviewed each of the 29 rules that are subject to periodic review in 2026. On September 17, 2026, the Board made an initial determination that each of these rules is necessary. The rules subject to periodic review this year are in Chapters 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, and 21 of Title 08 of the Administrative Code. Currently, the Board is receiving public comments on the initial determinations before a final determination will be made later this year. The RRC will review the Board’s final determinations for these rules at its February 2027 meeting.

Links to read each rule, by chapter, are provided below, and the State Board’s initial determinations are listed with each rule. An Excel spreadsheet file that serves as the report of the initial determinations to the Office of Administrative Hearings can be viewed at each “Rule Report” link below.

In 2025, the State Board found 38 rules to be necessary.  Those rules will go through a readoption process over the next few years. For more information about the periodic review process, please visit the Rules Review Commission's website at FAQs. 

08 NCAC 15 - RULE-MAKING

Rule Report for 08 NCAC 15: Rule-Making

  • 08 NCAC 15 .0101 - INSTRUCTIONS FOR FILING A PETITION FOR RULE-MAKING: Necessary 
  • 08 NCAC 15 .0102 - DECLARATORY RULINGS: AVAILABILITY: Necessary  

08 NCAC 16 – MULITPARTISAN ASSISTANCE TEAMS 

Rule Report for 08 NCAC 16: Multipartisan Assistance Teams

  • 08 NCAC 16 .0101 - MULTIPARTISAN ASSISTANCE TEAMS: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 16 .0102 - TEAM MEMBERS: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 16 .0103 - TRAINING AND CERTIFICATION OF TEAM MEMBERS: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 16 .0104 - VISITS BY MULTIPARTISAN ASSISTANCE TEAMS: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 16 .0105 - REMOVAL OF TEAM MEMBERS: Necessary  

08 NCAC 17 - PHOTO IDENTIFICATION 

Rule Report for 08 NCAC 17: Photo Identification 

  • 08 NCAC 17 .0101 - VERIFICATION OF PHOTO IDENTIFICATION DURING IN-PERSON VOTING: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 17 .0104 - OPPORTUNITY TO UPDATE NAME OR ADDRESS AFTER REASONABLE RESEMBLANCE IS DETERMINED: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 17 .0109 - PHOTO IDENTIFICATION FOR ABSENTEE-BY-MAIL BALLOTS: Necessary  

08 NCAC 18 - ABSENTEE BALLOTS

Rule Report for 08 NCAC 18: Absentee Ballots

  • 08 NCAC 18 .0101 - ABSENTEE BALLOT DELIVERY: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 18 .0102 - IN-PERSON RETURN OF ABSENTEE BALLOTS: Necessary  

08 NCAC 20 - ELECTION OBSERVERS

Rule Report for 08 NCAC 20: Election Observers

  • 08 NCAC 20 .0101 - ELECTION OBSERVERS: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 20 .0102 - APPEAL OF REMOVAL OF AN OBSERVER FROM A VOTING SITE: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 20 .0103 - IDENTIFICATION OF OBSERVERS: Necessary   

08 NCAC 21 – DEPARTMENTAL RULES

Rule Report for 08 NCAC 21: Departmental Rules 

  • 08 NCAC 21 .0101 - BEST EFFORTS: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 21 .0102 - REPORTING OF INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURES: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 21 .0103 - REPORTING OF SPECIAL CONTRIBUTIONS: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 21 .0104 - REPORTING OF ELECTIONEERING COMMUNICATIONS: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 21 .0106 - ELECTRONIC FILING: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 21 .0107 - ELECTRONIC SIGNATURE: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 21 .0201 - COMMITTEE ACCOUNTS: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 21 .0202 - PROCEDURES FOR CLOSING A COMMITTEE: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 21 .0203 - CERTIFICATION OF THRESHOLD: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 21 .0206 - REQUESTING A WAIVER OF A CIVIL LATE PENALTY: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 21 .0207 - PROCEDURES FOR COMMITTEES WITH MISSING REPORTS: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 21 .0301 - EXPENDITURES FOR RESIDENTIAL REAL PROPERTY: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 21 .0401 - EXAMINATIONS BY STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS: Necessary  
  • 08 NCAC 21 .0501 - BILLBOARDS: Necessary  

Comment on Whether a Rule is Necessary or Unnecessary

The public comment period on the State Board’s initial determinations for these rules starts on Monday, Sept. 21, 2026, and ends on Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2026. Public comment is an opportunity for the public to weigh in on the agency’s initial determination of whether a rule is necessary or unnecessary.

Public comments should be directed to the State Board of Elections Rulemaking Coordinator. “Public comment” is defined by G.S. 150B-21.3A(a)(5) as “written comments objecting to the rule, in whole or in part, or objecting to an agency's determination of the rule as necessary or unnecessary.” Additionally, pursuant to G.S. 150B-21.3A(c)(2), in order for the Rules Review Commission to determine whether the public comment has merit, the public comment must address the specific substance of the rule and address any of the standards of Commission review, as set forth in N.C.G.S. § 150B-21.9(a).

Members of the public may comment in any of the following ways through Nov. 25, 2026:

Once the comment period closes, the State Board will review the public comments, prepare a brief response addressing each comment, and make a final determination that is filed with the Rules Review Commission for the next step in the periodic review process.

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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