(a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, prior to the adoption of any rule authorized by law, or the amendment or repeal thereof, the adopting agency shall:

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Terms Used In Hawaii Revised Statutes 91-3

  • Adjournment sine die: The end of a legislative session "without day." These adjournments are used to indicate the final adjournment of an annual or the two-year session of legislature.
  • Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
  • county: includes the city and county of Honolulu. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 1-22
  • Legislative session: That part of a chamber's daily session in which it considers legislative business (bills, resolutions, and actions related thereto).
  • Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
(1) Give at least thirty days’ notice for a public hearing. The notice shall include:

(A) A statement of the topic of the proposed rule adoption, amendment, or repeal or a general description of the subjects involved; and
(B) A statement that a copy of the proposed rule to be adopted, the proposed rule amendment, or the rule proposed to be repealed will be mailed to any interested person who requests a copy, pays the required fees for the copy and the postage, if any, together with a description of where and how the requests may be made;
(C) A statement of when, where, and during what times the proposed rule to be adopted, the proposed rule amendment, or the rule proposed to be repealed may be reviewed in person; and
(D) The date, time, and place where the public hearing will be held and where interested persons may be heard on the proposed rule adoption, amendment, or repeal.

The notice shall be mailed to all persons who have made a timely written request of the agency for advance notice of its rulemaking proceedings, given at least once statewide for state agencies and in the county for county agencies. Proposed state agency rules shall also be posted on the Internet as provided in section 91-2.6; and

(2) Afford all interested persons opportunity to submit data, views, or arguments, orally or in writing. The agency shall fully consider all written and oral submissions respecting the proposed rule. The agency may make its decision at the public hearing or announce then the date when it intends to make its decision. Upon adoption, amendment, or repeal of a rule, the agency, if requested to do so by an interested person, shall issue a concise statement of the principal reasons for and against its determination.
(b) Notwithstanding the requirements of subsection (a), if an agency finds that an imminent peril to the public health, safety, or morals, to livestock and poultry health, or to natural resources requires adoption, amendment, or repeal of a rule upon less than thirty days’ notice of hearing, and states in writing its reasons for such finding, it may proceed without prior notice or hearing or upon such abbreviated notice and hearing, including posting the abbreviated notice and hearing on the Internet as provided in section 91-2.6, as it finds practicable to adopt an emergency rule to be effective for a period of not longer than one hundred twenty days without renewal.
(c) In addition to emergency rules adopted pursuant to subsection (b), an agency may, in a similar manner, adopt emergency rules where new federal legislation or federal and state court decisions disrupt prior practice under any statute administered by the agency and adoption of an emergency rule is urgently needed to:

(1) Conform existing rules to new requirements;
(2) Implement newly-established rights;
(3) Clarify existing rules and prevent confusion among those covered by existing statutes;
(4) Stabilize a regulated industry or endeavor;
(5) Avoid disruption of governmental or industrial operations;
(6) Facilitate orderly agency or legislative study of the consequences of the new federal legislation or a federal or state court decision;
(7) Reinforce or preserve the unmodified goals of a statute administered by the agency; or
(8) Temporarily resolve any practical problems created by the new federal legislation or federal and state court decisions;

provided that an agency shall not adopt any emergency rule pursuant to this subsection without conducting a public hearing; provided further that an agency shall give no less than thirty days’ notice of the hearing; provided further that any emergency rule adopted pursuant to this subsection shall be effective until no later than adjournment sine die of the next regular legislative session following adoption of the emergency rule.

(d) The adoption, amendment, or repeal of any rule by any state agency shall be subject to the approval of the governor. The adoption, amendment, or repeal of any rule by any county agency shall be subject to the approval of the mayor of the county. This subsection shall not apply to the adoption, amendment, and repeal of the rules of the county boards of water supply.
(e) The requirements of subsection (a) may be waived by the governor in the case of the State, or by the mayor in the case of a county, whenever a state or county agency is required by federal provisions to adopt rules as a condition to receiving federal funds and the agency is allowed no discretion in interpreting the federal provisions as to the rules required to be adopted; provided that the agency shall make the adoption, amendment, or repeal known to the public by:

(1) Giving public notice of the substance of the proposed rule at least once statewide prior to the waiver of the governor or the mayor; and
(2) Posting the full text of the proposed rulemaking action on the Internet as provided in section 91-2.6.
(f) No adoption, amendment, or repeal of any rule shall be invalidated solely because of:

(1) The inadvertent failure to mail an advance notice of rulemaking proceedings;
(2) The inadvertent failure to mail or the nonreceipt of requested copies of the proposed rule to be adopted, the proposed rule amendment, or the rule proposed to be repealed; or
(3) The inadvertent failure on the part of a state agency to post on the website of the office of the lieutenant governor all proposed rulemaking actions of the agency and the full text of the agency’s proposed rules as provided in section 91-2.6.

Any challenge to the validity of the adoption, amendment, or repeal of an administrative rule on the ground of noncompliance with statutory procedural requirements shall be forever barred unless the challenge is made in a proceeding or action, including an action pursuant to § 91-7, that is begun within three years after the effective date of the adoption, amendment, or repeal of the rule.

(g) Whenever an agency seeks only to repeal one or more sections, chapters, or subchapters of the agency’s rules because the rules are either null and void or unnecessary, and not adopt, amend, or compile any other rules:

(1) The agency shall give thirty days’ public notice at least once statewide of the proposed date of repeal and of:

(A) A list of the sections, chapters, or subchapters, as applicable, being repealed; and
(B) A statement of when, where, and during what times the sections, chapters, or subchapters proposed to be repealed may be reviewed in person;
(2) The agency shall post the full text of the proposed sections, chapters, or subchapters to be repealed on the Internet as provided in section 91-2.6; and
(3) Any interested person may petition the agency regarding the sections, chapters, or subchapters proposed to be repealed, pursuant to section 91-6.

This subsection does not apply to the repeal of one or more subsections, paragraphs, subparagraphs, clauses, words, phrases, or other material within a section that does not constitute the entire section to be repealed.

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