In this chapter, the following words have the meanings indicated. Terms Defined. “Department” means the Department of the Environment. “Petition” means a petition to promulgate, amend, or repeal a regulation. “Regulation” is defined in State Government Article, §10-101(e), Annotated Code of Maryland. “Secretary” means the Secretary of the Environment. This chapter applies to all petitions submitted to the Department to promulgate, amend, or repeal a regulation over which the Secretary has rulemaking authority. Any interested person may file a petition requesting the promulgation, amendment, or repeal of any regulation over which the Secretary has rulemaking authority. The petition may be in the form of a letter or any other written form desired by the petitioner. It shall include a detailed description of the new, amended, or existing regulation which the petitioner seeks to have the Department promulgate, amend, or repeal. A statement of reasons and other information in support of the petition shall be included in or accompany the petition. The name, address, and telephone number of the petitioner shall be included in the petition. The petition should be addressed to the Regulations Coordinator, Department of the Environment, Herbert R. O'Conor Building, 201 West Preston Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21201. Petitions will be considered submitted upon receipt in the office of the Regulations Coordinator. Within 60 days after receipt of the petition, the Secretary will either deny the petition (stating the reasons for denial) or initiate rulemaking proceedings. The Secretary may deny a petition to promulgate, amend, or repeal a regulation, for any reason permitted by law, including, but not limited to: That the Secretary does not have the authority to grant the petition; That the Department does not have adequate information or resources to evaluate the petition; That the Department does not have adequate resources to implement the requested regulation if it is adopted; That the Secretary previously adopted a regulation dealing with the same subject matter as that of the petition and rejected the position taken by petitioner at that time, or the petitioner unreasonably failed to make his position known at that time; or That, in the discretion of the Secretary, the requested regulation change is contrary to or inconsistent with Departmental policy. Rulemaking proceedings may include any type of action which the Secretary is authorized or required by law to take when promulgating, amending, or repealing regulations, including: Conducting studies (either before or after proposal of the regulation in the Maryland Register) to gather information in support of the regulation; Advance notice of proposed rulemaking if the Secretary determines that additional information or public comment is necessary or desirable before a proposed regulation can be formulated; Referral (either before or after proposal of the regulation in the Maryland Register) to advisory councils or other official or quasi-official agencies or groups responsible for reviewing the regulation; Proposal of the regulation in the Maryland Register; Reproposal of the regulation proposed in the Maryland Register if the Secretary determines that, before final adoption, the proposed regulation must be altered so that it is substantially different from its original text; Modification of the regulation change requested by the petitioner, either in form or in substance, and either before or after proposal in the Maryland Register, to better reflect the Secretary's responsibilities than reflected by the petitioner's request. Despite the initiation of rulemaking proceedings, the Secretary may decide not to finally promulgate, amend, or repeal the requested regulation. The Secretary will send written notices to the petitioner and any other person requesting notification in accordance with this section, as follows: If the petition is denied, notice of the denial (including the reasons for the denial) will be sent within 60 days of receipt of the petition. When the requested (or modified) regulation appears in the Maryland Register, notice of this event will be sent at the time of the appearance in the Maryland Register. When the Secretary finally disposes of the requested regulation (final promulgation, amendment, repeal, or a decision to discontinue the rulemaking), notice will be sent at this time. If the final disposition is a decision to discontinue the rulemaking, the notice will include a statement of the reasons for the discontinuance. A file will be maintained by the Department of all petitions submitted and their disposition. This file will be available for public inspection as provided in State Government Article, Title 10, Subtitle 6, Part III, Annotated Code of Maryland. State Government Article, §10-123, Annotated Code of Maryland Effective date: November 9, 1981 (8:22 Md. R. 1784) Chapter recodified from COMAR 10.01.07 to COMAR 26.01.03