R657-2-6. Request for Agency Action

(1) A request for agency action must be filed with the presiding officer of the entity that has authority to provide relief to the petitioner. The presiding officer may refuse acceptance of any request for agency action if there is reason to believe:

(a) the request is frivolous or brought in bad faith;

(b) the matter has already been acted upon and further consideration is unnecessary;

(c) the relief sought is beyond the agency's jurisdiction; or

(d) the request fails to comply with the procedural requirements of this rule.

(2) At the time the request for agency action is filed, the petitioner shall also file any motions, affidavits, briefs, or memoranda in support of the request for agency action.

(3) The presiding officer shall review the request for agency action.

(a) If the request for agency action is made to the division, the person designated as the presiding officer shall take action upon the request within a reasonable time.

(b)(i) If the request for agency action is made to the Wildlife Board, and the request concerns a matter over which the Wildlife Board has authority, the presiding officer may:

(A) have the request for agency action placed on the Wildlife Board's agenda for action;

(B) submit the request for agency action to the appropriate regional advisory council or councils, requesting the council or councils to hold public hearings, take input, and make recommendations to the Wildlife Board as provided in Section 23-14-2.6; or

(C) deny the request and notify the requesting party in writing of the denial and that the party may request a hearing before the Wildlife Board to challenge the denial.

(ii) In determining when to schedule the matter for hearing before the Wildlife Board, the presiding officer may consider the following:

(A) If the matter is general in nature, and the Wildlife Board's agenda allows, the matter may be brought at the next regularly-scheduled Wildlife Board meeting;

(B) If the matter involves a serious or irreparable harm to a person or entity that may be resolved by holding a hearing before the next regularly-scheduled meeting, the Wildlife Board may hold an emergency meeting; or

(C) If the matter involves an issue that is part of an annual decision making process, the matter may be scheduled at the next annual meeting where such decisions are made, but no later than one year after the date the request is received.

(4)(a) The presiding officer may schedule the request for agency action on the Wildlife Board agenda for action without regional advisory council input if:

(i) the presiding officer determines that the public interest in deciding the matter without seeking input from the regional advisory councils outweighs the benefit of considering recommendations of the regional advisory councils;

(ii) the request for agency action seeks a remedy that affects only one person or a small number of persons, thus making broad public input unnecessary; or

(iii) the delay associated with seeking regional advisory council input will result in serious or irreparable harm to the petitioner or the respondent, provided the petitioner or respondent has not been negligent in filing the request for agency action in a timely fashion.

(b) Upon a majority vote of the Wildlife Board, any request for agency action submitted to it by the presiding officer that has not been considered by the regional advisory councils may be referred to the regional advisory councils for the purpose of gathering input prior to the Wildlife Board taking further action.

(5) The petitioner shall provide a copy of the request for agency action to any person known by the petitioner to have a direct interest in the proceeding or who will be directly affected by its outcome.