1. (a) Within thirty (30) days after the receipt of a petition for a declaratory ruling, the Commission shall give notice to all persons to whom notice is required by any provision of law and to all persons who have requested notice of declaratory ruling petitions on the subject matter of the petition.
2. (b) If the Commission deems a hearing necessary or helpful in determining any issue concerning the request for declaratory ruling, the Commission may schedule such hearing and give notice thereof as shall be appropriate.
3. (c) Within forty-five (45) calendar days of the submission of the complete petition for a declaratory ruling, persons wishing to be admitted to the proceeding as parties or intervenors shall file a petition with the Commission. Such persons, in submitting their position and evidence in the declaratory ruling proceeding, shall comply with the other provisions of these regulations concerning the form, content and filing procedures for a petition. If the Commission conducts a hearing, the Commission or designated hearing officer or presiding officer has the discretion to limit the participation of intervenors in such hearing, including the rights to inspect and copy records, to introduce evidence and to cross-examine, so as to promote the orderly conduct of the proceedings.

4. (d) Within sixty (60) days after the receipt of a petition for a declaratory ruling, the Commission in writing shall:

   1. (1) issue a ruling declaring the validity of a regulation or the applicability of a provision of the General Statutes, the regulation, or the final decision in question to the specified circumstances;
   2. (2) order the matter set for specified proceedings;
   3. (3) agree to issue a declaratory ruling by a specified date;
   4. (4) decide not to issue a declaratory ruling or initiate regulation-making proceedings, under C.G.S. section 4-169, on the subject; or (5) decide not to issue a declaratory ruling, stating the reasons for this action.
5. (e) A copy of all rulings and any actions taken under this section shall be promptly delivered to the petitioner and other parties personally or by the United States mail, certified or registered, postage prepaid, return receipt requested.
6. (f) A declaratory ruling shall contain the names of all parties to the proceeding, the particular facts on which it is based and the reasons for its conclusion.
7. (g) A declaratory ruling shall be effective when personally delivered or mailed or on such later date specified by the agency in the ruling. It shall have the same status and binding effect as an order issued in a contested case.
8. (h) If the agency conducts a hearing in a proceeding for declaratory ruling, the provisions of C.G.S. sec 4-177c (b), C.G.S. sec. 4-178 and C.G.S. sec. 4-179 shall apply to the hearing, except that if the Commission delegates to the presiding officer or hearing officer the power to render final decision directly, he or she may do so.
9. (i) If the Commission renders a declaratory ruling, a copy of the ruling shall be sent personally or by the United States mail, certified or registered, postage prepaid, return receipt requested to the person requesting it and to that person's attorney, if applicable, and to any other person who has filed a written request for a copy with the Commission.
10. (j) If the Commission does not issue a declaratory ruling within one hundred eighty days (180) after the filing of a petition therefore, the Commission shall be deemed to have decided not to issue such a ruling.

11. (k) Any time requirement in this section may be extended with the agreement of the petitioner.

    (l) The Commission shall keep a record of the proceeding as provided in C.G.S. sec. 4-177.

(Effective June 1, 1992)