Submitting APA Filings Electronically

During the Covid-19 Pandemic, the Secretary of State adopted emergency rules to allow for electronic submission of APA filings to help reduce the risk of exposure to state employees and members of the public to the COVID-19 virus. In 2021, the Secretary of State amended the Rules on Rulemaking to make that change permanent.

The Secretary of State will accept electronic delivery of filings if all the following conditions have been met:

1. The agency prepares forms and obtains an original signature of the adopting authority and agrees to retain that version as signed by the adopting authority as required by statute [3 V.S.A. § 843(e)].
2. The agency prepares a version of the forms for electronic submission with a conformed signature, meaning the full name of adopting authority who signed the original form is typed in this format: /s/ Name of Person.
3. The filing forms, texts, and other enclosures are saved as PDF files; please note that scanned forms are not accepted.
4. Prior to submission, coversheets or forms not relevant to the filing being submitted are to be removed from the PDF.
5. Submissions must be sent to sos.statutoryfilings@vermont.gov.

If you are uncertain which forms are required for each step in the process, please see: https://sos.vermont.gov/secretary-of-state-services/apa-rules/filing-tools/rules-at-a-glance/.

Filing forms are available for download from the Office of the Secretary of State’s website at: https://sos.vermont.gov/secretary-of-state-services/apa-rules/apa-forms/.

The Secretary of State will also continue to accept paper filings provided they bear the original signature of the adopting authority.

If you have general questions about the rulemaking process, please email sos.statutoryfilings@vermont.gov or call 802-828-3700.