Opinion ID: 399822
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Permissible Duration of Interim Regulations

Text: 23 We reverse the preliminary injunction granted by the District Court on the ground that OPM's November 6, 1981 postponement of open season and its November 12, 1981 announcement of an interim regulation dispensed with notice and comment for good cause. As this court has previously recognized, however, 24 (c)ommon sense suggests that any administrative action taken in a rare emergency situation such as the one at hand, while perhaps necessarily immediately effective, need only be temporary, pending public notice-and-comment procedures.    25 AFGE v. Block, supra, 655 F.2d at 1157 (footnote omitted). The potential danger to the financial stability of the federal health benefits program permits OPM to postpone open season until it has held notice and comment procedures to study the extent of the threat and possible measures to alleviate it. In light of our reversal of the District Court's preliminary injunction, OPM is free to reinstate the temporary regulation announced in the Federal Register on November 12, 1981 in order to provide legal authority for its continued temporary postponement of open season. 26 The validity of the interim regulation, however, is conditioned on expeditious conduct of notice and comment procedures in good faith. On the eve of oral argument OPM notified the court and the other parties that it has decided to institute such procedures. Supplemental brief of government appellants at 1-6. It has issued a tentative proposal to hold an open season in May 1982 and invites public comment on a number of issues: whether this open season should take place, whether it should be followed by a regularly scheduled open season in November and December 1982, and whether changes in open season procedures or eligibility rules for various health plans should be adopted to reduce the potential dangers to the financial stability of the program. 47 Fed. 6283 (February 11, 1982); see Appendix A (text of Federal Register notice). OPM has scheduled a public hearing on February 22 and 23, 1982. 27 We hold that, as long as OPM continues in good faith with these notice and comment procedures, it is in compliance with the Administrative Procedure Act. The District Court's preliminary injunction is vacated. 28 So ordered.