8 AAC 61.205 - Hearings
(a) The board shall schedule hearings on a
quarterly basis, unless upon a motion by a party or on its own motion, the
board schedules an expedited hearing.
(b) At least 30 days before the hearing, the
board shall notify all parties at their addresses of record of the date, time,
and place of hearing. In an expedited hearing or if an emergency exists, the
board shall notify the parties at least 10 days before the hearing
date.
(c) In determining the place
of hearing, the board shall consider the convenience and expense to the board,
the parties, and their witnesses.
(d) The board may postpone a hearing upon a
showing of good cause. A motion to postpone a hearing must be in writing and
must set out the reasons for the delay. A motion for postponement filed less
than 20 days before the hearing will be denied unless good cause is shown for
filing the motion after that time. A party's failure to obtain counsel or make
discovery in a timely fashion will not be considered good cause for
postponement.
(e) The board or its
authorized designee may issue subpoenas under
8
AAC 61.160 upon application by a party. An application
for a subpoena must be in writing and must state the name of each witness or
describe an item of evidence with sufficient detail so that the witness or item
of evidence can be readily identified. The preparation and service of a
subpoena, including the payment of applicable witness fees and expenses, are
governed by the rules of civil procedure and are the responsibility of the
party requesting issuance of the subpoena.
(f) Unless otherwise ordered by the board,
the department will present its case first at the hearing, followed by the
party filing the notice of contest, followed by any other parties. Each party
shall be permitted to make an opening statement, present evidence,
cross-examine witnesses, and make a closing argument.
(g) An unrepresented party may be permitted
to testify in a narrative fashion.
(h) Evidence shall be admitted in accordance
with AS
44.62.460-
44.62.480.
(i) The burden of proof for citations,
penalties, or abatement dates is on the department by a preponderance of the
evidence. The burden of proof for affirmative defenses is on the party
asserting those defenses by a preponderance of the evidence. "Preponderance of
the evidence" means that it is more likely than not that the asserted
proposition is true.
(j) At the
request of a party or on its own motion, the board may direct the parties to
file posthearing briefs and the board shall establish a schedule for the
submission of those briefs.
(k) The
board may allow a party, an attorney, a witness, or any other person to
participate telephonically in a board proceeding in the absence of a showing of
substantial prejudice to opposing parties. A request for telephonic
participation must be made at least 10 days before the hearing unless good
cause is shown for filing the request after that time. The party requesting
telephonic participation is responsible for arranging the call and paying the
associated costs.
(l) The board may
allow a board member or a hearing officer to participate telephonically in a
board proceeding in the absence of a showing of substantial prejudice to a
party to the proceeding.
(m) If a
party fails to appear at a hearing without a showing of good cause after
receiving proper notice of the hearing, the board may find that party to be in
default, may receive any evidence it deems appropriate, and may issue a final
decision against that party. In addition, if an employer fails to appear at a
hearing without a showing of good cause after receiving proper notice of the
hearing, the board may order the employer to pay all reasonable expenses
incurred by the board for holding the hearing, including the board's actual
travel expenses and per diem. Expenses will be apportioned according to the
number of board hearings actually held at the hearing location. A showing of
good cause shall be considered by the board if the nonappearing party, within
10 days of the hearing, files with the board a written statement giving the
reasons for failing to appear.
(n)
A hearing before the board shall be recorded. A person may obtain a duplicate
recording or a written transcript of a hearing by submitting a request in
writing to the board and paying the cost of the recording or
transcript.
Notes
Authority: AS 18.60.020
AS 18.60.057
AS 18.60.093
State regulations are updated quarterly; we currently have two versions available. Below is a comparison between our most recent version and the prior quarterly release. More comparison features will be added as we have more versions to compare.
No prior version found.