N.J. Admin. Code § 7:14A-17.4 - Granting or denying an adjudicatory hearing request

(a) The Department, in its discretion, shall decide the extent to which, if at all, the request for an adjudicatory hearing shall be granted. The Department may grant or deny a request for a hearing in whole or in part.

(b) The Department shall deny a request for an adjudicatory hearing if:

1. The request does not conform with the information requirements for a permittee or a person as set forth, respectively, in 7:14A-17.2(e) and (f);

2. The request does not include genuine issues of material fact or of law which are relevant to the Department's decision as specified in 7:14A-17.2(a);

3. The request was not submitted within the time frames specified in 7:14A-17.2(b) or (c), as appropriate;

4. The contested legal and/or factual issues were not raised during the public comment period in accordance with 7:14A-15.13;

5. The request challenges duly promulgated regulations and not the Department's application of the regulations; or

6. The permittee or applicant is seeking an adjudicatory hearing to contest permit effluent limitations based upon N.J.A.C. 7:14A-12 Appendix C which were imposed in the permit due to the permittee's or applicant's specific request to impose those limitations.

(c) The Department, if it grants a request for an adjudicatory hearing in part, shall specifically identify those contested permit conditions for which an adjudicatory hearing has been granted. The issues presented in the adjudicatory hearing shall be limited to those permit conditions contested in a request for an adjudicatory hearing or those specifically identified by the Department in accordance with this section.

(d) If a request for an adjudicatory hearing is granted, the contested permit conditions shall not be affected unless a stay has been granted pursuant to 7:14A-17.6. A request for a hearing and a request for a stay may be combined into one request document.

(e) The Department, if it denies a hearing request in whole or in part, shall briefly state the reasons for such denial. Such denial shall be considered a final agency action.

Notes

N.J. Admin. Code § 7:14A-17.4