Changes made to VII.B.5.a. of the OAH Hearing Regulation
vii. Written notice of a party’s right to review or appeal
of a decision within the agency or review of a
decision by the courts, as the case may be, and of
the action required and the time within which such
action must be taken in order to exercise the right
of review or appeal.
b. In cases where the parties have mutually agreed to the outcome
of a hearing (‘consent decisions’) the content of a consent
decision need not include all of the information required by
subsection 5(a) above. Any consent decision, however, shall
state with clarity the following: The identity of the parties
involved; the subject matter of the decision; the results of
the consent decision; and a determination that the result is
in accordance with applicable law.
5. Recommended Findings and Decision
In any case in which law or regulation or special instructions
from the Commissioner dictate that an individual other than
the hearing officer will make a final hearing decision, the
hearing officer will prepare a recommended hearing decision
rather than a final hearing decision. A recommended decision
will be made on the same basis and in the same form as a final
decision. Copies of recommended decisions will be provided to
all parties, who will have an opportunity to submit responses
and exceptions to the final decision maker.
a. Exceptions and Responses
In any case in which final decision making authority is
reserved to the Commissioner or the Commissioner’s
designe, the parties may file exceptions or responses to
the recommended decision.
i. Time for filing. For MaineCare cases, the exceptions or
responses must be received by the Office of Administrative
Hearings within 15 calendar days after the date the
recommended decision was mailed to the parties. For all
other cases, the exceptions or responses must be received by
the Office of Administrative Hearings within 20 calendar
days after the date the recommended decision was mailed to
the parties. The date of mailing will be stamped on the
upper right-hand corner of the recommended decision.
ii. Content. The written exceptions and responses filed
with the Office of Administrative Hearings shall contain:
(aa.) A clear statement of the party’s position and
the reason for it;
(bb.) A listing of any errors or omissions made by
the parties during the decision making process;
(cc.) Any relevant legal arguments the party wishes to
offer.
If additional factual information which could have been
presented and considered during the decision making process,
including the administrative hearing, is made part of the
exceptions and responses, it need not be considered by the final
decision maker.
iii. Method of filing. Exceptions or responses must be sent
to the Office of Administrative Hearings by mail, fax or
e-mail. Copies of written exceptions and responses must be
provided to all parties.
iv. Extensions. A reasonable extension of time to file
exceptions and responses may be granted by the Chief
Administrative Hearing Officer for good cause shown or if all
parties are in agreement.
