Current through Rules and Regulations filed through March 20, 2024
The Commission may on its own motion or upon the request of any
party may in its discretion conduct any and all proceedings which are
authorized to be conducted by the Commission by telephone or video conference
with the attorneys for all affected parties, and with the parties and all
necessary witnesses in the case of preliminary hearings, administrative
hearings, final hearings, or other proceedings.
(1) The Commission's presiding officer or
hearing officer may specify:
(a) The time and
the person who will initiate the conference;
(b) The party which is to incur the initial
expense of the conference, or the apportionment of such costs among the
parties, while retaining the discretion to make an adjustment of such costs
upon final resolution of the case by taxing same as part of the costs;
and
(c) Any other matter or
requirement necessary to accomplish or facilitate the telephone or video
conference.
(2) As this
rule relates to preliminary hearings, administrative hearings and final
hearings, the following requirements shall apply:
(a) Said hearings shall comply with the
Georgia Open Meetings Act.
(b) Said
hearings shall comply with the applicable provisions of the Georgia Government
Transparency and Campaign Finance Act, the Administrative Procedure Act and the
Consolidated Rules and Regulations of the Commission.
(c) Notice shall be given to the parties and
the public that a proceeding will occur partially or wholly by remote telephone
or video conferencing. Such notice may be given by any means authorized by the
Georgia Open Meetings Act.
(d) If a
party or a member of the public objects to the remote proceeding, the
Commission's presiding officer or hearing officer shall sustain or overrule
such objection prior to commencing the proceeding.
(e) Members of the public shall be given an
opportunity to view the remote proceedings, such as by joining the telephone or
video conference, through a livestream of the proceeding, or through
substantially similar means of viewing. The Commission will have the sole
discretion to determine which parties and persons may participate in any remote
proceeding conducted by telephone or video conference.
O.C.G.A.
§§
21-5-6(a)(7),
21-5-6(b)(10).
