Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 12, March 22, 2024
a)
A person or permittee shall have 30 days from the date of service of
the Director's decisionto request a hearing. (Section
8a of the Act) A person or permittee seeking to contest any Director's decision
in which a civil penalty has been assessed shall submit the assessed amount to
the Department, by cashier's check or money order, together with a timely
request for hearing. The assessed amount shall be deposited by the Department
pending the outcome of the hearing. The assessed amount shall be refunded to
the person or permittee at the conclusion of the hearing if the Department does
not prevail. All requests for hearing shall be mailed or delivered to the
Department's office located in Springfield, Illinois.
b)
Upon receipt of a request
for hearing submitted in accordance with subsection (a), the Department
shall provide an opportunity for a formal hearing upon not less than 5
days written notice mailed to the permittee or person submitting the
hearing request. (Section 8a of the Act) The hearing shall be conducted by a
Hearing Officer designated by the Director and shall be conducted in accordance
with the following procedures:
1) Pre-Hearing
Conference
A) A pre-hearing conference shall
be scheduled within 30 days after the request for hearing:
i) to define the factual and legal issues to
be litigated at the administrative hearing;
ii) to determine the timing and scope of
discovery available to the parties;
iii) to set a date for the parties to
exchange all documents they intend to introduce into evidence during the
hearing, a list of all witnesses the parties intend to have testify and a
summary of the testimony of each witness;
iv) to schedule a date for the administrative
hearing; and
v) to arrive at an
equitable settlement of the hearing request, if possible.
B) Pre-hearing conferences under this Section
may be conducted via telephone conference if that procedure is acceptable to
all parties to the hearing. In the event that a telephone conference is not
acceptable to all parties, the pre-hearing conference shall be conducted at the
place designated by the Hearing Officer.
C) Either party may file motions for default
judgment, motions for summary judgment, motions for protective orders and
motions for orders compelling discovery. The Department's Hearing Officer shall
render an order granting or denying motions filed within 15 days after service.
Any order granting a motion for default judgment or a motion for summary
judgment shall constitute the Department's final administrative decision as to
the matter being contested.
2) If a settlement agreement is entered into
at any stage of the hearing process, the person to whom the notice of violation
or cessation order was issued will be deemed to have waived all right to
further review of the violation or civil penalty in question, except as
otherwise expressly provided for in the settlement agreement. The settlement
agreement shall contain a waiver clause to this effect. All settlement
agreements shall be executed by the Hearing Officer and shall constitute the
Department's final administrative decision as to matter being
contested.
3) All hearings under
this Section shall be conducted in accordance with Article 10 of the Illinois
Administrative Procedure Act [ 5 ILCS 100 /Art. 10].
4) All hearings conducted pursuant to this
Section are open to the public and are held in compliance with the Americans
With Disabilities Act of 1990 (
42 USC 12101
et seq.). The hearings will be held at locations ordered by the Hearing
Officer. The Hearing Officer will select hearing locations that comply with any
geographic requirements imposed by applicable law and, to the extent feasible,
promote the convenience of the parties and the conservation of the Department's
resources. All hearings are subject to cancellation without notice. Interested
persons may contact the Department or the Hearing Officer for information about
the hearing. Parties, participants and members of the public must conduct
themselves with decorum at the hearing.
5) Upon the motion of any party, the Hearing
Officer may order that a hearing be held by telephone conference, video
conference or other electronic means. In deciding whether a hearing should be
held by telephone conference, video conference or other electronic means,
factors that the Hearing Officer shall consider include cost-effectiveness,
efficiency, facility accommodations, witness availability, public interest, the
parties' preferences, and the proceeding's complexity and
contentiousness.
6) At the hearing
the Department shall have the burden of proving the facts of the violation
alleged in the notice of violation at issue. The amount of any civil penalty
assessed shall be presumed to be proper; however, the operator may offer
evidence to rebut this presumption. The standard of proof shall be a
preponderance of the evidence. The person or permittee shall have the right to
challenge the Hearing Officer if the person or permittee believes the Hearing
Officer is prejudiced against him or her or has a conflict of interest. If the
Hearing Officer disqualifies himself or herself, the Director shall designate a
new Hearing Officer. The Hearing Officer shall conduct the hearing, hear the
evidence and at the conclusion of the hearing render recommended findings of
fact, recommended conclusions of law and recommendations as to the disposition
of the case.
7) The Director shall
review the administrative record in conjunction with the Hearing Officer's
recommended findings of fact, recommended conclusions of law and
recommendations as to the disposition of the case. Within 30
days after the close of the hearing record or
expiration after the time to request a hearing, the Department
shall issue a final administrative order. (section 8a of the
Act)
c)
Failure
of the person or permittee to timely request a hearing or, if a civil penalty
has been assessed, to timely tender the assessed civil penalty, shall
constitute a waiver of all legal rights to contest the Director's decision,
including the amount of any civil penalty. (Section 8a of the
Act)
d)
If, at the
expiration of the period of time originally fixed in the Director's decision or
at the expiration of any subsequent extension of time granted by the
Department, the Department finds that the violation has not been abated, it may
immediately order the cessation of operations or the portions thereof relevant
to the violations pursuant to 62 Ill. Adm. Code
240.185.
(Section 8(a) of the Act)