Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 12, March 22, 2024
a) A permittee shall have 30 days from the
date of receiving the Director's Decision to submit a written request for
hearing to contest the Director's Decision. The written request for hearing
shall provide the basis for contesting the Director's Decision and be
accompanied by any documents evidencing the basis for contesting the Director's
Decision. A 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 written
request for hearing. The assessed amount shall be deposited by the Department
pending the outcome of the hearing. The assessed amount, or applicable portion
thereof, shall be ordered refunded to the permittee at the conclusion of the
hearing if the Department does not prevail. All requests for hearing shall be
delivered to the Department's Office of Oil and Gas Resource Management located
in Springfield, Illinois or mailed to the Department at Illinois Department of
Natural Resources, Attention: Office of Oil and Gas Resource Management, One
Natural Resources Way, Springfield IL 62702.
b) Upon receipt of a request for hearing
submitted in accordance with all requirements of 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. All hearings under this Section shall be conducted in the Department's
offices located in Springfield, Illinois.
c) The hearing shall be conducted by a
Hearing Officer designated by the Director. The Hearing Officer shall have all
powers necessary to conduct the hearing, including, but not limited to,
the power to administer oaths and affirmations, subpoena witnesses and
compel their attendance, take evidence, and require the production of books,
papers, correspondence, and other records or information that he or she
considers relevant or material (Section 1-60(e) of the Act).
d) The hearing shall be conducted in
accordance with the following procedures:
1)
Pre-Hearing Conference
A) A pre-hearing
conference shall be scheduled within 60 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
Department's offices located in Springfield, Illinois, or a place designated by
the Hearing Officer.
2)
Stays of Suspension or Revocation. The order of suspension or
revocation of a permit based on Section
245.1000(f)
may be stayed, at any time, by the Hearing Officer, if
requested by the permittee by appropriate motion and evidence is submitted
demonstrating that there is no significant threat to the public
health, public safety, property, aquatic life, wildlife, or
the environment if the operation is allowed to continue (Section
1-60(d) of the Act). The Hearing Officer shall issue an order granting or
denying a motion to stay within 5 business days after it is heard.
3) Either party may file motions for default
judgment, motions for summary judgment, motions for protective orders and
motions for orders compelling discovery. The Hearing Officer shall issue an
order granting or denying motions filed within 15 days after service or, if
applicable, after hearing. 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.
4) 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 administrative 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 the matter being
contested.
5) All hearings, under
this Section shall be conducted in accordance with Article 10 of the Illinois
Administrative Procedure Act [5 ILCS 100 /Art. 10].
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 administrative penalty assessed shall be
presumed to be proper; however, the permittee may offer evidence to rebut this
presumption. The standard of proof shall be a preponderance of the evidence.
The 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 and hear the evidence. The Hearing Officer,
at the conclusion of the hearing, shall have 30 days to issue recommended
findings of fact, recommended conclusions of law and recommendations as to the
disposition of the case.
7) The
Director or the Director's designee 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 15 days after receiving the Hearing Officer's recommendations, the
Department shall issue a final administrative decision.
e) All Department final administrative
decisions set forth in this Section are subject to judicial review under the
Administrative Review Law and the rules adopted under that Law.
f)
The costs associated with
the administrative hearing shall be borne by the permittee
(Section 1-60(f) of the Act), except that all parties shall be responsible for
their own attorneys' fees.