Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 39, September 25, 2024
(a) The applicant must procure written
approval of the project from the local governmental unit or appeal the
withholding of that approval to the OMH.
(b)
(1)
Certification, in the case of an application for a Housing Finance Agency or
Facilities Development Corporation mortgage loan, that the project is
consistent with its plan for the provision of services for the mentally
disabled; and/or
(2) Written
agreement, in the case of application for a State aid grant, unless the
applicant is a local government.
(c) If the proposal is not approved, the
applicant may appeal the local governmental unit's decision to the
commissioner, unless the application involves the direct expenditure of local
tax levy funds.
(1) The appeal must be made
within 30 days from the date that the applicant has been notified of the
refusal to approve or certify. In the absence of such notification, the appeal
may be made 30 days after the submission of the proposal to the local
governmental unit.
(2) The appeal
must be in writing with a copy sent by certified mail, return receipt
requested, to the local governmental unit and the Office of Mental
Health.
(3) The written appeal must
include:
(i) a statement regarding any changes
to the proposal since approval of the certificate of need;
(ii) a statement of facts demonstrating that
the applicant has submitted the proposal to the local governmental unit; that
the local governmental unit has refused to approve, or has not responded; and,
that the specified interval has transpired since that proposal was submitted to
the local governmental unit; and
(iii) copies of relevant documents including
the submitted proposal and the decision of the local governmental
unit.
(d) The
local governmental unit shall have 30 days after receipt of the applicant's
request for an appeal to reply to the Office of Mental Health, in writing, with
a copy forwarded by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the applicant.
Such reply shall set forth the basis for the decision not to approve or
certify.
(e) Thirty days after the
expiration of the time to reply, the commissioner or his designee, shall:
(1) attempt to informally conciliate the
applicant and the local governmental unit; then,
(2) dismiss the appeal if the appeal is
without merit; or
(3) schedule a
hearing, if a substantial basis for appeal has been presented by the applicant,
and the efforts of conciliation have failed.
(f) The commissioner, or a hearing officer
appointed by the commissioner, shall conduct the hearing.
(1) Notice of the hearing shall be given to
the applicant, the local governmental unit, and such other persons as the
commissioner may deem advisable.
(2) The applicant, the representatives of the
local governmental unit, appropriate representatives of the Office of Mental
Health and other interested individuals may present their views to the
commissioner on the merits of the appeal. The hearing shall not be adjudicatory
in nature and the rules applying to quasi-judicial hearings shall not
apply.
(3) The commissioner shall
whenever possible designate a place in the county seat of the county from which
the appeal has arisen for the conduct of the hearing.
(g) A decision shall be made by the
commissioner or the hearing officer, as soon as possible after the date of the
hearing, on the appeal. The local governmental unit and the applicant shall be
notified of the decision. In every case where a decision is rendered in favor
of the applicant's proposal, the requirements of local government agreement or
certification, shall be deemed to have been satisfied.
