Current through all regulations passed and filed through September 16, 2024
(A)
The bureau of
state hearings is responsible for preparing and issuing administrative
disqualification hearing decisions under the authority of the director of the
Ohio department of job and family services (ODJFS). The bureau of state
hearings shall designate hearing authorities to review the findings,
conclusions, and recommendations of the hearing officers and to issue decisions
under the authority of the ODJFS director.
(1)
No person designated as the hearing authority
shall have previously participated in the local agency decision being appealed,
nor shall the hearing authority and the hearing officer who conducted the
hearing be the same person.
(2)
Administrative disqualification hearing decisions shall be issued within ninety
days of the mailing date of the JFS 04061 "Notice to Appear for an
Administrative Disqualification Hearing" (rev. 1/2015
)
or its computer-generated equivalent.
The JFS 04061 form is generated in the hearings and
appeals tracking system (HATS X).
(3) If the hearing was postponed, under the
provisions of rule
5101:6-20-15
of the Administrative Code, the ninety-day time limit shall be extended by as
many days as the hearing was postponed.
(B) The hearing officer's findings of fact
shall be based exclusively on the evidence introduced at the hearing, or, if
the accused individual was represented at the hearing, after the hearing and
subject to examination and rebuttal by both parties as described in rule
5101:6-6-02
of the Administrative Code.
(1) The hearing
officer may be guided, but shall not be bound, by the Ohio Rules of Evidence
(as in effect on October 1, 2018) in conducting hearings and in making
findings of fact. The hearing officer shall consider all relevant evidence
offered at the hearing.
(2) Hearsay
evidence may be considered by the hearing officer in arriving at the findings
of fact. However, such evidence shall be critically evaluated, since it is not given
under oath and cannot be cross-examined to test the perception, memory, and
veracity of the declarant.
(3)
Direct evidence shall normally be given more weight than hearsay evidence when
the two are in conflict. Whenever possible, the hearing officer shall avoid
basing a finding of fact solely on hearsay evidence.
(4) It shall be the responsibility of the
local agency to show, by clear and convincing evidence, that the accused
individual committed an intentional program
violation.
(5) The hearing
officer's findings of fact shall be binding upon the hearing authority.
However, the hearing authority may remand the case to the hearing officer if
the hearing authority determines that additional facts not already established
by the hearing officer are essential to a correct decision, or if the evidence
relied upon was taken in violation of paragraph (B) of this rule.
(6) The scope of the remand shall be limited
to those additional facts which the hearing authority deems necessary. The
remand shall not be the occasion for a new determination of any of the facts
already established.
(C)
The hearing officer's conclusions of policy and recommendations shall be based
solely on rules of the Administrative Code, except when these regulations are
silent and reference to the Revised Code or other statutory source is necessary
to resolve the issue.
(1) The hearing
authority shall review conclusions and recommendations by the hearing officer,
and adopt them when they constitute a correct application of the appropriate
regulations.
(2) The hearing
authority shall amend conclusions and recommendations that do not correctly
apply the appropriate regulations, clearly explaining the reason and basis of
any such amendment.
(D)
The administrative disqualification hearing decision shall be limited to
determining whether the accused individual committed an intentional program violation and whether the
sanction period being proposed is appropriate.
(E) The administrative disqualification
hearing decision shall separately set forth the issue, the hearing officer's
findings of fact, conclusions of policy and recommendations, and the decision
and order.
(1) The issue section shall include
the programs for which administrative disqualification is proposed, the length
of the proposed disqualification period, and a brief statement of the alleged
activity upon which the local agency has based its proposal. When
disqualification in multiple programs has been proposed, they shall be stated
separately in the issue statement, and treated separately in the remainder of
the decision.
(2) When the
disqualification hearing has been combined with a state hearing, the state
hearing issues shall be decided in a separate state hearing decision, not in
the administrative disqualification hearing decision. Both decisions shall be
issued at the same time.
(3)
Procedural matters, such as delays due to postponement or amendments to the
issue, shall be followed by a clear and orderly chronological discussion of the
facts and events relevant to the issue. Findings of fact upon which all parties
agree shall normally be set forth first, followed by discussion and resolution
of factual disputes. The decision shall clearly indicate the basis for each
such finding, to include discussion of the relative weight given to the
conflicting evidence in arriving at the decision.
(4) The conclusions of policy shall cite and
summarize relevant portions of departmental rules or program manuals, and other
applicable regulations as necessary, and shall clearly demonstrate how they
apply to the facts established.
(5)
The hearing officer's recommendations shall address each program for which
administrative disqualification is proposed and shall state whether or not the
accused individual is found to have committed an
intentional program violation. When the hearing officer recommends that the
accused individual be disqualified, the hearing officer shall state the length
of the disqualification period to be imposed.
(6) When disqualification is ordered,
compliance shall be required, via the JFS 04068
"Order
of Compliance" (rev. 1/2015
) or its
computer-generated equivalent.
(7) The decision and order, signed by the
hearing authority, shall indicate adoption or amendment of the hearing
officer's recommendations and whether the accused individual is found to have
committed an intentional program violation. If
the accused individual is to be disqualified, it shall state the program(s) for
which disqualification shall be implemented and the length of the
disqualification period to be imposed.
(F) The individual and authorized
representative shall be provided with a written administrative disqualification
hearing decision via the JFS 04007
"Administrative Disqualification Hearing Decision" (rev.
1/2015
) or its
computer-generated equivalent. The JFS 04007 form
is generated in the hearings and appeals tracking system (HATS X). A copy
of the decision shall be sent to the local agency.
When the disqualification hearing is combined with a state
hearing, a separate decision shall be issued for the state hearing issue(s) in
accordance with rule
5101:6-7-01
of the Administrative Code, using the JFS 04005 "State Hearing Decision" (rev.
1/2015
) or its
computer-generated equivalent. The JFS 04005 form
is generated in the hearings and appeals tracking system (HATS X).
(G) The administrative
disqualification hearing decision, together with documents introduced at the
hearing and all papers and requests filed in the proceeding, shall constitute
the exclusive record. The hearing record shall be compiled and maintained by
the bureau of state hearings in accordance with applicable record retention
requirements and made available for review by the individual and authorized
representative.
(H)
The bureau of
state hearings shall maintain a library of all administrative
disqualification hearing decisions. The decisions shall be available for public
inspection and copying, subject to applicable disclosure safeguards.
(I) Administrative disqualification hearing
decisions shall be binding on the local agency for the individual case for
which the decision was rendered.
