OAR 413-010-0505: Hearing Requests

(1) To request a hearing under OAR 413-010-0500(2)(a): (a) The party or the party's representative must complete and sign a hearing request form approved by the Department; and (b) The form must be received by the Department not later than 30 days following the mailing date or date of personal delivery of the notice. (2) Requests for a hearing under OAR 413-010-0500(2)(b)-(d) and (f)-(g) must be in writing and must be postmarked or received by the Department by the date specified in the Department's notice or the applicable rule setting a hearing request deadline, whichever is later. (3) In the event a request for a hearing is not timely, OAR 137-003-0528 applies, except to the extent provided otherwise in section (5) of this rule. (4) If a contested case notice was sent by regular mail, and the party or party's representative indicates that neither the party nor the party's representative received or had actual knowledge of the contested case notice, the Department must advise the party or party's representative of the right to request a hearing under section (5) of this rule. (5) When the Department receives a hearing request that is not filed within the timeframe required by section (1) or section (2) of this rule but is filed no later than 60 days after a notice becomes a final order under OAR 413-010-0510(3): (a) If the Department finds that the party and party's representative did not receive the written notice and did not have actual knowledge of the notice, the Department refers the request for a hearing to the Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) for a contested case hearing on the merits of the Department's action described in the notice. (b) The Department may refer the request for a hearing to the OAH for a contested case proceeding to determine whether the party or party's representative received the written notice or had actual knowledge of the notice. At the hearing, the Department must show that the party or party's representative had actual knowledge of the notice or that the Department mailed the notice to the correct address of the party or party's representative. (6) Upon receipt of a hearing request that is not described in OAR 413-010-0500(2), the Department may enter an order that the hearing request is not eligible for referral to OAH. Alternately, the Department may refer a hearing request to OAH for a decision on the question of whether there is a right to a contested case hearing.