OAR 833-001-0015: Hearing Request and Answers; Consequences of Failure to Answer

(1) A hearing request must be made in writing to the Board by the party or the party's attorney within 21 calendar days after the date the notice was issued. (2) If an answer is required, it must be made in writing to the Board by the party or the party's attorney within 21 calendar days after the date the notice was issued and must include the following: (a) An admission or denial of each factual matter alleged in the notice; (b) A short and plain statement of each relevant affirmative defense the party may have. (3) Except for good cause: (a) Factual matters alleged in the notice and not denied in the answer will be presumed admitted; (b) Failure to raise a particular defense in the answer will be considered a waiver of such defense; (c) New matters alleged in the answer (affirmative defenses) will be presumed to be denied by the agency; and (d) Evidence will not be taken on any issue not raised in the notice and the answer. (4) Contested case hearings are closed to the public. (5) The Board’s disciplinary and suspension cases brought under ORS 675.745 are exempt from the requirements of OAR 137-003-0655(7), which requires an agency to give written notice to the administrative law judge and all parties of the date by which the agency expects to issue an amended proposed order or a final order if the agency will not issue an amended proposed order or final order within 90 days of the proposed order. Due to the complexity of Board cases and the infrequency of regularly scheduled Board meetings, 90 days is an insufficient time for the Board to issue an amended proposed order or a final order.