Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 300-2-5-.02 - Benefit Appeals to an Administrative Hearing Officer
Current through Rules and Regulations filed through April 4, 2022
(1) The appeal.
(a) Any party of interest dissatisfied with
an administrative determination may file in writing a notice of appeal with the
department, setting forth the name of the claimant and the social security
number contained on the determination and the date of such determination. An
appeal may be filed online via internet, by mail, by overnight statutory mail,
or by hand delivery to the department.
(b) A determination establishing or denying a
right to draw benefits shall be deemed final, unless a written appeal is filed
within fifteen (15) days after the determination is handed to or mailed to an
interested party. An appeal will be considered timely filed if it is properly
filed via the internet (in accordance with instructions provided by the
department for such filing), postmarked, or hand delivered within fifteen (15)
days of the mailing date of the determination. For purposes of these rules, a
postal meter mark will not be considered to be a postmark. Determinations which
are appealed via alternative means of delivery such as private courier,
facsimile transmittal, or otherwise in parcels lacking physical evidence of
delivery by the U.S. Postal Service shall be deemed filed on the date the
appeal is received by the department pursuant to Official Code of Georgia
Annotated Section
50-13-23.
(c) An employer who is liable for the payment
of unemployment insurance tax, is reimbursable or is a governmental agency; who
has paid that individual insured wages for services; and who is entitled to
notice of claim filed by that individual as the most recent employer, as
defined by O.C.G.A. Section
34-8-43,
shall be deemed to be an interested party to the administrative determination
of such claim.
(2) The
notice of hearing.
(a) Claimant benefit
hearings shall be scheduled promptly to be conducted by telephone. The Chief
Administrative Hearing Officer shall determine the time, place, and manner in
which telephone appeals hearings shall be conducted. Once a hearing has been
scheduled, postponement or continuation of the hearing is within the discretion
of the Chief Administrative Hearing Officer or their designee or, if the
hearing has commenced, the administrative hearing officer presiding over the
hearing. In person hearings will only be scheduled when physical impairments of
the interested parties and/or witnesses, the complexity or nature of the case
and other pertinent factors are shown to the Chief Administrative Hearing
Officer or their designee, who shall determine whether the need for an in
person hearing has been established, and the time, place, and manner in which
any such in person hearing shall be conducted.
(b) Hearings conducted telephonically, except
where waiver is given, shall be heard by an administrative hearing officer no
earlier than ten (10) days after written notice of the time and place is mailed
to the interested parties. In-person appeals, when allowed and except where
waiver is given, shall be heard by an administrative hearing officer at the
earliest possible date, but no earlier than seven (7) days after written notice
of the time and place is mailed to the interested parties.
(c) The notice of hearing shall cite the
sections of law pertinent to the appeal and include a general statement of the
issues involved.
(3) The
hearing.
(a) The administrative hearing
officer shall administer the oath to all witnesses prior to accepting testimony
and shall conduct the hearing in an orderly manner, maintaining control and
preventing any disruption of the hearing process. The administrative hearing
officer shall develop the record by conducting appropriate inquiries and shall
allow each party an opportunity to examine and cross-examine witnesses on all
matters pertinent to the issues. No testimony shall be taken that does not
permit the parties of interest an opportunity for cross-examination. Any
individual who disrupts the procedures, after warning, may be ejected and
denied any further participation in the hearing.
(b) Issuance of subpoenas. Subpoenas to
compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of records pertinent to
any hearing of an appeal shall be issued by the Chief Administrative Hearing
Officer upon request therefor from a party of interest. The Department shall be
a party of interest for the purposes of this rule.
1. The Department must receive the request
for subpoenas at least five (5) business days prior to the hearing
date.
2. The request shall state
the reason why the subpoenas are needed.
3. The party requesting the subpoenas shall
have the responsibility of serving the subpoenas.
4. Service shall be completed no less than
three (3) business days prior to the hearing date for it to be considered
timely.
5. The Department shall not
be responsible for any fees associated with the production of documents or
service of subpoenas.
(c) Witness Fees.
1. In-Person Hearings. A witness fee of
$10.00 per day per docket shall be paid to a subpoenaed person in attendance at
an in-person hearing; provided, however, that no witness fee shall be paid
unless the subpoenaed person makes written request to the Department, on a form
established by the Department, within seven (7) days of participation in the
hearing. The total witness fees paid to an individual shall not exceed $30.00
per appeal. Witness fees shall not be paid to a party representative or an
employee of an employer subpoenaed by that employer.
2. Telephonic Hearings. Witness fees shall
only be paid for attendance at in-person hearings.
(d) Appeals involving multi-claimants or a
labor dispute may be heard by a three-person tribunal consisting of an
administrative hearing officer, as chairman, and two other members appointed by
the Commissioner for that purpose, except when the administrative hearing
officer is designated to hear the matter alone. When heard by a three-person
tribunal, the decision of two-members of the tribunal shall constitute the
decision of the tribunal. The other member may file a dissenting report giving
reasons for not agreeing with the decision.
(e) Appeals involving multi-claimants or
involving a labor dispute may be heard at any place designated by the chairman
of the three-person tribunal or the designated administrative hearing officer
hearing these appeals.
(4) Form and contents of decision. The
administrative hearing officer shall observe the suggestions of the Employment
and Training Administration, United States Department of Labor in regard to the
form and contents of benefit decisions.
(5) A postponement of the hearing may be
granted upon request showing providential cause will prevent the attendance of
a party or essential witnesses. A request for postponement must be made at the
earliest practical time and must be made in writing or by facsimile
transmission. In the absence of very unusual circumstances, a business
engagement will not constitute good cause for postponement. Such requests may
be granted or denied at the discretion of the Chief Administrative Hearing
Officer.
(6) Requests to reopen a
hearing. Any interested party, including the department, who fails to appear
may request to reopen a hearing within fifteen (15) days after the
administrative hearing officer's decision is issued. The petition shall state
fully the ground upon which the request to reopen a hearing is sought, giving
complete details for the failure to appear as scheduled. A new hearing will
then be scheduled to cover the issue of the party's failure to appear as
scheduled and may also include the issues raised on the initial appeal. In the
absence of very unusual circumstances a business engagement will not constitute
good cause to reopen a hearing. The petition to reopen a hearing may be granted
upon a showing of providential cause for failure to attend or failure to give
timely notice of inability to attend the original hearing.
(7) Correction of error and augmentation of
the record. Any interested party, including the department, may request
correction of an administrative hearing officer or the board of review decision
if the request is made in writing and filed or mailed within fifteen (15)
calendar days of the release date of the decision. The administrative hearing
officer or the board of review retains jurisdiction to reopen the hearing,
amend or correct any decision which is not final, or exercise continuing
jurisdiction as provided by the rules pertaining to OCGA Section
34-8-220
unless the board of review has accepted an appeal Whenever a request for
correction is submitted to the administrative hearing officer or the board of
review, a decision will be issued and new appeal rights will be
established.
(8) Requests for
removal of an administrative hearing officer from a case. A party may request
that an administrative hearing officer remove himself or herself from a case on
the basis of partiality, interest or prejudice. An administrative hearing
officer's employment with the department shall not, by itself, be sufficient
cause for removal of an administrative hearing officer from a case. The request
for removal must be made in writing prior to the hearing, unless the reason for
the request was not or could not have been known prior to the hearing. The
request must state specific facts which are alleged to establish cause for
removal. If the administrative hearing officer agrees that he or she should be
reassigned, another administrative hearing officer will be assigned to the
case. However, if the administrative hearing officer finds no reason to remove
himself or herself, he or she will rule on the request verbally during the
hearing and explain the basis for the ruling. Challenges to the partiality of
the administrative hearing officer will not result in a delay of the hearing.
Appeals pertaining to the partiality of the administrative hearing officer may
be filed consistent with the time limitations for appealing the
decision.
Notes
The following state regulations pages link to this page.
State regulations are updated quarterly; we currently have two versions available. Below is a comparison between our most recent version and the prior quarterly release. More comparison features will be added as we have more versions to compare.