(a) If
the President and Chief Executive Officer suspends the processing of student
aid request forms for students at an approved institution or ceases
disbursement of funds to an approved institution, the institution will be
notified in writing of the action and the grounds therefor and will be afforded
an opportunity to contend to the Agency that the processing of aid request
forms or disbursement of funds should be resumed and to submit relevant data in
support of this contention.
(b) If
the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Agency determines that an
institution is not an eligible institution within the meaning of this chapter
for a program administered by the Agency, the institution will be notified in
writing of the determination, the grounds therefor and its right to appeal from
the decision.
(c) An institution
which is aggrieved by the determination of the President and Chief Executive
Officer that it is not an eligible institution may file an appeal of that
determination to the Board. This subsection supersedes 1 Pa. Code §
35.20
(relating to appeals from actions of the staff).
(d) An appeal shall be filed on or before the
15th day after the date on which notification of the determination by which the
institution was aggrieved was mailed to it at its post office address
registered with the Agency.
(e) The
appeal may be heard by the Board or, at its direction, by a hearing examiner
appointed by the Chairperson of the Board or, in the event of the
unavailability of the Chairperson, by the Vice Chairperson of the Board, from a
list maintained by the President and Chief Executive Officer. The hearing
examiner or the Board will schedule the appeal for hearing within 30 days from
the date on which the appeal is filed and will give the institution at least 7
days' notice of the hearing. The notice will specify the date, hour and place
of hearing.
(f) Hearings will be
held at the offices of the Agency in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. During the
hearing, the institution will be given the opportunity to submit relevant
evidence in support of its contentions. The institution shall also have the
right to present oral and written argument and to cross-examine witnesses which
are offered by the Agency. This subsection supplements 1 Pa. Code §
35.126
(relating to presentation by the parties).
(g) The hearing examiner or the Board will
prepare or cause the preparation of a verbatim transcript of the hearing. When
the appeal is heard by a hearing examiner, findings of fact and conclusions of
law shall also be prepared, and the transcript, findings and conclusions shall
be forwarded directly to the Board for review and a final decision by the
Board. This subsection supplements 1 Pa. Code §
35.131 (relating to
recording of proceedings) and supersedes 1 Pa. Code §
35.202 (relating to
proceedings in which proposed reports are prepared).
(h) The Board will make an order or
determination as shall appear just and proper from all the evidence submitted.
Notice of the decision of the Board will be mailed promptly to the institution
at the post office address which is registered with the Agency.
(i) The decision of the Board will become
final 10 days after the date thereof. Within 30 days after the decision of the
Board becomes final, the institution may file an appeal therefrom with
Commonwealth Court.
Notes
The
provisions of this § 121.34 adopted October 28, 1977, effective
10/29/1977, 7 Pa.B. 3195;
amended August 7, 1981, effective 8/8/1981, 11 Pa.B. 2760; amended February 22,
1985, effective 2/23/1985, 15
Pa.B. 670; amended October 16, 1987, effective 10/17/1987, 17 Pa.B. 4120; amended October 4,
1991, effective 10/5/1991, 21
Pa.B. 4637; amended July 12, 1996, effective 7/13/1996, 26 Pa.B.
3321.
The provisions of this § 121.34 issued under
section 4 of the act of August 7, 1963 (P. L. 549, No. 290) (24 P. S. §
5104); section 1 of the act of January 25,
1966 (P. L. 1546, No. 541) (24 P. S. §
5151); and sections 3 and 4(1.2) of the act
of July 12, 1981 (P. L. 264, No. 89) (24 P. S. §§
5102.1 and
5104(1.2)); amended under
section 4 of the act of August 7, 1963 (P. L. 549, No. 290) (24 P. S. §
5104); section 1 of the act of January 25,
1966 (P. L. 1546, No. 541) (24 P. S. §
5151); the act of July 18, 1974 (P. L. 483,
No. 174) (24 P. S. §§
5181-5189); the act of July 1,
1988 (P. L. 1259, No. 155) (24 P. S. §§
5191-5197); and the act of June
26, 1992 (P. L. 322, No. 64) (24 P. S. §§
5198.1-5198.7).
This section cited in 22 Pa. Code §
121.151 (relating to application
of existing Agency regulations).
