Within 30 days after the applicant or permittee is
notified of the final decision of the Commission concerning the application for
a permit, revision or renewal thereof, permit, application for transfer, sale,
or assignment of rights, or concerning an application for coal exploration
under §
12.113 of this title (relating to
Applications: Notice and Hearing for Exploration of More Than 250 Tons), the
applicant, permittee, or any person with an interest which is or may be
adversely affected may request a hearing on the reasons for the final decision
in accordance with this section.
(1)
The Commission shall commence the hearing within 30 days of such request. This
hearing shall be of record, adjudicatory in nature, and the examiner from any
previous hearing on this matter shall not preside at the hearing, or
participate in the decision following the hearing, or in any administrative
appeal therefrom.
(2) The
Commission may, under such conditions as it may prescribe, grant such temporary
relief as it deems appropriate, pending final determination of the proceeding,
if:
(A) all parties to the proceeding have
been notified and given an opportunity to be heard on a request for temporary
relief;
(B) the person requesting
that relief shows that there is a substantial likelihood that he or she will
prevail on the merits of the final determination of the proceeding;
(C) the relief is not to affect adversely the
public health or safety, or cause significant, imminent environmental harm to
land, air, or water resources; and
(D) the relief sought is not the issuance of
a permit where a permit has been denied, in whole or in part, by the
Commission.
(3) With
regard to public hearings, the following shall apply:
(A) for the purpose of such hearing, the
hearing examiner may administer oaths and affirmations, subpoena witnesses,
written, or printed materials, compel attendance of witnesses or production of
those materials, compel discovery, and take evidence, including, but not
limited to, site inspections of the land to be affected and other surface coal
mining and reclamation operations carried on by the applicant in the general
vicinity of the proposed operations;
(B) a verbatim record of each public hearing
required by this section shall be made, and a transcript made available on the
motion of any party or by order of the hearing examiner; and
(C) ex parte contacts between representatives
of the parties before the hearing examiner and the hearing examiner shall be
prohibited.
(4) Within
30 days after the close of the record, the hearing examiner shall issue and
furnish the applicant, and each person who participated in the hearing, with
the written findings of fact, conclusions of law, and order of the Commission
with respect to the appeal.
(5) The
burden of proof at such hearings shall be on the party seeking to reverse the
decision of the Commission.
