Section 11 AAC 83.255 - Formal hearings(a) The department will hold a formal hearing for a lessee(1) when the lessee files a timely protest fulfilling the requirements of 11 AAC 83.250(a) and (b), waiving the right to an informal conference in favor of a formal hearing;(2) when the lessee files a request for a formal hearing within 30 days after the date of the conference officer's recommendation regarding that lessee's protest, if the request for a formal hearing fulfills the requirements of (b) of this section; or(3) when, under the facts and circumstances of a particular case, it appears appropriate to the department to conduct a formal hearing.(b) A lessee's request to continue its protest at a formal hearing after the department has acted on the conference officer's recommendation regarding that protest must (1) be mailed, electronically mailed, or personally delivered to: Office of the Commissioner, Alaska Department of Natural Resources, 550 W. 7th Avenue, Suite 1400, Anchorage, AK 99501, or DNRhearings@alaska.gov (2) state the nature of the lessee's continuing protest and the relief sought;(3) state the grounds for the lessee's protest, including the facts (if any) remaining at issue, the legal authority (statutes, regulations, or case law) and any generally accepted accounting principles that support the lessee's protest.(c) Upon receipt of the lessee's request for formal hearing, the department will promptly appoint a hearing officer to preside over that hearing.(d) On the hearing officer's own motion or at the request of the lessee or of a representative of the appropriate division of the department, the hearing officer may order that a prehearing conference be scheduled for the purpose of narrowing issues or establishing a schedule for the discovery or production of evidence, for submission of briefs or for stipulation of facts.(e) The formal hearing will be scheduled as early as possible at an office of the department nearest the lessee's place of business or at another time and place acceptable to the department and the lessee.(f) At the hearing, the lessee has the burden of proving its protest by a preponderance of the evidence. At the hearing both the lessee and the department's representative may introduce into evidence any materials relevant to a determination of the merit of the protest.(g) After the hearing, the hearing officer shall prepare a written decision, specifying the hearing officer's findings of fact and conclusions of law. Upon approval by the commissioner, the written decision of the hearing officer becomes the final decision of the department.Eff. 11/9/79, Register 72; am 8/10/2017,Register 223, October 2017Authority:AS 38.05.020
AS 38.05.180