New law creates independent office of administrative hearings

Spectrum, by Ed Hein

Recently the governor signed into law a bill, Senate Bill 203, that didn't get much media attention during the legislative session. It slipped under the radar because it's not a sexy or divisive issue. It was a bipartisan measure that never received a negative vote during its entire journey through the legislative process.

That may suggest to some that the new law is innocuous and won't accomplish much, but I think it has the potential to improve the administration of justice to thousands of Alaskans in years to come.

The new law creates an independent Office of Administrative Hearings and gives it jurisdiction to conduct hearings and issue decisions for 35 state agencies and programs, including Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend appeals, child support enforcement cases, occupational licensing matters, and most tax appeals from the Department of Revenue. The OAH may also hear other administrative cases referred to it by state agencies and departments.

The transfer of hearings and hearing officers out of individual agencies and into an independent office is more than mere bureaucratic reorganizing. It is a recognition that structural changes can bring about real improvements in the fairness, competence and cost-effectiveness of the state's administrative law hearings process.

The goals of the law are to create an independent professional corps of administrative law judges; improve the timeliness of hearings and the quality of decisions and cut costs.

Independence and impartiality: When a hearing officer is an employee of the very agency whose decision is being challenged, citizens understandably might question whether they will get a fair hearing.

The new central panel law removes judges from their agencies. These judges will now be supervised by a chief administrative law judge, who will be appointed for a five-year term by the governor and confirmed by the legislature. Physically relocating ALJs from their old agencies will distance them from informal communications and socializing with agency officials.

The law prohibits legislators, legislative employees, and public officers from attempting to influence the outcome of an administrative hearing by improperly contacting the assigned ALJ. Proposed decisions will become a permanent part of the public record, even if they are rejected or modified by the final agency decision maker.

Professionalism: All judges in the OAH must be licensed and experienced Alaska attorneys. They may not engage in private law practice while employed as an ALJ. The chief ALJ is required to adopt a code of conduct that governs not only OAH judges, but all hearing officers in the state. ALJs can be disciplined for ethical violations. The chief ALJ will also establish performance standards, peer review programs and continuing education for ALJs and hearing officers.

Timeliness of hearings and decisions: Under the new law, agencies are required to grant or deny requests for hearings within 10 days after receiving them. Unless otherwise provided by law or by agreement of the parties, a decision must be rendered within 120 days after a hearing is requested. In most cases, the agency will have to act on the decision within 45 days.

Efficiencies: It is projected that within a few years the state's overall costs of conducting hearings and issuing administrative decisions will be reduced as a result of efficiencies obtained by centralizing operations and consolidating hearings, publication of decisions, record keeping and training and supervision of ALJs in a single office.

Increased use of uniform rules and procedures may also result in indirect savings for regulated businesses, entities and individual members of the public who participate in administrative hearings.

Our legislators and governor should be congratulated for cooperating and producing a "good government" law that benefits the public. Senate President Gene Therriault, the real sponsor and champion of SB 203, deserves special recognition for this major accomplishment.

Ed Hein is a federal hearing officer in Juneau, and an officer and board member of the Alaska Association of Administrative Law Judges. The views expressed here are his own.