117-5            DPA Division of Public Assistance HEARING REPRESENTATIVE

The Division must designate an employee to represent the State agency at the fair hearing.  The DPA Division of Public Assistance hearing representative must argue the case, present evidence and witnesses, examine opposing witnesses, and persuade the hearing authority to uphold the agency’s action.

There are no impartiality requirements upon the DPA Division of Public Assistance hearing representative.  The DPA Division of Public Assistance hearing representative has the right to confer with the client and/or the client's representative(s) to attempt to resolve the issue prior to the hearing. The DPA Division of Public Assistance hearing representative may also discuss the issue with the supervisor, site manager, regional manager, the worker who took the action, the program officers or policy specialists, and anyone else who may be able to assist in the preparation of the case for hearing.  The DPA Division of Public Assistance hearing representative, however, must not discuss the case with the hearing authority who will preside over the hearing.

The DPA Division of Public Assistance hearing representative may examine all documents presented for inclusion in the hearing record before or during the hearing, and question evidence submitted into the hearing record.

Note:

For hearings in which denial of nursing home care or denial of medical services is at issue, a designee of the Director of the Division of Medical Assistance will represent the State agency at the hearing. In some instances, the Attorney General’s Office will also represent the State in issues involving Waiver, TEFRA Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act , and Nursing Home Medicaid cases.  

117-5 A.      THE DPA Division of Public Assistance HEARING REPRESENTATIVE'S RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Review the agency’s action and the results of the prehearing conference. Confer with the district office supervisor, site manager, or regional manager on the results of the prehearing conference if needed;

2. Send a request to the hearing authority to deny the hearing request that is untimely or inappropriate for a fair hearing;

3. Schedule the fair hearing within the allowed timeframes and notify the client, supervisor, and hearing authority of the scheduled fair hearing.

1. Obtain the time, date, and location of the hearing from the Office of Hearings and Appeals; and

2. Complete the Notice of Scheduled Fair Hearing and send it to the client, with copies of the schedule notice to the hearing authority, the district office supervisor, the client's representative, and any other person who may be involved in the hearing, such as representatives from partner agencies, service providers, and the Child Support Services Division.

Exception:  

Witnesses for either the agency or the client will be notified of the hearing time, date, and location through their respective parties.

4. Keep a record of the request to assure time frames are met;

5. Distribute copies of the request to the hearing authority and the supervisor monitoring the case;

6. Notify the hearing authority of the withdrawal in the event the fair hearing request is withdrawn by the client or conceded by the agency;

7. Coordinate with the client and hearing authority any postponements, reschedules, and continuances;

8. Provide clients an opportunity to review the contents of the DPA Division of Public Assistance case file;  

Note:

Upon client’s request, the agency will make available free of charge any portion of the case file or the materials necessary for the client or its representative to prepare for the hearing. Confidential information will not be provided and will be removed from the case file before allowing the client or client's representative to review the case file. Examples of confidential information are names of individuals who have disclosed information about the household without its knowledge and the nature or status of pending criminal prosecutions.

Any confidential information removed from the casefile may not be presented at the hearing and may not be made available to the hearing authority who will decide the issue.

9. Refer the client to the local Alaska Legal Services Corporation ( ALSC Alaska Legal Services Corporation ) office, or Disability Law Center ( DLC Disability Law Center ) in case of disability denials, for legal assistance and representation. Representation by ALSC Alaska Legal Services Corporation or DLC Disability Law Center is not required, but legal representation may be advantageous for the client;

10. Assist the client in preparing his or her case;

11. Make arrangements, if necessary, for an interpreter to be available at the fair hearing;

12. Prepare the agency position statement and supporting exhibits for presentation at the hearing, and mail copies to the hearing authority and the client at least seven days before the hearing;

Note:

For fair hearing issues concerning denial of disability determination by the Disability Determination Services, the DPA Division of Public Assistance hearing representative must send a copy of the original DDS Disability Determination Service file to the Fair Hearing Office seven days prior to scheduled hearing.  A copy of the file must also be mailed to the client within seven days prior to the hearing, and a copy kept with the hearing file.

13. Make the client's case file available at the hearing;

14. Present the agency position at the hearing;

15. Provide any additional information requested by the hearing authority during the fair hearing; and

16. Retain copies of the hearing request, position statement, supporting documents, and the hearing decision in the fair hearing case file.