WSR 24-01-091
PERMANENT RULES
OFFICE OF
ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS
[Filed December 18, 2023, 10:15 a.m., effective January 18, 2024]
Effective Date of Rule: Thirty-one days after filing.
Purpose: To improve clarity and readability of chapter 10-04 WAC by adding "OAH" definition of "Office" to mean the office of administrative hearings, identifies the agency's physical locations, and that the agency procedures are in Title 10 WAC.
Citation of Rules Affected by this Order: Amending WAC 10-04-015 and 10-04-025.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW
34.12.080.
Adopted under notice filed as WSR 23-21-080 on October 16, 2023.
Changes Other than Editing from Proposed to Adopted Version: Deleted the second-to-last sentence proposed in WAC 10-04-025 about current agency divisions.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at the Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's own Initiative: New 0, Amended 2, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 2, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Date Adopted: December 18, 2023.
Lorraine Lee
Chief Administrative Law Judge
OTS-5015.1
AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 18-01-144, filed 12/20/17, effective 1/20/18)
WAC 10-04-015Definitions.
The definitions set forth in RCW
42.56.010 apply throughout this chapter, unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
(1) "Case" means an adjudicative proceeding as defined in RCW
34.05.010(1).
(2) "Case file" means the same thing as "official record" while a case is pending with the office. Once a case is no longer pending with the office, "case file" means any records possessed by the office which are copies of all or part of the official record.
(3) "Days" means calendar days unless otherwise stated.
(4) "Office" and "OAH" mean((s)) the office of administrative hearings. Where appropriate, office also refers to the staff and employees of the office of administrative hearings.
(5) "Official record" means the complete record of a case, as defined in RCW
34.05.476. The official record may be either paper or electronic. The official record does not include any additional copies or drafts of documents, or notes.
(6) "Page" means one impression on a single side of a sheet of paper, or the electronic equivalent.
(7) "Public records officer" means the public records officer or designee for the office appointed by the chief administrative law judge.
(8) "Referring agency" means an agency that refers cases to the office under RCW
34.05.425 (1)(c).
OTS-5016.2
AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 18-01-144, filed 12/20/17, effective 1/20/18)
WAC 10-04-025Organization, operations, and procedures.
((The office is under the direction of))The chief administrative law judge directs OAH. Administrative law judges preside over hearings ((in cases)) and issue initial or final orders, including findings of fact and conclusions of law. ((Administrative law judges are assigned to locations))OAH is physically located in Olympia, Seattle, Spokane Valley, and Tacoma. Procedures governing administrative proceedings and other information are available in Title 10 of the Washington Administrative Code (WAC).