California Code of Regulations › Title 2 - Administration › Division 5 - State and Federal Grant-in-Aid Program Merit Systems › Chapter 2 - Department Administered Interagency Merit System for Program Employees › Section 17045 - Appeals from Program Employee's Disciplinary Action

Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 28, July 12, 2024
(a) A Program employee may appeal a
				Disciplinary Action to the Department within 30 calendar days of the date on
				which the Disciplinary Action became effective. The appeal must be in writing
				and need not be in any particular form but shall include a description for the
				basis of the appeal and the relief requested by the appellant. The Department
				shall ensure that the Local Agency receives a copy of the appeal and all
				materials provided by the appellant. The appeal does not delay the effective
				date of the Disciplinary Action.
(b) The Director shall designate a Hearing
				Officer who is an Administrative Law Judge to hear the appeal and prepare a
				proposed decision for the Director's consideration. The Hearing Officer shall
				preside over all aspects of the hearing, may grant or refuse extensions of
				time, set the hearing dates, conduct the hearing and administer oaths to
				witnesses, rule on the submission of evidence, request additional evidence or
				the submission of documents by the parties, including legal briefs, and perform
				any and all other acts in connection with the hearing that may be necessary.
				Hearings are public, although witnesses may be excluded, unless the Hearing
				Officer determines that it is appropriate to close the hearing.
(c) Each party shall have these rights: to
				call and examine witnesses; to be represented by counsel or another
				representative of their choosing; to request the issuance of subpoenas and
				subpoenas duces tecum; to introduce exhibits; to cross-examine opposing
				witnesses on any matter relevant to the issue, even though that matter was not
				covered in the direct examination; and to impeach any witness regardless of
				which party first called the witness to testify. The party with the burden of
				proof shall have the opportunity to rebut the evidence.
(d) If an appellant does not testify on his
				or her behalf, the appellant may be called and examined as on cross-examination
				by the Local Agency. The hearing need not be conducted according to technical
				rules of evidence. Any relevant evidence shall be admitted if it is the sort of
				evidence on which responsible persons are accustomed to rely in the conduct of
				serious affairs. Hearsay evidence shall be admitted and may be used for the
				purpose of supplementing or explaining any direct evidence, but shall not be
				sufficient in itself to support a finding unless it is the type of hearsay
				admissible over objection in a civil action. The rules of privilege shall be
				effective to the same extent to which they are now or may hereafter be
				recognized in civil actions. Irrelevant and unduly repetitious evidence may be
				excluded.
(e) The Local Agency
				shall have the burden of proving by a preponderance of evidence that the
				Disciplinary Action is supported by the evidence and that proper procedures
				were followed.
(f) The Department
				shall issue a decision within 90 calendar days of submission of all of the
				evidence or other information requested by the Hearing Officer and shall
				provide the decision to both parties. The decision may uphold the Disciplinary
				Action in all respects, or modify the penalty assessed to a lower level of
				discipline if a lesser penalty is available under the Local Agency Personnel
				System.
(g) After 30 calendar days,
				the decision shall be binding on the Local Agency and is the final
				administrative decision in the matter. Notwithstanding the above, within 30
				calendar days after service of a copy of a decision, any party may file a
				petition for rehearing with the Department. The petition shall be in writing
				and shall contain all the grounds upon which the party requesting rehearing
				believes the petition should be granted. Within 30 calendar days after such a
				filing, the Department shall serve a copy of the petition on the other parties
				to the proceeding. Within 60 calendar days after service of the petition for
				rehearing on the non-requesting parties, the Director shall either approve or
				deny the petition in whole or in part. Failure to act upon a petition within
				this 90 calendar day period shall be deemed a denial of the petition. If a
				petition for rehearing is granted, the matter may be set for rehearing or the
				Department may reconsider the appeal based solely upon the existing record and
				arguments provided by the parties. The Hearing Officer shall determine the
				scope, procedures, and the schedule for any subsequent proceedings.
1. New section
				  filed 6-23-2016; operative 6-23-2016. Submitted to OAL for filing and printing
				  only (Register 2016, No. 26).
Note: Authority cited: Sections
					 19800,
					 19801,
					 19803 and
					 19811,
					 Government Code. Reference: Sections
					 19803 and
					 19805,
					 Government Code.