Code of Massachusetts Regulations › 760 CMR - HOUSING AND LIVABLE COMMUNITIES, EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF › Title 760 CMR 6.00 - Occupancy Standards and Tenant Participation for State-Aided Housing › Appendix B

Current through Register 1525, July 5, 2024
Grievance Procedure Provisions for a Single Hearing Officer
(1) Appointment of Hearing Officers and
			 Jurisdiction. This grievance procedure adopted by _______________Housing Authority
			 (LHA) requires a hearing and determination of a matter subject to the procedure by a
			 single hearing officer. The hearing officer shall be appointed to serve for a term
			 not to exceed seven years and shall serve all residents of state-aided public
			 housing in the city or town and participants in the Massachusetts Rental Voucher
			 Program (MRVP) and the Alternative Housing Voucher Program (AHVP) who hold vouchers
			 administered by the LHA, except for those persons who are subject to an different
			 grievance procedure.
Under this procedure the LHA shall from time to time nominate one or
				more persons to serve as hearing officer(s) to preside at and conduct hearings and
				to render prompt and reliable written determinations of matters at issue. The LHA
				shall submit its written nomination(s) for hearing officer(s) to each affected Local
				Tenant Organization (LTO). Each nomination shall include a resume of the nominee and
				the length of the term for which he or she is nominated. Within five days of receipt
				of a nomination any affected LTO may make a written request to the LHA to interview
				the nominee. Following such a request for an interview by an affected LTO, the LHA
				shall make prompt arrangements for an interview between the nominee and the LTO(s)
				which made the request. Within thirty days after the receipt of a nomination or
				within five days after its interview of a nominee, whichever is later, any affected
				LTO may approve or disapprove the nominee by giving written notice to the LHA. A
				notice of disapproval shall include the specific reason(s) why the LTO disapproved
				the nominee. If all affected LTO(s) shall approve a nominee or if no affected LTO
				shall disapprove a nominee within the requisite time, the nominee shall thereupon
				become a hearing officer upon written acceptance mailed or delivered to the LHA
				which shall notify the LTO(s).
Each hearing officer shall annually certify to the LHA that he or
				she is ready, willing and able to serve; failure to so certify within ten (10) days
				of receipt of a written request by the LHA shall render the hearing officer's
				position vacant.
(2) Impartiality of the
			 Hearing Officer. A hearing officer or a member of his or her family shall not have
			 and shall not appear to have any direct personal or financial interest in the
			 outcome of any matter before him or her. No hearing officer shall be related by
			 blood or marriage to any party or to any person who gives evidence as to facts which
			 are disputed by the parties. No hearing officer may determine matters which directly
			 concern his or her own housing or the housing of a family member or his or her own
			 status or the status of a family member in that housing. Each hearing officer shall
			 determine any matter at issue impartially and objectively on the basis of the
			 evidence and applicable law. Any hearing officer, who shall be or shall appear to be
			 unable to determine any matter impartially and objectively shall remove himself or
			 herself as hearing officer, whether or not he has been requested to do so.
(3) Removal of the Hearing Officer. A hearing
			 officer may be permanently removed from office at any time for inefficiency, neglect
			 of duty, willful and material delay of proceedings, bias or partiality. The LHA and
			 the affected LTO(s) may agree on removal after notice to the hearing officer and the
			 opportunity for him or her to be heard. In the absence of agreement, the Department
			 may remove a hearing officer for cause upon a request by the LHA or the LTO. Prior
			 to removing a hearing officer, the Department shall require a detailed written
			 specification of the reason(s) for removal and, if it finds the specification to set
			 out good and sufficient cause, shall give the hearing officer, the LHA and the
			 LTO(s) the opportunity to be heard. The Department's decision whether to remove a
			 hearing officer shall be in writing mailed to the hearing officer, the LHA, and the
			 LTO(s). If a written specification fails to detail good and sufficient cause for
			 removal, the Department shall deny a request for removal without a
			 hearing.
(4) Appointments of Interim
			 Hearing Officers. If there shall not be a hearing officer able and willing to serve
			 for one or more pending matters and if use of the appointment process in section (1)
			 of this grievance procedure would likely cause significant delay with potential
			 adverse consequences to either the LHA or the grievant, the LHA with notice to the
			 affected LTO(s) may request that an interim hearing officer be named by the
			 Department. Such a request shall be in writing and shall specify the reason for the
			 request. The affected LTO(s) shall be given a reasonable opportunity to comment on
			 the request. If the Department finds there to be a reasonable need for an interim
			 hearing officer, the Department shall name an interim hearing officer. The
			 Department may name a previously disapproved nominee to serve as interim hearing
			 officer if it finds that the LTO's stated reasons for disapproval did not constitute
			 good and sufficient cause for disapproving the nominee.
An interim hearing officer shall have all the powers and duties of a
				hearing officer and shall serve in the pending matters for which he or she was
				appointed. An interim hearing officer may be nominated by an LHA to be hearing
				officer in the manner set out herein.
(5)
			 Scheduling. The LHA shall be responsible for scheduling and other administrative
			 matters, including all necessary notices.
(6) Procedural Provisions. The provisions of
			 760 CMR 6.08(4)
			  are incorporated by reference into this grievance
			 procedure. These provisions include:
(a) the
			 provisions regarding the time and method for initiating a grievance;
(b) the requirement of a pre-hearing informal
			 settlement conference between grievant and the LHA about the grievance;
(c) the provisions regarding the LHA's setting a
			 hearing date and giving notice to grievant;
(d) the grievant's right to inspect relevant
			 documents and to secure copies before the grievance hearing;
(e) the provisions regarding who may be present at
			 the grievance hearing;
(f) the
			 procedural requirements for the conduct of grievance hearings; and
(g) the requirements regarding a written decision
			 following the grievance hearing.