New Jersey Administrative Code › Title 17 - TREASURY - GENERAL › Chapter 47 - BUSINESS CERTIFICATION FOR LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENDER, QUEER, QUESTIONING+ (LGBTQ+) BUSINESSES › Subchapter 1 - CERTIFICATION › Section 17:47-1.9 - Procedure for challenges to a business certified as an LGBTQ+ business

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
(a) A third-party
				may challenge the qualifications of an applicant, or a certified entity,
				pursuant to this chapter for eligibility to be certified as an LGBTQ+ business
				and be included in the SAVI database.
(b) A third-party finding cause to challenge
				a business' certification as an LGBTQ+ business shall submit an appeal to the
				Director, or designated hearing officer, setting forth, in detail, the grounds
				for such challenge in a written statement with copies to the challenged
				business and to the appropriate contracting agency, if a specific contract is
				at issue. The challenge shall contain the specific grounds for challenging the
				certification, including all arguments, materials, and/or other documentation
				that may support the challenger's position. A challenge pursuant to this
				subsection is limited to the authenticity of a business pursuant to this
				chapter to be certified as an LGBTQ+ business. The right to challenge a
				currently certified LGBTQ+ business is, in addition to, and independent of, any
				protest hearing rights that are afforded by any State contracting
				agency.
(c) When the Division, or
				designated hearing officer, receives a challenge, the Division shall notify the
				affected business in writing.
(d)
				Upon proper notice, the Division or designated hearing officer shall conduct a
				hearing on the matter as follows:
1. The
				business must request the hearing within 10 days after receipt of notice that
				the business' certification is subject to a challenge;
2. The Director, or designated hearing
				officer, has sole discretion to determine if an in-person presentation is
				necessary to reach an informed decision on the matter(s) of the appeal.
				In-person presentations are fact-finding for the benefit of the Director, or
				designated hearing officer. The Director, or designated hearing officer, has
				the discretion to limit attendance at an in-person presentation to those
				parties likely to be affected by the outcome of the proceeding. The Director,
				or designated hearing officer, shall notify all interested parties of the time
				and place of the hearing, and of the right to attend and be represented at the
				hearing;
3. The Director, or
				designated hearing officer, shall resolve any challenge received by written
				decision based on the Director's, or designated hearing officer's, review of
				the written record including, but not limited to, the business's application,
				the written appeal, pertinent administrative rules, statutes, and case law, and
				any associated documentation deemed appropriate. In cases where no in-person
				presentation is held, such review of the written record shall, in and of
				itself, constitute an informal hearing. The burden of proof lies with the
				third-party challenger. However, the Director, or designated hearing officer,
				may use his or her own resources to ascertain the viability of a challenge and
				the status of a business;
4. The
				determination issued by the Director, or designated hearing officer, shall be a
				final agency decision, which shall be appealable to the Appellate Division of
				the Superior Court;
5. The
				Director, or designated hearing officer, is entitled to request, receive, and
				review copies of any and all records and documents deemed appropriate and
				relevant to the issues and arguments set forth in the challenge. Upon receipt
				of the Director's, or designated hearing officer's request, the business shall
				promptly provide the requested records or information. The Director, or
				designated hearing officer, may also consider relevant information requested
				and received from other parties deemed appropriate; and
6. An applicant who receives a decision from
				the Director, or designated hearing officer, that the certification has been
				revoked may reapply for certification one year after the date of
				revocation.