15 C.F.R. § 21.10 Review procedures.
Title 15 - Commerce and Foreign Trade
(a) The oral hearing will be conducted as follows: (1) The hearing official will take necessary steps to ensure that the hearing is conducted in a fair and expeditious manner. If necessary, the hearing officer may administer oaths of affirmation. (2) The hearing official need not use the formal rules of evidence with regard to admissibility of evidence or the use of evidence once admitted. However, parties may object to clearly irrelevant material. (3) The hearing official will record all significant matters discussed at the hearing. There will be no “official” record or transcript provided for these hearings. (4) A debtor may represent himself or herself or may be represented by an attorney or other person. The Department will be represented by the General Counsel or his designee. (5) The General Counsel (or designee) will proceed first by presenting evidence on the relevant issues. The debtor then presents his or her evidence regarding these issues. The General Counsel then may offer evidence to rebut or clarify the evidence introduced by the debtor. (b) Administrative review of the record: The Departmental unit head (or designee) will designate an official of the Department as hearing official who will review administrative determinations of indebtedness which are not reviewable under criteria provided in §21.9(a) for justifying an oral hearing. The hearing official will review all material related to the debt which is in the possession of the Department. The hearing official will make a determination based upon a review of this written record, which may include a request for reconsideration of the determination of indebtedness, or such other relevant material submitted by the debtor. (c) The Department may effect an administrative offset against a payment to be made to a debtor prior to the completion of any of the due process procedures required by this section, if failure to take the offset would substantially prejudice the Department's ability to collect the debt. For example, if the time before the payment is to be made to the debtor by another Federal department or agency would not reasonably permit the completion of due process procedures, the offset may be accomplished by the Department. Such offset prior to completion of due process review hearing will be promptly followed by the completion of review and decision by the hearing official on the validity of the debt. Amounts recovered by offset in these instances, but later found not owed to the agency, will be promptly refunded.
Title 15: Commerce and Foreign Trade
PART 21—ADMINISTRATIVE OFFSET
§ 21.10 Review procedures.
