HB 5481 Summary

• Establishes a Central Office of Administrative Hearings within the Office of Governmental Accountability, effective October 1, 2014, to conduct impartial hearings in contested cases.

• Creates the position of Chief Administrative Law Judge, nominated by the Governor and approved by the General Assembly, requiring at least 10 years of law practice and administrative law expertise.

• Transfers administrative law judges and supporting staff from specified agencies (Department of Children and Families, Department of Transportation, Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities, Freedom of Information Commission, State Elections Enforcement Commission, Office of State Ethics, Judicial Review Council, and nursing facility cases) to the new central office effective January 1, 2015.

• Employees transferred to the office retain their salaries, seniority, benefits, and collective bargaining protections without reduction or loss of job classification.

• Establishes procedural requirements for contested case hearings including 90-day decision deadlines, proposed final decisions subject to agency review, and appeals to Superior Court within 45 days of final decisions.