§ 668.90 Authority and responsibilities of the hearing official.

(a) The hearing official regulates the course of a hearing and the conduct of the parties during the hearing. The hearing official takes all necessary steps to conduct a fair and impartial hearing.

(b)

(1) The hearing official is not authorized to issue subpoenas.

(2) If requested by the hearing official, the parties to a hearing shall provide available personnel who have knowledge about the matter under review for oral or written examination.

(c) The hearing official takes whatever measures are appropriate to expedite a hearing. These measures may include, but are not limited to, the following—

(1) Scheduling of conferences;

(2) Setting time limits for hearings and submission of written documents; and

(3) Terminating the hearing and issuing a decision against a party if that party does not meet those time limits.

(d) The hearing official is bound by all applicable statutes and regulations. The hearing official may not—

(1) Waive applicable statutes and regulations; or

(2) Rule them invalid.

[51 FR 43325, Dec. 1, 1986, as amended at 57 FR 47753, Oct. 19, 1992; 59 FR 22448, Apr. 29, 1994. Redesignated at 82 FR 6257, Jan. 19, 2017]