Washington Administrative Code

If a respondent requests an adjudicative proceeding to contest the action, that party shall appear at all stages of the proceeding except as otherwise provided in this section.(1) If the respondent is represented as provided in this chapter, the respondent shall appear personally…

(1) When computing a period of time prescribed or allowed by an applicable statute or rule, the day of the act, event, or default from which the designated period of time begins to run is not included.(2) The last day of the computed period is included unless the last day is a Sa…

(1) A person's written statement, declaration, verification, certificate, or oath may be authenticated by a written statement which is executed in substantially the following form:I certify (or declare) under penalty of perjury under the laws of the state of Washington that the f…

Each license holder and applicant shall provide a current mailing address and all subsequent address changes to the program. Whenever service upon any such person is required by these rules, the most recent address provided may be used unless the program has actual knowledge that…

(1) License holders, applicants for license, and recipients of benefits may be represented subject to the following conditions:(a) A license holder or applicant for license may represent himself or herself or may be represented by an attorney who has complied with the admission t…

(1) For purposes of this section "document" means pleadings, briefs, exhibits, orders, or other materials requested or relevant to an adjudicative proceeding.(2) Filing. Filing is the act of delivering documents to the adjudicative clerk's office.(a) A party must file with the ad…

(1) The board has jurisdiction over all licenses issued by the board and over all holders of and applicants for licenses as provided in RCW 18.130.040 (2)(b) and (3). Such jurisdiction is retained even if an applicant abandons or requests to withdraw the application, or a license…

(1) The presiding officer may conduct all or part of the proceedings or permit a party or witness to appear by telephone or other electronic means if each participant in the proceedings has an opportunity to participate in, hear, and, if technically and economically feasible, see…

The presiding officer shall designate sites for the conduct of proceedings taking into account accessibility, efficiency, and economy.[Statutory Authority: RCW 18.130.050(1) and 18.130.060(3). WSR 94-04-078, § 246-11-110, filed 1/31/94, effective 3/3/94; WSR 93-08-003 (Order 347)…

Good faith is the standard for compliance with these rules. Failure to make a good faith effort to comply with these rules is grounds for sanctions as provided in this chapter.[Statutory Authority: RCW 43.70.040, 34.05.220, 34.05.410, 18.130.050, and 34.05.413 through 34.05.476. …

(1) All papers, exhibits, transcripts, and other materials required by or submitted in accordance with this chapter are public records.(2) Release of information upon a request for public records is subject to the following limitations:(a) Release of health care information must …

(1) The party requesting the appearance of a witness under a subpoena shall pay witness fees and expenses.(2) The party requesting service of an expert witness shall negotiate and pay fees for the expert witness.(3) The party incurring expenses in connection with proceedings unde…

The legislature has determined that persons who file complaints with or provide information to the department or board regarding health care practitioners licensed by the board or department are immune from civil liability, provided that such persons have acted in good faith. RCW…

(1) Official notice may be taken as provided in RCW 34.05.452(5).(2) The board may use its expertise and specialized knowledge to evaluate and draw inferences from the evidence presented to it.[Statutory Authority: RCW 18.130.050(1) and 18.130.060(3). WSR 94-04-078, § 246-11-160,…

(1) Orders may include sanctions against either party.(2) Grounds for sanctions may include:(a) Failure to comply with this chapter or orders of the presiding officer; and(b) Willful interference with the progress of proceedings.(3) Sanctions may include:(a) Dismissal of the matt…

(1) The presiding officer may grant a petition for intervention pursuant to RCW 34.05.443.(2) A request to intervene will be handled as a prehearing motion and will be subject to the dates contained in the scheduling order. The presiding officer may allow intervention if:(a) The …

(1) Pleadings, orders, and other papers filed, served, or entered under this chapter must:(a) Have a caption with the name of the state of Washington, the name of the board, and the title and cause number, if any, of the proceeding; and(b) Be signed by the person filing, serving,…

(1) "Limited-English proficiency" means, for purposes of this section and WAC 246-11-210, that a person is unable to communicate effectively in English because their primary language is not English and they have not developed fluency in the English language. A person with limited…

(1) A "hearing or speech impaired person" means a person who, because of a hearing or speech impairment cannot readily understand or communicate in spoken language. A "hearing impaired person" includes a person who is deaf, deaf and blind, or hard of hearing.(2) If a hearing or s…

(1) The board, through the presiding officer, or other designated person, and attorneys for parties may issue subpoenas to residents of the state of Washington, to license holders and applicants for license, and to other persons or entities subject to jurisdiction under RCW 4.28.…

(1) The board may appoint one or more persons as presiding officer for brief adjudicative proceedings as provided in WAC 246-11-430(1).(2) The board shall authorize one of the following to serve as presiding officer for adjudicative proceedings:(a) A board member; or(b) An indivi…

(1) Initiating documents shall include a clear and concise statement of the:(a) Identity and authority of the person issuing the document;(b) Factual basis for the action or proposed action set forth in the document;(c) Statutes and rules alleged to be at issue;(d) Identity of th…

(1) Prior to the hearing date, initiating documents may be amended:(a) Subject to the following conditions:(i) Amended initiating documents must meet the requirements of WAC 246-11-250(1).(ii) Amended initiating documents must be accompanied by the documents described in WAC 246-…

A respondent may respond to an initiating document by filing an application for an adjudicative proceeding or by waiving the opportunity for adjudicative proceeding.(1) If the respondent wishes to file an application for an adjudicative proceeding:(a) An application for adjudicat…

(1) If a party fails to respond to initiating documents according to WAC 246-11-270, that party will be deemed to have waived the right to a hearing, and the board shall enter a final order without further contact with that party.(2) If a party requests an adjudicative proceeding…

(1) Within thirty days after receipt of the application for adjudicative proceeding, the board or designee shall:(a) Approve the application for full adjudicative procedure and issue and serve on the parties a scheduling order or initial conference order establishing timelines fo…

(1) Except as otherwise required by law summary action may be taken under chapter 18.130 RCW only after a review by the board of such evidence, including affidavits or declarations, if appropriate, to establish:(a) The existence of an immediate threat to the public health, safety…

(1) Summary action takes effect upon entry of the order.(2) No person will be required to comply with a summary action until service has been made or the person has knowledge of the order, whichever occurs first.(3) A summary action must be served as promptly as practicable, in a…

(1) A summary action must be entered in the form of an order containing findings of fact, conclusions of law, and the summary action imposed, as well as a statement of policy reasons for the decision.(2) Except as otherwise required by law a summary action imposed by emergency ad…

Following summary action taken by the board, the respondent may:(1) Request a hearing as provided in RCW 18.130.090 and request a show cause hearing conducted in accordance with RCW 18.130.135 and WAC 246-11-340; or(2) Request a regularly scheduled adjudicative proceeding conduct…

(1) A license holder's request for a show cause hearing must be filed within twenty days of the service of the summary action. A license holder must also respond to the statement of charges by requesting a hearing or an extension of time as provided in RCW 18.130.090.(2) The show…

A settlement conference may be requested, a settlement may be offered, and a prehearing conference may be conducted prior to a prompt adjudicative proceeding. Prehearing proceedings shall not delay a prompt adjudicative proceeding except by mutual agreement of the parties.[Statut…

(1) Following a request for an adjudicative proceeding, a settlement conference may be held if settlement is not achieved through written documents. The parties shall arrange the date, time and place of the settlement conference. If another scheduling mechanism is issued, a settl…

The parties should exchange information and documents related to the case prior to the adjudicative proceeding. Formal discovery is obtained as follows:(1) Methods, scope and limits:(a) Parties may obtain discovery by production of records or things; deposition upon oral examinat…

(1) The presiding officer shall rule on motions. The presiding officer may rule on motions without oral argument or may request or permit the parties to argue the motion in person or by telephone. Oral argument may be limited in time at the discretion of the presiding officer.(2)…

(1) If a scheduling order is issued, the parties will be notified of the time and place of the first prehearing conference in the scheduling order. If another scheduling mechanism is issued, a prehearing conference will be held upon motion of either party, unless board policy pro…

(1) The presiding officer shall issue a protective order to preserve confidentiality related to health care records or provider-client information as required under state and federal law including, but not limited to, chapter 70.02 RCW; Public Law No. 104-191, 110 Statute 1936 (H…

(1) If an adjudicative proceeding is requested, a brief adjudicative proceeding will be conducted where the matter involves one or more of the following:(a) A determination whether an applicant for a license meets the minimum criteria for an unrestricted license and the board pro…

(1) The preliminary record with respect to an application for a license or for approval of a school or curriculum must consist of:(a) The application for the license or approval and all associated documents;(b) All documents relied upon by the program in proposing to deny the app…

(1) Brief adjudicative proceedings are conducted by a presiding officer for brief adjudicative proceedings designated by the board. The presiding officer for brief adjudicative proceedings shall have agency expertise in the subject matter but may not have personally participated …

(1) Initial orders on brief adjudicative proceedings become final twenty-one days after service of the initial order unless:(a) Administrative review has been requested pursuant to WAC 246-11-550; or(b) On its own initiative, the board determines to review the matter and, within …

The agency record of brief adjudicative proceedings must consist of:(1) The preliminary record as set forth in WAC 246-11-425;(2) All initiating documents including the notice of opportunity to defend;(3) The request for adjudicative proceeding;(4) All documents submitted in the …

Notice of an adjudicative proceeding must be issued pursuant to RCW 34.05.434.[Statutory Authority: RCW 43.70.040, 34.05.220, 34.05.410, 18.130.050, and 34.05.413 through 34.05.476. WSR 18-18-050, § 246-11-470, filed 8/29/18, effective 9/29/18. Statutory Authority: RCW 18.130.050…

(1) The adjudicative proceeding must be conducted as provided in RCW 34.05.449 through 34.05.455.(2) The presiding officer may take the following actions to the extent not already determined in a prehearing order:(a) Conduct the hearing de novo;(b) Determine the order of presenta…

(1) The presiding officer shall rule on objections to the admissibility of evidence pursuant to RCW 34.05.452 unless those objections have been addressed in the prehearing order.(2) The refusal of a witness to answer any question ruled proper is basis for the presiding officer, a…

At the conclusion of the hearing or by a date specified by the presiding officer, the presiding officer may require each party to submit to the presiding officer proposed findings of fact and conclusions of law and a proposed order.[Statutory Authority: RCW 18.130.050(1) and 18.1…

If the adjudicative proceeding is heard by the board or a panel of the board the presiding officer and board or panel of the board shall:(1) Issue a final order containing findings of fact and conclusions of law and an order; and(2) Cause the adjudicative clerk's office to serve …

(1) The order must be based on the kind of evidence upon which reasonably prudent persons are accustomed to rely in the conduct of their affairs.(2) In all cases involving an application for license the burden is on the applicant to establish that the application meets all applic…

(1) When two or more applications for adjudicative proceeding involve a similar issue, the applications may be consolidated by the presiding officer and the hearings conducted together. The presiding officer or hearings officer may consolidate on his or her own motion or upon the…

(1) If the adjudicative proceeding is not heard by the board or panel of the board the presiding officer shall:(a) Issue an initial order containing proposed findings of fact, conclusions of law, and a proposed order;(b) Cause the adjudicative clerk's office to serve a copy of th…