At adjudicative hearings, parties present evidence and testimony for and against a proposed facility and potential conditions to be imposed for its construction and operation. The information gathered through these hearings becomes part of the official record used to decide whether to recommend approval of an application to the Governor.
Steps in Land use and adjudication
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About this milestone
Adjudicative hearings are similar to courtroom proceedings. They allow us to hear from "parties" with an interest in the proposed facility under discussion. The parties may introduce expert testimony and cross-examination of witnesses.
We often hire an administrative law judge (ALJ) to conduct hearings because of their expertise managing trial type proceedings and ruling on procedural and evidentiary issues.
Who can participate
- The applicant
- State agencies and local governments with members on our Council
- The Attorney General's Counsel for the Environment, who represents the public’s interests in protecting the environment
We recommend that each party be represented by a lawyer. A state agency may choose to have their Assistant Attorney General represent them.
Petitions to intervene
Other people or groups can petition us to become “interveners” in the hearing. The decision to approve or deny petitions are made based on whether and how the proposed facility is likely to affect the person or group seeking to intervene.
What happens after hearings
We’ll consider the information each party and intervener provided. Then, we’ll issue an administrative order with our:
- Findings of fact
- Conclusions of law
The order becomes a part of the full decision-making record that Council members will use when making their recommendation to the Governor.
Related steps
Prior to issuing an order for an adjudicative proceeding, we will have made a determination about land use consistency and issue a SEPA threshold determination, and perhaps a draft environmental impact statement. The land use consistency and SEPA threshold determinations will determine the issues to be considered in the adjudicative proceeding. In some cases, we may be able to limit our adjudicative hearing topics if we find that:
- The facility would not be prohibited by local zoning regulations, or
- The facility’s likely negative effects aren't significant or can be mitigated so that they’re no longer significant
Prehearing conferences help us determine the issues for and schedule of adjudicative hearings.
We’ll use the testimony and other information from hearings when deciding whether to recommend a proposed facility to the Governor for certification.