26.04.050 Public hearings.
(1) The public hearing will be informal in nature, but organized so that testimony and evidence can be presented efficiently. The hearing shall include at least the following elements:
(a) An introductory outline of the procedure by the Hearing Examiner.
(b) Testimony by the Department of Community Development staff which shall summarize the written staff report and provide any additional exhibits or other information the staff believes should be brought to the Hearing Examiner’s attention.
(c) Testimony by the applicant and the applicant’s witnesses.
(d) Testimony from other individuals or organizations wishing to be heard.
(e) Questions by the Hearing Examiner.
(f) Rebuttal witnesses (if any).
Any participant in the hearing may make all or part of his or her presentation through witnesses.
(2) All testimony shall be taken under oath or affirmation.
(3) Hearings shall be electronically recorded and the recordings shall be made a part of the record. Copies of the electronic recordings shall be made available upon request and payment of the costs of reproduction.
(4) Technical rules of evidence will not be applied. The key requirements for evidence will be relevance and reliability. Relevant and reliable evidence will be admitted if it possesses probative value commonly accepted by reasonable persons in the conduct of their affairs. The credibility of witnesses and the weight of evidence are within the sole discretion of the Hearing Examiner.
(a) Documents, photographs and physical evidence will be admitted as exhibits and each will be assigned an exhibit number. Exhibits will be retained until after a decision is rendered and all appeal proceedings, if any, have been concluded.
(b) The staff report or staff analysis produced by the Department of Community Development will be admitted as Exhibit 1 in every hearing.
(c) Testimony may be presented orally, in writing, or both. Persons giving oral testimony shall be subject to questioning by the Hearing Examiner. Written testimony may be presented either in advance or at the hearing. When testimony is presented only in writing, the Hearing Examiner has discretion to leave the record open for written responses by other participants.
(d) Any decision by the Hearing Examiner on the admissibility of evidence shall be final.
(5) The Hearing Examiner may impose reasonable limitations on the nature and length of testimony. In so doing the Examiner shall give consideration to:
(a) The expeditious completion of the hearing.
(b) The need to provide all parties a fair opportunity to present their cases.
(c) Accommodating the desires of members of the public to be heard, when public testimony is taken.
At the Hearing Examiner’s discretion, irrelevant or unduly repetitious testimony may be excluded. If all testimony cannot be presented in the time available, the hearing shall be continued.
(6) Whenever the views of any formal or informal organization are to be presented, the organization shall designate a representative with authority to coordinate the presentation and to speak for the group. Any communications with the organization by the Hearing Examiner or by any party during the course of proceedings shall be through the designated representative.
(7) Prior to the conclusion of a matter, including appeals therefrom, no communications with the Hearing Examiner outside of the hearing are allowed on the merits or facts of any matter which has been or will be scheduled to come before the Hearing Examiner. This prohibition includes, but is not limited to, communications with County employees, applicants and their representatives and others participating in the hearing process.
(8) The Hearing Examiner has the option to visit the site before or after a hearing. If the Hearing Examiner conducts a post-hearing visit in response to a request made at the hearing by a party, the hearing record will be held open until the site visit is completed.
(9) The Hearing Examiner may continue proceedings or reopen proceedings for good cause any time prior to the issuance of the decision, subject to notice requirements.
(10) The Hearing Examiner may announce a decision at the hearing. The decision will be contained in a written order with supporting findings and conclusions. The order will be issued no later than ten (10) working days after the record closes.
(11) The Department of Community Development will maintain a copy of the Hearing Examiner’s decision, available for public inspection, in the official file of each application or appeal. The applicant and any appellant will receive a copy of the Hearing Examiner’s decision free of charge. Any other person may receive a copy upon payment of the costs of reproduction and postage.