[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 49, Volume 7]
[Revised as of October 1, 2006]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 49CFR825.40]

[Page 178]
 
                        TITLE 49--TRANSPORTATION
 
           CHAPTER VIII--NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD
 
PART 825_RULES OF PROCEDURE FOR MERCHANT MARINE APPEALS FROM DECISIONS OF THE COMMANDANT, U.S. COAST GUARD--Table of Contents
 
Sec.  825.40  Ex parte communications.

    (a) As used in this section:
    Board decisional employee means a Board Member or employee who is or 
who may reasonably be expected to be involved in the decisional process 
of the proceeding;
    Ex parte communication means an oral or written communication not on 
the public record with respect to which reasonable prior notice to all 
parties is not given, but it shall not include requests for status 
reports on any matter or proceeding covered by this part.
    (b) The prohibition of paragraph (c) of this section shall apply 
from the time a proceeding is noticed for hearing unless the person 
responsible for the communication has knowledge that it will be noticed, 
in which case the prohibition shall apply at the time of the acquisition 
of such knowledge.
    (c) Except to the extent required for the disposition of ex parte 
matters as authorized by law:
    (1) No interested person outside the Board shall make or knowingly 
cause to be made to any Board employee an ex parte communication 
relevant to the merits of the proceeding;
    (2) No Board employee shall make or knowingly cause to be made to 
any interested person outside the Board an ex parte communication 
relevant to the merits of the proceeding.

Ex parte communications regarding solely matters of Board procedure or 
practice are not prohibited by this paragraph.
    (d) A Board employee who receives or who makes or knowingly causes 
to be made a communication prohibited by paragraph (c) of this section, 
shall place on the public record of the proceeding:
    (1) All such written communications;
    (2) Memoranda stating the substance of all such oral communication; 
and
    (3) All written responses, and memoranda stating the substance of 
all oral responses, to materials described in paragraphs (d) (1) and (2) 
of this section.
    (e) Upon receipt of a communication knowingly made or caused to be 
made in violation of paragraph (c) of this section, the Board may, to 
the extent consistent with the interests of justice and the policy of 
the underlying statutes, require the party to show cause why his or her 
interest in the proceeding should not be dismissed, denied, disregarded, 
or otherwise adversely affected on account of such violation.
    (f) The Board may, to the extent consistent with the interests of 
justice and the policy of the underlying statutes administered by the 
Board, consider a violation of this section sufficient grounds for a 
decision adverse to a party who has knowingly committed such violation 
or knowingly caused such violation to occur.

(Authority: Sec. 4, Government in the Sunshine Act, Pub. L. 94-409, 
amending 5 U.S.C. 556 (d) and 5 U.S.C. 557; Independent Safety Board Act 
of 1974, Pub. L. 93-633, 88 Stat. 2166 (49 U.S.C. 1901 et seq.))

[42 FR 21614, Apr. 28, 1977]

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