| (a) Opening the evidentiary hearing. The presiding officer
shall open the hearing by making a concise statement of its scope and purposes
and by taking appearances of each party or the party's authorized representative.
(b) Order of procedure in evidentiary hearings.
(1) The party with the burden of proof on the whole proceeding
shall be entitled to open and to close. Parties shall be allowed to make opening
statements. Following opening statements, if any, the party with the burden
of proof shall be allowed to proceed with its direct case. Opposing parties
shall be allowed to cross-examine each witness, consistent with any order
aligning parties. Each party shall then present its case and witnesses will
be subjected to cross-examination. Unless otherwise ordered by the presiding
officer for good cause, the commission staff representing the public interest
shall be the last party to present a direct case.
(2) Redirect or recross examination will be limited to matters
raised in the round of examination immediately preceding the redirect or recross
examination.
(3) The party with the burden of proof may rebut evidence presented
by opposing parties after all parties have presented their direct cases. Rebuttal
may be afforded other parties at the presiding officer's discretion, provided
that the party with the burden of proof shall be entitled to make the closing
presentation, which may include surrebuttal.
(4) The presiding officer may allow supplemental rebuttal only
to the extent that the party with the burden of proof could not have reasonably
anticipated the need for such evidence in time to file it with the party's
main rebuttal case. Oral supplemental rebuttal may be allowed, provided that
the testimony is in response to matters first brought up in cross examination
of a nonapplicant witness and only to the extent that the applicant could
not have reasonably anticipated the need for such evidence in time to file
it in written form. If a party intends to present supplemental rebuttal, it
shall state in writing or on the record at the beginning of the presentation
of its rebuttal case which witnesses will be presenting supplemental rebuttal,
the general subject of the supplemental rebuttal, the evidence which the supplemental
rebuttal is intended to rebut, and which rebuttal, if any, will be oral rather
than written. Written supplemental rebuttal, if allowed, shall be filed no
later than five working days after the date the evidence being rebutted was
admitted. Oral supplemental rebuttal shall be limited to evidence offered
to rebut evidence admitted less than five working days before the oral supplemental
rebuttal is offered. Any exhibits offered during oral supplemental rebuttal
shall be distributed to the presiding officer and the parties at the beginning
of the applicant's rebuttal case, unless otherwise ordered by the presiding
officer. A party may be exempted from the requirements of this subparagraph
only upon a showing that compliance is not feasible.
(5) After parties have completed the presentation of evidence,
and have been afforded the opportunity to cross-examine the other parties'
witnesses, closing statements shall be allowed. Such statements shall be made
either in writing or orally at the presiding officer's discretion.
(6) The presiding officer may question any witness testifying
in a case. A party may raise an evidentiary objection to any question asked
by the presiding officer, and the presiding officer shall rule on any such
objection.
(7) Subject to the requirements of APA, the presiding officer
may call upon any party for further material or relevant evidence on any issue
before issuing a proposal for decision. The additional evidence shall not
be admitted without an opportunity for inspection, objection, and cross-examination
by all parties, and rebuttal by the party with the burden of proof on the
whole proceeding.
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