| (a) Following receipt of a Contractor's notice of claim,
the Commissioner or another Department officer designated in the contract
will review the Contractor's claim and the Department's counterclaim,
if any, and initiate negotiations with the Contractor in an attempt
to resolve the claim and counterclaim.
(b) The parties will begin negotiations within a reasonable
period of time, not to exceed 120 Days following the date the Department
receives the Contractor's notice of claim.
(c) The parties may conduct negotiations according
to an agreed upon schedule as long as they complete the negotiations
no later than the 270th Day after the Department receives the Contractor's
notice of claim, subject to one or more extensions agreed upon by
the parties.
(d) The parties may agree in writing on or before the
270th Day after the Department receives the Contractor's notice of
claim to extend the time for negotiations. The agreement must be signed
by representatives of the parties with authority to bind each respective
party and must provide for the extension of the statutory negotiation
period. The parties may enter into a series of written extension agreements
that comply with the requirements of this section.
(e) The Contractor may request a contested case hearing
before the State Office of Administrative Hearings on or before the
270th Day after the Department receives the Contractor's notice of
claim, or the expiration of any extension agreed to by the parties.
(f) The parties may agree to mediate the dispute at
any time before the 270th Day after the Department receives the Contractor's
notice of claim or before the expiration of any extension agreed to
by the parties.
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