198B.070 Appeals.
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appoint a local appeals board, consisting of five (5) technically qualified persons
with professional experience related to the building industry, to hear appeals from
the decisions of the local building official. At least three (3) members of the appeals
board must not be employed by the local government hearing the appeal. (2) Local governments which are enforcing the Uniform State Building Code may cooperate with each other to provide a local appeals board and shall adhere to the
provisions of KRS Chapter 65 when entering such cooperative agreements. No local
building official or employee of a local inspection department may sit on a local
appeals board if the board is hearing an appeal to a decision rendered by his or her
department. No member of a local appeals board shall hear an appeal in a case in
which he or she has a private interest. (3) Any party to a decision by the local building official may appeal that decision to the local appeals board. Upon receipt of an appeal from a qualified party, the local
appeals board shall convene a hearing to consider the appeal within fifteen (15)
days of receipt. All parties to the appeal shall be notified of the time and place of
the hearing by letter mailed by certified mail no later than ten (10) days prior to the
date of the hearing. The local appeals board shall render a decision within five (5)
working days after the hearing. (4) A local appeals board may uphold, amend, or reverse the decision of a local building official, and there shall be no appeal from the decision of a local appeals
board other than by appeal to the Board of Housing, Buildings and Construction.
Appeals to the Board of Housing, Buildings and Construction shall include citation
of those provisions of the Uniform State Building Code which are at issue, and an
explanation of why the decision of the local appeals board or the local building
official relative to those provisions is being contested. (5) The Board of Housing, Buildings and Construction shall serve to hear appeals from the decisions of local appeals boards, when these boards exist, or to hear appeals
directly from the decisions of local building officials in cases where no local
appeals board has jurisdiction. In no case shall the board hear an appeal directly
from a party aggrieved by the decision of a local building official when there is a
local appeals board with jurisdiction in the case. (6) The board shall hear appeals directly from a party aggrieved by the decision of an agent of the department. These appeals shall include citations of those provisions of
the Uniform State Building Code which are at issue, and an explanation of why the
decision of the agent of the department relative to those provisions is being
contested. (7) Appeals to the Board of Housing, Buildings and Construction shall be addressed to the commissioner, who shall immediately notify the board when an appeal is
received. The commissioner or a designated employee of his or her department shall
then investigate the evidence pertaining to the appeal and, based upon the results of
the investigation, make recommendations to the board on the disposition of the case Page 2 of 2 in question. No employee of the department shall investigate or make
recommendations on an appeal to his or her own decision, but shall defer in such
cases to employees who were not party to the decision which led to the appeal. In
conducting an investigation, the commissioner or his or her designated
representatives, acting for the department, shall have the authority to administer
oaths and affirmations, issue subpoenas authorized by law, rule upon offers of proof
and receive relevant evidence, take or cause depositions to be taken, regulate the
course of any informal or fact-finding hearings they may schedule, and hold
conferences for the settlement or simplification of the issues by consent of the
parties. The commissioner shall complete his or her investigations and forward a
written report to the board within thirty (30) days after receiving an appeal. (8) If the matter is not settled by agreement of the parties through the procedure established in subsection (7) of this section, the board shall schedule an
administrative hearing that shall be conducted in accordance with KRS Chapter
13B. (9) The board may appoint five (5) or more of its members, excluding the chairman of the board, to conduct the hearing, and those so appointed shall act in all matters
concerning the appeal for the entire board. (10) The board may uphold, amend, or reverse the decision of a local appeals board, a local building official, or an agent of the department by final order, and appeal from
the board's final order shall be to the Circuit Court within whose jurisdiction the
property in question is located in accordance with KRS Chapter 13B. Effective: July 15, 2010
History: Amended 2010 Ky. Acts ch. 24, sec. 251, effective July 15, 2010. -- Amended 1996 Ky. Acts ch. 318, sec. 84, effective July 15, 1996. -- Amended 1986 Ky. Acts
ch. 23, sec. 14, effective July 15, 1986. -- Amended 1982 Ky. Acts ch. 308, sec. 4,
effective July 15, 1982. -- Amended 1980 Ky. Acts ch. 114, sec. 36, effective July
15, 1980. -- Created 1978 Ky. Acts ch. 117, sec. 7, effective June 17, 1978.