§ 33.6 Hearings.

(a) Petitions for hearing. (1) To request a hearing concerning the existence or amount of the debt or the offset schedule established by the Department, the employee must send a written petition to the office designated in the notice of intent to offset, see § 33.4(a)(10), within 15 days of receipt of the notice.

(2) The petition must:

(i) Be signed by the employee;

(ii) Fully identify and explain with reasonable specificity all the facts, evidence, and witnesses, if any, that the employee believes support his or her position; and

(iii) Specify whether an oral or paper hearing is requested. If an oral hearing is requested, the request should explain why the matter cannot be resolved by review of the documentary evidence alone.

(3) The timely filing of a petition for hearing shall stay any further collection proceedings.

(b) Failure to timely request. (1) If the petition for hearing is filed after the 15-day period provided for in paragraph (a)(1) of this section, the Secretary may grant the request if the employee can establish that the delay was the result of circumstances beyond the employee's control, or that the employee failed to receive actual notice of the filing deadline.