§ 178.30 - Response by Administrator to objections and to requests for hearing.

§ 178.30 Response by Administrator to objections and to requests for hearing.

The Administrator will respond to objections, and to requests for a hearing on such objections, as set forth in this section.

(a) Denial of objections that are improperly submitted or that seek an unavailable form of relief. The Administrator will by order issued under § 178.37 deny each objection and each request for a hearing that is included with such an objection, if:

(1) The objection is found not to conform to § 178.25.

(2) The action requested by the objection is inconsistent with any provision of FFDCA.

(3) The action requested by the objection is inconsistent with any generic, e.g., non-chemical specific, interpretation of a provision of FFDCA in any regulation in this chapter (the proper procedure in such a case is for the person to petition for an amendment of the regulation involved).

(b) Denial of improperly submitted requests for hearing. The Administrator will then determine whether any objection that has not been denied under paragraph (a) of this section was accompanied by a request for an evidentiary hearing that conforms to § 178.27. The Administrator will deny under § 178.37 each request that does not conform to § 178.27.

(c) Grouping of certain related objections. If the Administrator then finds

(1) That two or more undenied objections are substantially similar, or are related in such a way that any judicial review of the Administrator's action on those objections should occur at the same time, and

(2) that one or more of those objections was accompanied by an undenied request for an evidentiary hearing on that objection, the Administrator will treat those objections as a group and will rule on them only after ruling under § 178.32 on the associated request for hearing.

(d) Rulings on objections for which a request for hearing has been granted. If the Administrator rules under § 178.32 that an evidentiary hearing should be held on an objection, the Administrator will resolve the issues raised by any other objection grouped with it under paragraph (c) of this section in conjunction with the evidentiary hearing upon which the hearing request was granted, unless the Administrator for good cause determines otherwise.

(e) Rulings on objections for which no request for hearing was received, or for which each request for hearing was denied. Except as provided in paragraphs (c) and (d) of this section, if no hearing was requested on an objection, or if each such request that was made is denied under the criteria of paragraphs (a) or (b) of this section or § 178.32(b), the Administrator will rule on the objection under § 178.37.