Evidence

(A) General. (1) The rules of evidence observed by courts do not apply to fair hearings, but the hearing officer observes the rules of privilege recognized by law. Evidence may be admitted and given probative effect only if it is the kind of evidence on which reasonable persons are accustomed to rely in the conduct of serious affairs. Unduly repetitious or clearly irrelevant evidence may be excluded. (2) The hearing officer may not exclude evidence at the hearing for the reason that it had not been previously submitted to the acting entity, provided that the hearing officer may permit the acting entity representative reasonable time to respond to newly submitted evidence. The effective date of any adjustments to the appellant's eligibility status is the date on which all eligibility conditions were met, regardless of when the supporting evidence was submitted. (B) Presentation at Hearing. Except as the hearing officer may otherwise order within his or her discretion in accordance with 130 CMR 610.081 and 610.082, any evidence on which a decision is based must be presented at the hearing. Copies of any evidence not submitted at the hearing will be provided to all other parties who will then have the opportunity to respond. (C) Oral Testimony. Oral testimony will be given under oath or affirmation. Witnesses will be available for examination and cross-examination. (D) Regulations, Statutes, and Memoranda. Regulations and statutes may be submitted into evidence by reference to the citation or by submitting a copy of the regulations. Memoranda and other materials may be put into evidence by submission of the original or copy thereof. (E) Stipulations. Stipulations of facts or stipulations as to the testimony that would have been given by an absent witness may, if agreed upon by the parties, be used as evidence at the hearing. (F) Additional Evidence. The hearing officer may in any case require either party, with appropriate notice to the other party, to submit additional evidence on any relevant matter. (G) Format and Length. 130 CMR 610.071(G) applies to all submissions to the hearing record unless otherwise directed by the hearing officer. Motions, memoranda of law, and other papers, except for exhibits, submitted to the hearing record should be on 8½” by 11” paper and, except for exhibits, typed in no less than 12-point type. Unless a request is made to the hearing officer in advance of submitting a document, all memoranda of law should be limited to 20 pages and any reply memoranda limited to ten pages. If a party wants to submit motions, memoranda of law, or other papers in excess of the pages outlined above, a party (appellant or respondent) shall make the request in writing to the hearing officer assigned to the appeal, with a copy to the other party, stating the number of pages the party anticipates desiring and a description of why the recommended length cannot be achieved within the applicable page limit. Any opposition to a request to exceed the page limit should be made in writing to the assigned hearing officer with a copy to the other party.