Appeal Procedures

(1) The decision of the Department to deny a student’s application to participate in the Program or to remove a Recipient from the Program may be appealed. (2) The decision of the Department to suspend or terminate the participation in the Program of a Service Provider or Private School may be appealed. (3) The decision of the Department that an application is an Incomplete Application may not be appealed. (4) All appeals shall be filed pursuant to the following two (2) step appeal process: (a) Step one (1): The appeal shall be on the form provided by the Department and shall be submitted to the Commissioner of Education, or the Commissioner’s designee, within ten (10) business days of notice of the decision being appealed. The appeal shall be reviewed by the Commissioner of Education or the Commissioner’s designee, and the Commissioner or the Commissioner’s designee shall electronically notify the appellant of a decision within forty-five (45) calendar days of receipt of the appeal; (b) Step two (2): Within thirty (30) days of the Department’s notification to the appellant of the Commissioner’s or the Commissioner’s designee’s decision in step one (1) of the appeal process, the appellant may file, with the Commissioner, an appeal of the step one (1) decision. Such appeal shall be heard as a contested case hearing pursuant to the Uniform Administrative Procedures Act, T.C.A. Title 4, Chapter 5.