WAC 182-32-3030. Authority of the hearing officer

(1) A hearing officer must hear and decide the issues based on the evidence and oral or written arguments presented during a formal administrative hearing and admitted into the record. (2) A hearing officer has no inherent or common law powers, and is limited to those powers granted by the state constitution, statutes, or rules. (3) A hearing officer may not decide that a rule is invalid or unenforceable. If the validity of a rule is raised during a formal administrative hearing, the hearing officer may allow argument only to preserve the record for judicial review.