(a) Each of the following shall be justification for the Exchange to suspend or revoke the certification of any Certified Application Entity and/or Certified Application Counselor:
(1) Failure to comply with any and all applicable federal or state laws or regulations, including, but not limited to, Section 6864 or Section 6866 of this Article; or
(2) A potentially disqualifying administrative action or criminal record, which is substantially related to the qualifications, functions, or duties of the specific position of the entity or individual as set forth in this Article.
(b) Withdrawal of Certification Procedure.
(1) The Exchange shall withdraw a Certified Application Entity's certification in accordance with the following procedure:
(A) The Exchange shall provide written notice to the Certified Application Entity including the justification for withdrawing the certification;
(B) The withdrawal of the Certified Application Entity's certification shall become effective 20 calendar days following the date of the issuance of the Exchange's written notice;
(C) The submission of an appeal as set forth in subdivision (c) of this section shall toll the effectiveness of the decertification pursuant to subdivision (b)(1)(B) of this section until a final determination is made, however during this time the Certified Application Entity may not hold itself out as such;
(D) A Certified Application Entity for which the Exchange has withdrawn its certification must notify within one business day all of its Certified Application Counselors that they may no longer hold themselves out as Certified Application Counselors; and
(E) Withdrawal of a Certified Application Entity's certification does not relieve the entity of its obligation to protect consumers' personally identifiable information which it obtained or to which it had access.
(2) The Exchange shall withdraw a Certified Application Counselor's certification in accordance with the following procedure:
(A) The Exchange shall provide written notice to the Certified Application Counselor, which includes the justification for withdrawing the certification;
(B) The withdrawal of the Certified Application Counselor's certification shall become effective 20 calendar days following the date of the issuance of the Exchange's written notice;
(C) The submission of an appeal as set forth in subdivision (c) of this section shall toll the effectiveness of the decertification pursuant to subdivision (b)(2)(B) of this section until a final determination is made;
(D) Certified Application Counselors may not hold themselves out as Certified Application Counselors after receiving a written notice pursuant to (b)(2)(A) of this section unless and until their certification is reinstated; and
(E) Withdrawal of a Certified Application Counselor's certification does not relieve the Counselor of the obligation to protect consumers' personally identifiable information which they obtained or to which they had access.
(3) A Certified Application Entity shall, within 30 days of certification, establish procedures to withdraw certification from individual Certified Application Counselors upon a Counselor's failure to comply with any and all applicable federal or state laws or regulations, including, but not limited to, the regulations set forth in this Article.
(c) Appeals.
(1) Individuals or entities may appeal a determination made pursuant to subdivision (a)(1) of this section through the process described in Section 6862 of this Article.
(2) Individuals or entities may appeal a determination made pursuant to subdivision (a)(2) of this section through the process described in Section 6858, subdivision (c).
(3) Until a final determination or decision is made by the Exchange regarding an individual or entity's appeal, the appellant shall be disqualified from performing any functions under this Article;
(d) Following the receipt of a final determination pursuant to this section that disqualifies an individual or entity from certification, the entity or individual is not eligible to reapply for certification for two years.
Credits
Note: Authority cited: Section 100504, Government Code. Reference: Section 100502, Government Code; and 45 C.F.R. Section 155.225.
History
1. New section filed 7-6-2015 as an emergency pursuant to Government Code section 100504(a)(6), as modified by Senate Bill 75 (Stats. 2015, c. 18); operative 7-6-2015 (Register 2015, No. 28). A Certificate of Compliance must be transmitted to OAL by 7-6-2018 pursuant to Government Code section 100504(a)(6) or emergency language will be repealed by operation of law on the following day.
2. Editorial correction of History 1 (Register 2018, No. 37).
3. New section filed 6-7-2019; operative 6-7-2019 pursuant to Government Code section 11343.4(b)(3) (Register 2019, No. 23).
4. Editorial correction of History 1 (Register 2019, No. 39).
This database is current through 4/26/24 Register 2024, No. 17.
