(a) Within 20 days of receiving the notice of hearing and complaint or an amended complaint, respondent must serve on department staff an answer signed by respondent, respondent's attorney or other authorized representative. The time to answer may be extended by consent of department staff or by permission of the ALJ. Failure to make timely service of an answer constitutes a default and a waiver of respondent's right to a hearing.

(b) Respondent must specify in the answer each allegation of the complaint respondent admits, each allegation respondent denies, and each allegation as to which respondent lacks information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth or accuracy of the allegation.

(c) Respondent’s answer must explicitly assert any affirmative defenses including those listed in CPLR 3018 together with a statement of the facts as may be necessary to provide notice of each affirmative defense asserted. Whenever the complaint alleges that respondent conducted an activity without a required permit, a defense based upon the inapplicability of the permit requirement to the activity constitutes an affirmative defense. Inability to pay constitutes an affirmative defense, but only to department staff’s request for a penalty and not as a defense to liability.

(d) Affirmative defenses not pleaded in the answer may not be raised in the hearing unless allowed by the ALJ. The ALJ will only allow the defense upon the filing of a satisfactory explanation as to why the defense was not pleaded in the answer and a showing that the affirmative defense is likely to be meritorious.

(e) Respondent may move for a more definite statement of the complaint within 10 days of receipt of the complaint on the grounds that the complaint is so vague or ambiguous that respondent cannot reasonably be required to frame an answer.

(f) Department staff may move for a more definite statement of affirmative defenses within 10 days of completion of service of the answer on the grounds that the affirmative defenses pleaded in the answer are vague or ambiguous and that department staff is not thereby placed on notice of the facts or legal theory upon which respondent’s defense is based.