(a) Any procedural requirements required by these regulations may be waived by the responsible HHS official or such waiver requests may be granted by the Departmental Appeals Board in those cases where the Board has jurisdiction. Requests for waivers must be in writing and based on good cause.

(b) Approvals of waivers must be in writing and signed by the responsible HHS official or by the Departmental Appeals Board when it has jurisdiction.

(c) “Good cause” consists of the following:

(1) Litigation dates cannot be changed;

(2) Personal emergencies pertaining to the health of a person involved in and essential to the proceeding or to a member of that person's immediate family, spouse, parents, or siblings;

(3) The complexity of the case is such that preparation of the necessary documents cannot reasonably be expected to be completed within the standard time frames;

(4) Other matters beyond the control of the party requesting the waiver, such as strikes and natural disasters.

(d) Under no circumstances may “good cause” consist of a failure to meet a deadline due to the oversight of either a party or its representative.

(e) Waivers of timely filing or service shall be granted only when necessary in the interest of fairness to all parties, including the Federal agency. They will be granted sparingly as prompt resolution of disputes is a major goal of these regulations. The responsible HHS official or the Departmental Appeals Board shall have the right, on own motion or on motion of a party, to require such documentation as deemed necessary in support of a request for a waiver.

(f) A request for an informal meeting by a delegate agency, including a prospective delegate agency, may be denied by the responsible HHS official, on motion of the grantee or on his or her own motion, if the official concludes that the written appeal fails to state plausible grounds for reversing the grantee's decision or the grantee's failure to act on an application.

(g) The requirements of this section may not be waived.