§ 304.33 Arbitral decision and public comment.

(a) The Arbitrator shall render a proposed decision within forty-five days after the hearing is closed, or within forty-five days after the pre-hearing conference if no hearing is held, unless the parties have settled the dispute prior to the rendering of the proposed decision.

(b)

(1) The proposed decision shall be in writing and shall be signed by the Arbitrator. It shall be limited in accordance with the Arbitrator's jurisdiction as defined by § 304.20 of this part, and shall, if such issues have been jointly submitted by the parties for resolution, contain the Arbitrator's determination of:

(i) Which participating PRPs, if any, are liable pursuant to section 107(a) of CERCLA, 42 U.S.C. 9607(a);

(ii) The dollar amount of response costs, if any, to be awarded to EPA; and

(iii) The allocation of responsibility for payment of EPA's award, if any, among the participating PRPs.

(2) The proposed decision shall also assess arbitration fees and expenses (see § 304.41 of this part) in favor of any party, or combination of parties, and, in the event any administrative fees or expenses are due the Association, in favor of the Association.