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<section article="gle" article_name="Labor and Employment" number="9-724" title_number="9" title_name="Workers' Compensation" subtitle_number="7" subtitle_name="Claims Procedure, Hearings, and Appeals">
  <level label="a">
    <text>In this section, “governmental agency” includes:</text>
    <level label="1">
      <text>a county;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>a county board of education;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <text>a statutory bicounty agency; and</text>
    </level>
    <level label="4">
      <text>an incorporated municipality.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="b">
    <text>Except as provided in subsection (c) of this section, a covered employee may elect to have a hearing on a claim of the covered employee held at:</text>
    <level label="1">
      <text>a regional hearing location determined by the Commission to be convenient to all parties;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>a regional hearing location that covers the county where the covered employee resided when the accidental personal injury, or compensable hernia, or last injurious exposure to the hazards of the occupational disease allegedly occurred; or</text>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <text>Baltimore City.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="c">
    <level label="1">
      <text>Unless the covered employee objects, if the employer is a governmental agency, the Commission shall conduct a hearing in the county in which the governmental agency is located, provided that hearings of the Commission are scheduled in that county.</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>If hearings are not conducted in the county in which the governmental agency is located, a hearing may be held in the regional hearing location nearest that county’s government offices.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="d">
    <text>A covered employee shall notify the Commission of an election under this section within 10 days after the parties are notified of the hearing.</text>
  </level>
  <level label="e">
    <text>The Commission may deny an election to hold a hearing in Baltimore City, if:</text>
    <level label="1">
      <text>the accidental personal injury, compensable hernia, or last injurious exposure to the hazards of the occupational disease allegedly occurred outside of Baltimore City;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>the covered employee did not reside in Baltimore City when the accidental personal injury, compensable hernia, or last injurious exposure to the hazards of the occupational disease allegedly occurred; and</text>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <text>the Commission finds that holding the hearing in Baltimore City would inconvenience a party.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
</section>
