710.31—Action by the Secretary.
(a)
Whenever an individual has not been afforded an opportunity to cross-examine witnesses who have furnished information adverse to the individual under the provisions of §§ 710.26(l) or (o), or the opportunity to review and respond to the information provided by the Deputy Chief for Operations, Office of Health, Safety and Security, to the Secretary under § 710.29(i), only the Secretary may issue a final decision to deny or revoke DOE access authorization for the individual after personally reviewing the administrative record and any additional material provided by the Deputy Chief for Operations, Office of Health, Safety and Security. The Secretary's authority may not be delegated and may be exercised only when the Secretary determines that the circumstances described in § 710.26(l) or (o), or § 710.29(i) are present, and such determination shall be final.
(b)
Whenever the Secretary issues a final decision as to the individual's DOE access authorization eligibility, the individual and other concerned parties will be notified in writing, by the Deputy Chief for Operations, Office of Health, Safety and Security, of that decision and of the Secretary's findings with respect to each of the allegations contained in the notification letter and each substantial issue identified in the statement in support of the request for review to the extent allowed by the national security.
(c)
Nothing contained in these procedures shall be deemed to limit or affect the responsibility and powers of the Secretary to issue subpoenas or to deny or revoke access to Restricted Data, national security information, or special nuclear material.
(d)
Only the Secretary may approve initial and subsequent requests under § 710.29(h) by the Deputy Chief for Operations, Office of Health, Safety and Security, to defer the review of an individual's case by the Appeal Panel.