71 APPEAL DECISIONS

71.1 No interested party or member of the protest committee shall take any part in the discussion or decision on an appeal or a request for confirmation or correction.

71.2 The national authority may uphold, change or reverse the protest committee’s decision; declare the protest or request for redress invalid; or return the protest or request for the hearing to be reopened, or for a new hearing and decision by the same or a different protest committee.

71.3 When from the facts found by the protest committee the national authority decides that a boat that was a party to a protest hearing broke a rule, it shall penalize her, whether or not that boat or that rule was mentioned in the protest committee’s decision.

71.4 The decision of the national authority shall be final. The national authority shall send its decision in writing to all parties to the hearing and the protest committee, who shall be bound by the decision.