§ 750-i. Hearing on charges; decision. 1. No license shall be suspended or revoked nor shall any fine or reprimand be imposed until after a hearing had before an officer or employee of the department of state designated for such purpose by the secretary of state, upon notice to the licensee of at least ten days. The notice shall be served either personally or by certified mail and shall state the date and place of hearing and set forth the ground or grounds constituting the charges against the licensee. The licensee shall have the opportunity to be heard in his defense either in person or by counsel and may produce witnesses and testify in his behalf. A stenographic record of the hearing shall be taken and preserved. Within ten days after a hearing a licensee shall receive a stenographic record of the hearing upon payment of fifty percent of the cost of preparation of such record. The hearing may be adjourned upon a showing of good cause at least five days before the hearing, in writing, to a hearing officer. The person conducting the hearing shall make a written report of his findings and a recommendation to the secretary of state for decision. The secretary of state shall review such findings and the recommendation and, after due deliberation, shall issue an order accepting, modifying or rejecting such recommendation and dismissing the charges or suspending or revoking the license or in lieu thereof imposing a fine or reprimand upon the licensee.

2. Any person who has had their application for a license rejected shall be entitled to a hearing before an officer or employee of the department of state designated for such purpose by the secretary of state, upon notice to such person of at least ten days. Notice shall be served either personally or by certified mail and shall state the date and place of hearing and set forth the ground or grounds constituting the rejection of such application for license. The applicant shall have the opportunity to be heard in his or her defense either in person or by counsel and may produce witnesses and testify on his or her own behalf. A stenographic record of the hearing shall be taken and preserved. Within ten days after a hearing an applicant shall receive a stenographic record of the hearing upon payment of fifty percent of the cost of the preparation of such record. The hearing may be adjourned upon a showing of good cause at least five days before the hearing, in writing, to a hearing officer. The person conducting the hearing shall make a written report of his or her findings and a recommendation to the secretary of state for decision. The secretary of state shall review such findings and the recommendation and, after due deliberation, shall issue an order accepting, modifying or rejecting such recommendation and either grant a license or reject the license application.

3. For the purpose of this article, the secretary of state or any officer or employee of the department of state designated by him or her, may administer oaths, take testimony, subpoena witnesses and compel the production of books, papers, records and documents deemed pertinent to the subject of investigation.

4. Strict rules of evidence do not apply to hearings held pursuant to this article.