§ 398-f. Hearings; review board; appeals; judicial review. 1.
Hearings. (a) Upon the denial of an application for a certificate of
registration, the applicant shall, upon written request made within
thirty days after the applicant is notified of such denial, be entitled
to a hearing before an officer or employee of the department designated
for such purpose by the commissioner.

(b) No certificate of registration shall be suspended or revoked,
penalty imposed or determination of gross negligence or gross
overcharging made as provided for pursuant to paragraph (h) of
subdivision one of section three hundred ninety-eight-e of this article,
until such registrant shall have been given the opportunity to be heard,
upon written notice to the registrant, before an officer or employee of
the department designated for such purpose by the commissioner,
provided, however, that where a notice of hearing is mailed to a
registrant at the address shown in the records of the department and
such registrant fails to attend such hearing, the commissioner may
suspend such registration pending the registrants attendance at such
hearing. Requests for adjournment of such hearings shall be granted in
accordance with regulations promulgated by the commissioner. A
suspension pending attendance at a hearing shall not be appealable.

(c) The commissioner acting by such officer or employee in the
department as he may designate, shall have the power to subpoena and
bring before such officer or employee so designated any person in this
state, or document, record or other relevant evidence, and administer an
oath to and take the testimony of any such person or cause his
deposition to be taken. A subpoena issued pursuant to this action shall
be regulated by the civil practice law and rules.

(d) In the event a certificate of registration is revoked or an
application is denied, no such certificate shall be issued to such
former registrant or applicant for at least six months, nor thereafter,
except in the discretion of the commissioner.

2. Review board. The commissioner shall establish a review board.
Such board shall consist of persons who have been engaged in the
automotive repair shop business for at least five years representing the
automobile repair shop industry, persons who shall be laymen having no
association with the automotive repair shop industry representing
consumers, and persons who are attorneys admitted to practice in this
state and who have no interest in or represent as an attorney an
automotive repair shop. Members of the review board shall be appointed
insofar as is practicable to provide for representation of different
geographic areas of the state, and shall serve in no other capacity in
the department of motor vehicles. The number of persons appointed to
such review board shall be determined by the commissioner and shall be
appointed to serve at his pleasure. Three persons, one of whom shall be
automotive repair shop industry representatives, one of whom shall be
consumer representatives, and one of whom shall be an attorney appointed
pursuant to the provisions of this subdivision, shall as a panel review
each appeal from a determination of the hearing officer. Such attorney
shall serve as the chairman of such panel with respect to any such
review. Members of the review board shall be entitled to their actual
and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties
thereunder, and shall be entitled to a per diem allowance as determined
by the commissioner and approved by the director of the division of the
budget not to exceed one hundred dollars except that those members who
serve as the chairman of a panel at appeal proceedings may be entitled
to a per diem allowance in an amount so determined and approved but not
exceeding one hundred fifty dollars.

3. Appeals. (a) The review board will review and determine all
appeals filed pursuant to this article. Such determination may be to
affirm, reverse or modify the initial determination of the hearing
officer, or to remand the case for a further hearing to determine
additional facts. Any review by such board shall be based solely on the
record upon which the initial determination is made and upon any written
brief which may be submitted by or on behalf of the applicant or
registrant.

(b) (1) Whenever a certificate of registration is suspended or
revoked, an application for such registration denied, determination of
gross negligence or gross overcharging made, the sealing of a premises
ordered or penalty imposed by the commissioner pursuant to this article,
except where such action is required by statute based upon a conviction,
the registrant, applicant, or owner of the premises as such term is
defined in paragraph (a) of subdivision five-a of section three hundred
ninety-eight-i of this article may appeal such determination pursuant to
the provisions of this article and such regulations as may be
promulgated by the commissioner.

(2) No appeal shall be reviewed unless it is submitted within sixty
days after written notice of the determination appealed from is mailed
to the registrant or applicant.

(3) Any person desiring to appeal pursuant to this article shall do
so in a form and manner as provided by regulations promulgated by the
commissioner. The transcript of any hearing will only be reviewed if it
is submitted by the appellant who shall bear the expense of furnishing
such transcript.

(4) The fee for filing an appeal shall be ten dollars. No appeal
shall be deemed filed or submitted unless any required fee has been
paid.

(5) The submission of a written request to file such an appeal shall
stay the operation of the initial determination until after a review is
had and a determination has been made; provided, however, that failure
to timely submit such appeal and comply with the provisions of this
subdivision shall remove the stay imposed by this paragraph. Such
review shall be made and decided as expeditiously as possible; provided
that an appeal of an order directing the sealing of the premises
pursuant to subdivision five-a of section three hundred ninety-eight-i
of this article shall, to the extent possible, be given priority over
all other appeals filed pursuant to this article.

(c) Whenever the same facts give rise to a hearing involving any
other license or registration issued by the commissioner, a combined
hearing may be held. If the registrant appeals only from a
determination made with respect to his repair shop registration, he
shall be entitled to a review as provided in subdivision one of this
section; however, if he appeals from any determination or determinations
made with respect to any other license or registration, as well as a
determination with respect to his repair shop registration, the appeals
procedure established in article three-A of this chapter shall be
followed in lieu of the procedure established in subdivision three of
this section.

4. Judicial review. The determination of the review board shall be
subject to review by the supreme court in the manner provided in article
seventy-eight of the civil practice law and rules.