§ 2722a - -Hearings, and action upon applications
§ 2722a. -Hearings, and action upon applications
(a) Upon receipt of an application for a milk handler's license the secretary shall examine it. If the application is deficient the secretart shall so notify the applicant and return the application together with one-half of the application fee within 30 days of the receipt of the application. If the application is not deficient, the secretary shall set a date for a hearing on the application, shall notify the applicant of that date and shall cause public notice of the hearing to be published in three newspapers of general circulation within the state. The hearing must be held within 60 days of receipt of an application but not less than 10 days after public notice has been published.
(b) In the case of a new application, the hearing shall be held in the area which the applicant intends principally to serve. Additional hearings may be held at the discretion of the secretary.
(c) In the case of a renewal application, a hearing in the discretion of the secretary may be held at Montpelier, or, in the discretion of the secretary, may be waived.
(d) The secretary shall act upon applications within 30 days of the hearing, or if the hearing in the case of a renewal application has been waived, within 60 days of receipt of the renewal application. If the secretary denies the license, he shall set forth his reasons.
(e) Any applicant whose application has been denied shall have the right to judicial review of the secretary's decision in the superior court. The proceeding before the superior court shall be de novo, and the applicant may demand trial by jury. Appeals from the superior court may be taken to the Vermont supreme court pursuant to the Vermont Rules of Appellate Procedure. (Added 1977, No. 159 (Adj. Sess.), § 3, eff. May 28, 1978; amended 1981, No. 237 (Adj. Sess.), eff. May 4, 1982; 1987, No. 217 (Adj. Sess.), § 3; 1997, No. 161 (Adj. Sess.), § 3, eff. Jan. 1, 1998; 2003, No. 42, § 2, eff. May 27, 2003.)