Va. Code § 46.2-2109: Action on applications; hearings on denials and protests

A. The Department may act upon any application required under this chapter without a hearing, unless such application is protested by any party based upon fitness allegations. Parties may protest an application by submitting written grounds to the Department setting forth (i) a precise statement of the party's objections to the application being granted; (ii) a full and clear statement of the facts that the person is prepared to provide by competent evidence; (iii) the case number assigned to the application; and (iv) a certification that a copy of the protest was sent to the applicant. The Department shall have full discretion as to whether a hearing is warranted based on the merits of any protest filed.B. Any applicant denied without a hearing an original certificate of fitness under subsection A shall be given a hearing at a time and place determined by the Commissioner or his designee upon the applicant's written request for such hearing made within thirty days of denial.Code 1950, § 56-338.11; 1995, cc. 744, 803; 2001, c. 596; 2002, c. 870; 2011, cc. 881, 889; 2017, cc. 790, 815.