A license is a gate, and the commissioner keeps the key both on the way in and after you are inside. The same list of grounds that can keep an applicant out can later take a license away.
On an application (Ins. Code §1666): the commissioner may investigate the applicant and require supporting documents. Sections 1668 and 1669 list grounds for denying an application. Examples:
§1668(k): knowingly misrepresenting the terms of a policy
§1669: a felony conviction
After a license is issued (Ins. Code §1738): the commissioner may suspend or revoke a permanent license on any ground for denying an application.
Notice and hearing depend on the ground:
- A suspension based on a §1669 ground, such as a felony conviction, may be made without notice or hearing.
- Other grounds, such as knowingly misrepresenting a policy under §1668(k), require notice and a hearing.
So two licensees in trouble can be treated differently: the felon's license may be suspended at once, while the misrepresentation case goes to a hearing first.