.13 Refusing, Suspending, or Revoking a School Certification.
A. Under Transportation Article, §16-506, Annotated Code of Maryland, the Administration may, after a hearing, suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew the certification of a school, or refuse to issue, after notice and hearing, a certification of a school, if the Administration finds the school has failed to comply with any of the requirements pertaining to the program or school certification as:
(1) Set forth in this chapter; or
(2) Adopted under Transportation Article, Title 15, Subtitle 7, or Title 16, Subtitle 5, Annotated Code of Maryland.
B. The Administration shall, after notice and hearing, refuse to renew or, after notice and opportunity for hearing, refuse to issue an initial school certification, if the school or applicant:
(1) Provides fraudulent, inaccurate, or incomplete information on required applications, forms, reports, or other required documents required by the Administration; or
(2) Does not meet the requirements set forth in this chapter.
C. Under Transportation Article, §16-506, Annotated Code of Maryland, the Administration shall immediately suspend or revoke a school certification with notice of the right to a hearing within 7 days of a request, if the Administration determines there is a danger of immediate, substantial, and continuing harm to the public.
D. A most serious violation, if committed by a school owner or any individual responsible for the operation of the program, shall result in an immediate suspension of a school certification, with notice of the right to a hearing within 7 days of a request, if the Administration determines that there is a danger of immediate, substantial, and continued harm to the public.
E. A second most serious violation shall result in an immediate revocation of a school certification, with notice of the right to a hearing within 7 days of a request, if the Administration determines that there is a danger of immediate, substantial, and continued harm to the public.
F. Most serious violations include a charge for:
(1) Fraud;
(2) A crime of moral turpitude;
(3) A sex offense;
(4) Contributing to the delinquency of a minor;
(5) An offense involving a controlled dangerous substance;
(6) An offense involving alcohol or drugs while operating a motor vehicle;
(7) A felony involving the use of a motor vehicle;
(8) Acting in a manner that is unsafe for students participating in the program;
(9) Knowingly providing program courses while the school certification is refused, suspended, or revoked;
(10) Knowingly issuing a program completion certificate to an individual who did not complete the program; or
(11) Knowingly allowing an individual to teach the program courses, conduct behind-the-wheel instruction, or test or evaluate students without the required instructor permit or certification by the Administration.
G. Except as provided in §F of this regulation, all other violations shall be considered a serious violation and subject to progressive disciplinary action by the Administration.
H. The progressive disciplinary action may include a conference, fines, or suspension or revocation of a school certification.
I. When a school certification is suspended or revoked the school shall immediately:
(1) Surrender the school certification certificate to the Administration;
(2) Stop conducting program courses and all operations of the program;
(3) Refund the fee paid by the students enrolled in the program courses as follows:
(a) Refund 100 percent of the fee paid if instruction has not started or if the first class of a course was not completed; and
(b) In all other cases, refund fees prorated separately based on the hours of instruction in the classroom and behind-the-wheel that have not been completed;
(4) Provide information, in a format acceptable to the Administration, identifying the students who successfully completed program courses and the program courses each student successfully completed; and
(5) Surrender all student records and property of the Administration to the Administration.
