(a) Subject to subsection (b), the Department shall have the authority to deny a new or renewal application for a license, and to amend, recall, suspend or revoke an existing license upon a determination that there has been a substantial failure to comply with the provisions of this Part or the rules promulgated under this Part.

(b) The provisions of Chapter 150B of the N.C. Gen. Stat., the Administrative Procedure Act, shall govern all administrative action and judicial review in cases where the Department has taken the action described in subsection (a).  A petition for a contested case shall be filed within 20 days after the Department mails the licensee a notice of its decision to deny a renewal application, or to recall, suspend, or revoke an existing license. (1961, c. 51, s. 3; 1983, c. 775, s. 1; 1987, c. 827, s. 1; 1991, c. 143, s. 2, c. 761, s. 24.)