Communications to the commissioner or any person in the commissioner’s office in respect to any fact concerning the holder of, or applicant for, any certificate or license issued under this code are made to the commissioner in official confidence within the meaning of Sections 1040 and 1041 of the Evidence Code. Liability shall not exist and no action or proceeding shall lie for or on account of any communication or the making thereof, but the existence of the communication shall not be deemed to dispense with or nullify any requirement of notice, hearing, or production of evidence before the commissioner as otherwise required by law.