49-34B-12. Civil penalty for violations--Maximum penalties--Penalties credited to pipeline safety account--Interstate facilities exempt. Any person who violates any provision of this chapter or any rule promulgated pursuant to this chapter is subject to a civil penalty to be imposed by the commission, after notice and opportunity for hearing. The civil penalty may not exceed two hundred thousand dollars for each violation each day that the violation persists, except that the maximum civil penalty may not exceed two million dollars for any related series of violations. In determining the amount of the penalty upon finding a violation, or the amount of a compromise settlement, the commission shall consider the appropriateness of the penalty to the size of the business of the person charged, the gravity of the violation, prior offenses and compliance history, the good faith of the person charged in attempting to achieve compliance, and such other matters as justice may require. All penalties collected pursuant to this chapter shall be deposited in the state treasury to the credit of the pipeline safety account, established pursuant to § 49-34B-9. This section does not apply to interstate gas pipeline facilities.
Source: SL 1994, ch 357, § 11; SL 2012, ch 231, § 5; SL 2019, ch 199, § 4.