17A.14 PENALTIES.

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17A.14 PENALTIES.

Subdivision 1. Criminal penalties.

Any person, duly licensed or otherwise, who violates this chapter, for which violation a penalty has not been specifically set out, is guilty of a misdemeanor. Any subsequent violation is a gross misdemeanor.

Subd. 2. Civil penalties.

(a)The commissioner, as an alternate to misdemeanor prosecution, may impose a civil penalty on a person who violates a statute or rule enforceable by the commissioner. For a first violation, the commissioner may impose a civil penalty of not more than $500 for each violation. For a second or succeeding violation, the commissioner may impose a penalty of not more than $1,000 for each violation.

(b)In determining the amount of the civil penalty, the commissioner may consider:

(1)the willfulness of the violation;

(2)the gravity of the violation;

(3)the person's history of past violations;

(4)the number of violations;

(5)the economic benefit from the violations; and

(6)other factors identified in the commissioner's citation.

(c)For a second or succeeding violation, the commissioner shall determine the amount of a penalty by considering the factors in paragraph

(b)and:

(1)similarity between the violations;

(2)time elapsed since the last violation; and

(3)the person's response to the most recent violation.