The Secretary may assess a civil penalty of not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) per violation against any certification authority that violates a provision of this Article or any rule promulgated thereunder. In determining the amount of a penalty under this section, the Secretary shall give due consideration to each of the following factors:

(1)        The organizational size of the certification authority cited;

(2)        The good faith of the certification authority cited;

(3)        The gravity of the violation;

(4)        The prior record of the violator in complying or failing to comply with this Article or a rule adopted pursuant to this Article; and

(5)        The risk of harm caused by the violation.

Chapter 150B of the N.C. Gen. Stat. governs the imposition of a civil penalty under this section. A civil penalty owed under this section may be recovered in a civil action brought by the Secretary or the Attorney General. (1998-127, s. 1.)

Terms Used In North Carolina General Statutes 66-58.7

  • following: when used by way of reference to any section of a statute, shall be construed to mean the section next preceding or next following that in which such reference is made; unless when some other section is expressly designated in such reference. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3