North Dakota Code 6-01-04.3 – Assessment of civil money penalties
1. The commissioner or the board may assess a civil money penalty against a financial institution, financial corporation, or credit union, or an officer, director, employee, agent, or person participating in the conduct of the affairs of the financial corporation, financial institution, or credit union upon finding one or more of the following:
Terms Used In North Dakota Code 6-01-04.3
- Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
- board: when used in this title includes the state banking board and the state credit union board. See North Dakota Code 6-01-03
- Commissioner: means the commissioner of financial institutions. See North Dakota Code 6-01-02
- Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
- Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
- Credit union: means a cooperative, nonprofit association organized for the purposes of encouraging thrift among its members, creating a source of credit at a fair and reasonable rate of interest, and providing an opportunity for its members to improve their economic and social condition. See North Dakota Code 6-01-02
- Financial corporation: means all entities regulated by the department of financial institutions, excluding financial institutions and credit unions. See North Dakota Code 6-01-02
- Financial institution: means any bank, industrial loan company, or savings and loan association organized under the laws of this state or of the United States. See North Dakota Code 6-01-02
- following: when used by way of reference to a chapter or other part of a statute means the next preceding or next following chapter or other part. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
- Person: means an individual, organization, government, political subdivision, or government agency or instrumentality. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
- Record: means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form. See North Dakota Code 6-01-02
- written: include "typewriting" and "typewritten" and "printing" and "printed" except in the case of signatures and when the words are used by way of contrast to typewriting and printing. See North Dakota Code 1-01-37
a. Failure to comply with a permanent or temporary cease and desist order that has been voluntarily consented to or issued pursuant to section 6-01-04.2; b. Failure to comply with a final order that has been voluntarily consented to or issued following formal proceedings under chapter 28-32; c. Payment of dividends in violation of section 6-03-36; d. Loans and leases to one borrower or concern which exceed the limitations set forth in sections 6-03-59 and 6-03-59.1; e. Loans to directors, officers, and employees in violation of section 6-03-60; f. The intentional filing of inaccurate or misleading call reports required by section 6-03-70 or 6-06-08; g. Violations of loan limitations under subsection 1 of section 6-06-12 or title 12, chapter 7, Code of Federal Regulations, subchapter A, part 723, as amended February 5, 2019; h. Loans in violation of section 6-06-14.1; or
i. Failure to file notice of change of control under section 6-08-08.1.
2. The commissioner or the board commences administrative proceedings to assess civil money penalties by serving a complaint on the respondent stating the factual basis for the commissioner’s or board’s belief that a violation has occurred and the amount of civil penalties that the complaint seeks to impose. The complaint must contain a notice of an opportunity for an administrative hearing conducted under chapter 28-32. The date for the hearing must be set not less than thirty days after the date the complaint is served upon the respondent. If assessment of civil money penalties are proposed based on conditions described in subdivisions c through i of subsection 1, a complaint may not be filed unless the respondent has been provided with prior orders, examination reports, or other written communications, and has willfully refused to take corrective action that the respondent was capable of taking at the time.
3. If the respondent fails to answer the complaint within twenty days of its service, the commissioner or board may enter an order imposing civil money penalties upon the respondent. If a hearing is held and the board concludes that the record so warrants, the board may enter an order imposing civil money penalties upon the respondent. The assessment order is effective and enforceable immediately upon service or upon a date specified in the order, and remains effective and enforceable until it is stayed, modified, terminated, or set aside by action of the board or a reviewing court.
4. In determining the amount of civil penalty imposed, the commissioner or board shall consider whether good faith was exercised, and the gravity of the violation and any previous violations. The commissioner or board may not impose a civil money penalty in excess of one hundred thousand dollars for each occurrence and one thousand dollars per day for each day that the violation continues after service of an order. Any civil money penalties collected under this section must be paid to the department of financial institutions and deposited in the financial institutions regulatory fund.