Section 91A.12. Civil penalties.

  1.  Any employer who violates the provisions of this chapter or the rules promulgated under it shall be subject to a civil money penalty of not more than five hundred dollars per pay period for each violation. The commissioner may recover such civil money penalty according to the provisions of subsections 2 to 5. Any civil money penalty recovered shall be deposited in the general fund of the state.

  2.  The commissioner may propose that an employer be assessed a civil money penalty by serving the employer with notice of such proposal in the same manner as an original notice is served under the rules of civil procedure. Upon service of such notice, the proposed assessment shall be treated as a contested case under chapter 17A. However, an employer must request a hearing within thirty days of being served.

  3.  If an employer does not request a hearing pursuant to subsection 2 or if the commissioner determines, after an appropriate hearing, that an employer is in violation of this chapter, the commissioner shall assess a civil money penalty which is consistent with the provisions of subsection 1 and which is rendered with due consideration for the penalty amount in terms of the size of the employer’s business, the gravity of the violation, the good faith of the employer, and the history of previous violations.

  4.  An employer may seek judicial review of any assessment rendered under subsection 3 by instituting proceedings for judicial review pursuant to chapter 17A. However, such proceedings must be instituted in the district court of the county in which the violation or one of the violations occurred and within thirty days of the day on which the employer was notified that an assessment has been rendered. Also, an employer may be required, at the discretion of the district court and upon instituting such proceedings, to deposit the amount assessed with the clerk of the district court. Any moneys so deposited shall either be returned to the employer or be forwarded to the commissioner for deposit in the general fund of the state, depending on the outcome of the judicial review, including any appeal to the supreme court.

  5.  After the time for seeking judicial review has expired or after all judicial review has been exhausted and the commissioner’s assessment has been upheld, the commissioner shall request the attorney general to recover the assessed penalties in a civil action.

[C77, 79, 81, §91A.12]

2009 Acts, ch 49, §1