AN ACT to provide that civil penalties of up to one thousand dollars may be assessed for violation of capacity use area laws.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 143‑215.17(b) reads as rewritten:
"(b)	Civil Penalties. – 
(1)	The Secretary may assess a civil penalty of not less than one hundred dollars ($100.00) nor more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) against any person who violates any provisions of, or any order issued pursuant to this Part, or who violates a rule of the Commission implementing this Part.
(2)	If any action or failure to act for which a penalty may be assessed under this Part is willful, the Secretary may assess a penalty not to exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000) per day for each day of violation.
(3)	In determining the amount of the penalty the Secretary shall consider the factors set out in G.S. 143B‑282.1(b). The procedures set out in G.S. 143B‑282.1 shall apply to civil penalty assessments that are presented to the Commission for final agency decision.
(4)	The Secretary shall notify any person assessed a civil penalty of the assessment and the specific reasons therefor by registered or certified mail, or by any means authorized by G.S. 1A‑1, Rule 4. Contested case petitions shall be filed within 30 days of receipt of the notice of assessment.
(5)	Requests for remission of civil penalties shall be filed with the Secretary. Remission requests shall not be considered unless made within 30 days of receipt of the notice of assessment. Remission requests must be accompanied by a waiver of the right to a contested case hearing pursuant to Chapter 150B and a stipulation of the facts on which the assessment was based. Consistent with the limitations in G.S. 143B‑282.1(c) and (d), remission requests may be resolved by the Secretary and the violator. If the Secretary and the violator are unable to resolve the request, the Secretary shall deliver remission requests and his recommended action to the Committee on Civil Penalty Remissions of the Environmental Management Commission appointed pursuant to G.S. 143B‑282.1(c).
(6)	If any civil penalty has not been paid within 30 days after notice of assessment has been served on the violator, the Secretary shall request the Attorney General to institute a civil action in the Superior Court of any county in which the violator resides or has his or its principal place of business to recover the amount of the assessment, unless the violator contests the assessment as provided in subdivision (4) of this subsection, or requests remission of the assessment in whole or in part as provided in subdivision (5) of this subsection. If any civil penalty has not been paid within 30 days after the final agency decision or court order has been served on the violator, the Secretary shall request the Attorney General to institute a civil action in the Superior Court of any county in which the violator resides or has his or its principal place of business to recover the amount of the assessment.
(7)	Repealed by Session Laws 1995 (Regular Session, 1996), c. 743, s. 15.
(8)	The clear proceeds of civil penalties assessed pursuant to this subsection shall be remitted to the Civil Penalty and Forfeiture Fund in accordance with G.S. 115C‑457.2."
SECTION 2.  This act is effective when it becomes law and applies to violations that occur on or after that date.
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 10th day of June, 2009.

	s/	 Walter H. Dalton
	 President of the Senate

	s/	 Joe Hackney
	 Speaker of the House of Representatives

	s/	 Beverly E. Perdue
	 Governor

Approved 11:46 a.m. this 19th day of June, 2009