N.J. Admin. Code § 17:30-20.6

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 17, September 3, 2024

Section 17:30-20.6 - Civil monetary penalties; summary proceedings

(a) This section sets forth civil monetary penalties for violations of the Act or this chapter and enforcement procedures for imposing and collecting civil monetary penalties by the Commission.

(b) A monetary penalty imposed by the Commission on a license holder pursuant to this subchapter may not exceed $ 500,000 per violation. Penalties may be imposed on a license holder as follows:

1. Not more than $ 500,000 per major license violation; and

2. Not more than $ 50,000 per any other license violation.

(c) A violation by each entity or person per day shall constitute a separate incident for purposes of calculating the number of violations.

(d) The Commission may impose greater penalties for successive violations up to the maximum amounts set forth at (b) above.

(e) The penalty for a subsequent violation shall only be imposed if the license holder has been notified of the prior violation or violations.

1. Such notice may be provided by service of written notice or the receipt of a written notice from an investigating officer that a violation has occurred, which may be presented to the license holder's owner, principal, or manager at the licensed premises or administrative office, or other reasonable form of notice such as certified mail or personal service pursuant to N.J. Ct. R. 4:4-4.

2. If violations are discovered during an undercover or unannounced inspection or onsite assessment, then no notice of any prior violation is necessary to impose the penalty for a subsequent violation.

(f) Notwithstanding anything in this section, the Commission may, in the Commission's sole discretion, consider additional factors in determining the penalty for each violation. Such factors may include, but are not limited to:

1. Any prior violations that the license holder has admitted to or was found to have engaged in;

2. Good faith measures by the license holder to self-report or prevent the violation;

3. The license holder's record of compliance with the laws and rules pertaining to personal use cannabis;

4. Corrective action(s) taken by the license holder related to the current violation or prior violations;

5. Willfulness and deliberateness of the violation;

6. Likelihood of reoccurrence of the violation; and

7. Violations involving damage or danger to the life, health, welfare, safety, or property of any person.

(g) Any penalties, costs, and/or fees pursuant to this subsection may be imposed and collected by the Commission in a summary proceeding pursuant to the Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999, P.L. 1999, c. 274(N.J.S.A. 2A:58-10 et seq.).

(h) The Commission may additionally seek reimbursement for the costs of the State, including, but not limited to:

1. Costs of investigation, expert witness fees and costs, attorney fees and costs, and transcript costs for violations; and

2. Costs of cleaning up, mitigating, or remedying any environmental damage caused by a cannabis business or testing laboratory.

(i) The license holder may request an adjudicatory hearing pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act, N.J.S.A. 52:14B-1 et seq., and 52:14F-1 et seq., to contest the Commission's imposition of a civil monetary penalty for any license violation within 14 days of receipt of the notice of civil monetary penalty.

(j) If the license holder requests an adjudicatory hearing pursuant to (i) above, the Commission shall arrange for a hearing to be conducted by the Commission and a final agency decision shall be issued after the hearing by the Commission.

1. If the Commission affirms the civil monetary penalty, it shall become final.

(k) The cannabis business may, pursuant to N.J.A.C. 17:30-20.10, apply for injunctive relief against the Commission's civil monetary penalty in the New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division.

N.J. Admin. Code § 17:30-20.6

Recodified from 17:30-17.6 by 55 N.J.R. 402(a), effective 3/6/2023