OAR 583-050-0027: Disciplinary Action; Civil Penalty Considerations

Effective January 13, 2015: (1) The Commission may assess a civil penalty for each violation of a provision of OAR chapter 583, division 50. (2) In establishing the amount of the penalty for each violation, the Commission shall consider, but not be limited to the following factors: (a) The gravity and magnitude of the violation; (b) The person's previous record of compliance with the provisions of ORS 348.594 to 348.615 or with the rules adopted thereunder; (c) The person's history in taking all feasible steps or in following all procedures necessary or appropriate to correct the violation; and (d) Such other considerations as the Commission may consider appropriate. (3) An "incident" for purposes of the penalty schedule means a single use of the invalid degree, or each use of an unaccredited degree without a disclaimer, in a specific venue in a specific time period. (a) Examples of specific venues include but are not limited to publications, job applications, web sites, spoken presentations, mailings, emails, flyers, posters, advertisements, and handouts. (b) Examples of specific time periods include one-time uses and serial uses, e.g., monthly advertisements, annual publications such as college catalogs and the like. In the case of continued usage during a period of employment, each regular pay period (e.g. one month) in which the degree is used is considered a specific time period and therefore a separate incident. (4) The Commission may impose a civil penalty, provided that it first gives the person an opportunity for a hearing as outlined in ORS Chapter 183.