§ 1886.40. Amount of Fines.

(a) For purposes of this section, a “citable offense” is defined as any violation of the statutes and regulations enforced by the Board of Behavioral Sciences, including Chapters 13, 13.5, 14, and 16 of Division Two of the Business and Professions Code and Title 16, Division 18, California Code of Regulations.

(b) The executive officer of the board may assess fines for citable offenses which shall not exceed two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) for each investigation except as otherwise provided in this section. The executive officer shall not impose any duplicate fines for the same violation.

(c) The executive officer of the board may assess fines for citable offenses which shall not exceed five thousand ($5,000) for each investigation if the violation or count includes one or more of the following circumstances:

(1) The cited person has a history of two or more prior citations for similar violations, except for citations withdrawn or dismissed after appeal.

(2) The citation involves multiple violations that demonstrate a willful disregard of the statutes or regulations.

(3) The citation is for a violation or violations involving a minor, elder or dependent adult, or a person with a physical or mental disability as defined in Section 12926 of the Government Code.

(4) The citation involves unlicensed practice.

(5) The citation involves an unlawful or unauthorized breach of confidentiality.

(6) The citation is for failure to submit fingerprints to the Department of Justice as required by the Board.

(d) The executive officer of the board may assess fines which shall not exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) for each violation or count if the violation or count involves fraudulent billing submitted to an insurance company, the Medi-Cal program, or Medicare.

HISTORY

1. New section filed 1-17-97; operative 2-16-97 (Register 97, No. 3).

2. Amendment of section heading, section and Note filed 8-4-2006; operative 9-3-2006 (Register 2006, No. 31).

3. New subsection (c)(6) and amendment of Note filed 5-20-2009; operative 6-19-2009 (Register 2009, No. 21).

4. Amendment of subsection (a) and Note filed 5-24-2011; operative 5-24-2011 pursuant to Government Code section 11343.4 (Register 2011, No. 21).

Note

Note: Authority cited: Sections 125.9, 148, 149, 4980.60 and 4990.20, Business and Professions Code. Reference: Sections 123, 125, 125.9, 136, 141, 148, 149, 480, 651, 654.2, 703, 728, 4980, 4980.02, 4980.30, 4980.43, 4980.44, 4980.45, 4980.46, 4980.48, 4982, 4982.25, 4984, 4987.7, 4987.8, 4988, 4988.1, 4989.10, 4989.12, 4989.14, 4989.20, 4989.22, 4989.24, 4989.26, 4989.28, 4989.34, 4992.3, 4992.36, 4996, 4996.5, 4996.7, 4996.8, 4996.9, 4996.16, 4996.18, 4996.19, 4996.22, 4996.23, 4998.2, 4998.3, 4998.4, 4999.20, 4999.24, 4999.30, 4999.32, 4999.33, 4999.42, 4999.44, 4999.45, 4999.46, 4999.54, 4999.58, 4999.60 and 4999.76, Business and Professions Code; and Section 15630, Welfare and Institutions Code.