Florida Administrative Code › 69 - DEPARTMENT OF FINANCIAL SERVICES › 69V - Finance › Chapter 69V-40 - MORTGAGE BROKERAGE › Section 69V-40.111 - Disciplinary Guidelines

Current through Reg. 50, No. 138; July 16, 2024
(1) Pursuant to
				Section 494.00255, F.S., Office of
				Financial Regulation, Division of Consumer Finance, Disciplinary Guidelines for
				Mortgage Loan Originators and Mortgage Entities, Form OFR-494-14, which is
				hereby incorporated by reference, effective 03/2024, available on the Office's
				website at
www.flofr.gov
and available at
www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-16453
,
				are applicable to each ground for disciplinary action that may be imposed by
				the Office against a person for a violation of Chapter 494, F.S. For purposes
				of this rule, the order of penalties, ranging from lowest to highest is: notice
				of noncompliance, written agreement, reprimand, fine, suspension, and
				revocation. In determining an appropriate penalty within the range of penalties
				prescribed in this rule for each citation as based upon the violation, the
				Office shall consider the circumstances set forth in subsection (3). The third
				column of the guidelines provides a summary of the statutory violations solely
				for the purpose of ease of reference. Persons subject to the rule should review
				the full text of the statute cited in the second column of the guidelines for
				the complete description of the violation. For the purposes of this rule and
				the disciplinary guidelines, the term "citation" means: a notice of
				non-compliance; written agreement; or final order docketed by the agency that
				specifies a violation of Chapter 494, F.S., or any rule promulgated under that
				chapter.
(2) Consistent with the
				disciplinary guidelines contained in the Office of Financial Regulation,
				Division of Consumer Finance, Disciplinary Guidelines for Mortgage Loan
				Originators and Mortgage Entities, Form OFR-494-14, the Office may issue: a
				written agreement which includes an administrative fine, but not adopted by
				final order; orders to revoke or suspend a license; orders to impose an
				administrative fine; orders denying applications; notices of non-compliance;
				and/or bring an action for injunction. Also, consistent with the disciplinary
				guidelines, to determine penalties, the Office may consider the combined effect
				of violations.
(a) For first citations
				identified in the disciplinary guidelines as minor violations, the Office shall
				issue a notice of non-compliance except when the Office identifies aggravating
				circumstances that would warrant a more severe penalty.
(b) For second citations identified in the
				disciplinary guidelines as minor violations, the Office may issue a written
				agreement which is not adopted by final order imposing an administrative fine.
				Written agreements may be used only when the violations are limited to minor
				violations.
(c) Depending on the
				severity and repetition of specific violations, the Office may impose an
				administrative fine, suspension of a person, or revocation of a person or any
				combination thereof.
(d) The Office
				may impose a cease and desist order, a suspension, or both in conjunction with
				and in addition to any of the designated sanctions set forth in this rule when
				appropriate under the circumstances.