New Jersey Administrative Code › Title 7 - ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION › Chapter 13 - FLOOD HAZARD AREA CONTROL ACT RULES › Subchapter 24 - ENFORCEMENT › Section 7:13-24.6 - Civil administrative penalties for violations other than failure to obtain a permit prior to conducting regulated activities

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
(a) For violations other than failure to
				obtain a permit prior to conducting regulated activities, the Department may,
				in its discretion, assess a civil administrative penalty pursuant to this
				section of not more than $ 25,000 for each violation of
58:16A-50
et seq., or any
				regulation, rule, permit, condition, or order adopted or issued by the
				Department pursuant thereto. The Department shall assess penalties under this
				section rather than under
				N.J.A.C.
				7:13-24.5 when
				N.J.A.C.
				7:13-24.5 is not applicable to the
				violation.
(b) Each violation of
58:16A-50
et seq., or any
				regulation, rule, permit, condition, or order adopted or issued by the
				Department pursuant thereto, shall constitute an additional, separate, and
				distinct violation.
(c) Where any
				requirement of
58:16A-50
et
				seq., or any regulation, rule, permit, condition, or order adopted or issued by
				the Department pursuant thereto, may pertain to more than one act, condition,
				or occurrence, the failure to comply with such requirement as it pertains to
				each such act, condition, or occurrence shall constitute an additional,
				separate, and distinct violation.
(d) To assess a civil administrative penalty
				pursuant to this section, the Department shall use the two factors described at
				(e) and (f) below, seriousness and conduct, to determine the amount of the base
				daily civil administrative penalty. The applicable daily penalty amount is
				determined using the base daily penalty matrix in the table below, based on the
				seriousness of the violation determined pursuant to (e) below and the conduct
				of the violator determined pursuant to (f) below.
Table 24.6
Base Daily Penalty Matrix
SERIOUSNESS
Major
Moderate
Minor
CONDUCT
Major
$ 25,000
$ 15,000
$ 10,000
Moderate
$ 15,000
$ 7,500
$ 5,000
Minor
$ 10,000
$ 5,000
$ 1,000
(e)
				The seriousness of the violation shall be determined as major, moderate, or
				minor as follows:
1. Major seriousness shall
				apply to any violation which has caused or has the potential to cause serious
				harm to human health or safety, property, the environment, or the flood hazard
				area regulatory program, or seriously deviates from the applicable law and/or
				condition. "Serious deviations" include, but are not limited to, those
				violations which are in complete contravention of the law, requirement, and/or
				condition, and/or which severely impair or undermine the protection, operation,
				or intent of the law, requirement, or condition. Violations of "major"
				seriousness include, but are not limited to:
i. Conducting any activity that adversely
				impacts flooding, flood potential, the flood hazard area habitat for threatened
				or endangered wildlife or plant species, the pattern of riparian zone
				vegetation, or water quality;
ii.
				Placing fill, excavating, and/or grading within the flood hazard
				area;
iii. Clearing, cutting,
				and/or removal of vegetation within the riparian zone;
iv. Placing fill, excavating, and grading
				within the flood hazard area and/or clearing, cutting, and/or removal of
				vegetation within the riparian zone in excess of that which is authorized by a
				permit or plan;
v. Conducting
				regulated activities during a restricted time period identified in Table 11.5,
				Restricted Time Periods for Regulated Waters with Fishery Resources, at
7:13-11.5
;
vi. Failure of a permittee to timely record a
				conservation restriction or other required instrument, and the property has
				been sold or transferred; and
vii.
				Failure of an applicant, permittee, or violator to provide information upon
				request to determine compliance with any applicable law and/or
				condition.