Current through Pa Acts 2024-53, 2024-56 through 2024-111
Section 1031 - Violation; penalty(a)Any person operating a facility within this Commonwealth without a license required by this act, shall upon conviction be sentenced as follows: (1) For a first offense, the person commits a summary offense and shall, upon conviction, be sentenced to pay a finenot less than twenty-five dollars ($25) nor more than three hundred dollars ($300), costs of prosecution, and if in default of payment thereof, to imprisonment for not less than ten days nor more than thirty days. (2) For a second offense, the person commits a misdemeanor of the third degree and shall, upon conviction, be sentenced to pay a fine not less than five hundred dollars ($500) nor more than two thousand dollars ($2,000), costs of prosecution, and if in default of payment thereof, to imprisonment for not less than thirty days nor more than one year. (3) For a third offense or if the operation of the unlicensed facility resulted in a bodily injury as defined in 18 Pa.C.S. § 2301 (relating to definitions), the person commits a misdemeanor of the second degree and shall, upon conviction, be sentenced to pay a fine of not less than two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) nor more than five thousand dollars ($5,000), costs of prosecution, and if in default in payment thereof, to imprisonment for not less than one year nor more than two years. (4) For a fourth or subsequent offense, or if the operation of the unlicensed facility resulted in a serious bodily injury, as defined in 18 Pa.C.S. § 2301, or death, the person commits a felony of the third degree and shall, upon conviction, be sentenced to pay a fine of not less than ten thousand dollars ($10,000), costs of prosecution, and if in default in payment thereof, to imprisonment for not less than five years nor more than seven years. (b)(1) If, after fourteen days, a provider cited for operating without a license fails to file an application for a license, the department shall assess an additional twentydollars ($20) for each resident for each day in which the facility fails to make an application. Each day of operating a facility without a license required by this act shall constitute a separate offense.(2) When a non-residential facility is found to be operating on multiple days, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that the facility was operating each business day between the days it was found to be in operation. When a residential facility is found to be operating on multiple days, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that a facility was operating each calendar day between the days it was found to be in operation.(3) Any provider charged with violation of this subsection shall have thirty days to pay the assessed penalty in full, or, if the provider wishes to contest either the amount of the penalty or the fact of the violation, the party shall forward the assessed penalty to the Secretary of Human Services for placement in an escrow account with the State Treasurer. If, through administrative hearing or judicial review of the proposed penalty, it is determined that no violation occurred or that the amount of the penalty shall be reduced, the secretary shall within thirty days remit the appropriate amount to the provider with any interest accumulated by the escrow deposit. Failure to forward the payment to the secretary within thirty days shall result in a waiver of rights to contest the fact of the violation or the amount of the penalty. The amount assessed after administrative hearing or a waiver of the administrative hearing shall be payable to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and shall be collectible in any manner provided by law for the collection of debts. If any provider liable to pay such penalty neglects or refuses to pay the same after demand, such failureto pay shall constitute a judgment in favor of the Commonwealth in the amount of the penalty, together with the interest and any costs that may accrue.(4) Money collected by the department under this section shall be placed in a special restricted receipt account and shall be first used to defray the expenses incurred by residents relocated under this act. Any moneys remaining in this account shall annually be remitted to the department for enforcing the provisions of this article. Fines collected pursuant to this act shall not be subject to the provisions of 42 Pa.C.S. § 3733 (relating to deposits into account).(c) The penalties prescribed under this section may be imposed in addition to each other and to any other applicable criminal, civil, or administrative penalty, action or sanction otherwise provided by law. Amended by P.L. TBD 2015 No. 92, § 15.5, eff. 12/28/2015.1967, June 13, P.L. 31, No. 21, art. 10, § 1031.