§ 160-HHH — Violations; penalties; appeals

§ 160-hhh. Violations; penalties; appeals. 1. Any person that\nknowingly submits a materially false statement on the affirmation\nprovided for in section eighteen-c of the workers' compensation law\nshall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor. Any person that commits a\nsecond or subsequent offense under this subdivision shall be guilty of a\nclass E felony.\n 2. The workers' compensation board or local taxi and limousine\ncommission may, upon its own motion or the application of a local taxi\nand limousine commission or the independent livery fund, and upon notice\nto the independent livery base, conduct a hearing as to the validity of\nany affirmation filed under section eighteen-c of the workers'\ncompensation law, or to determine whether there has been any other\nviolation of this article. Should the workers' compensation board or\nlocal taxi and limousine commission determine that the certification\ncontains any materially false statements, the workers' compensation\nboard may:\n (a) revoke the livery base's authorization as an independent livery\nbase for a period of up to five years;\n (b) impose a civil penalty of up to ten thousand dollars; and/or\n (c) refer the independent livery base to the local taxi and limousine\ncommission for such additional sanction as it may impose under its rules\nand regulations.\n 3. Any independent livery base which has been found on two separate\noccasions, under subdivision two of this section, to have made a\nmaterially false statement in its certification shall be permanently\nbarred from acting as an independent livery base.\n 4. If an independent livery base fails to submit to the independent\nlivery driver benefit fund any required charge, the workers'\ncompensation board or local taxi and limousine commission may order that\nit pay into the fund, upon application of the fund and following notice\nto the independent livery base (a) the amount overdue plus interest on\nsuch amount, and/or (b) a penalty of up to five hundred dollars for each\nthirty days after notice is given that the payment is overdue. The\nworkers' compensation board or local taxi and limousine commission may\nsuspend or revoke such livery base's authorization to act as an\nindependent livery base for failure to make such payment. The rate of\ninterest applicable to this subdivision shall be twelve percent per\nannum. Any monetary penalty imposed pursuant to this subdivision shall\nbe retained by the workers' compensation board and be used to defray the\ncosts of administering this article.\n 5. If the workers' compensation board or local taxi and limousine\ncommission determines that any independent livery base has made any\nmaterial misrepresentations, or temporarily altered the affiliation of\nany livery, livery driver or livery registrant, for the purpose of\nreducing its payments into the fund, the workers' compensation board or\nlocal taxi and limousine commission may suspend the livery base's\nmembership in the fund for a period of up to two years, and may impose a\npenalty of up to five thousand dollars.\n 6. If the workers' compensation board or local taxi and limousine\ncommission determines that any independent livery base has coerced any\nlivery driver into making false statements or refraining from reporting\nany violations of this article, the workers' compensation board or local\ntaxi and limousine commission may suspend the livery base's membership\nin the fund for a period of up to two years, and may impose a penalty of\nup to five thousand dollars.\n 7. Except as otherwise provided in this section, a livery base that is\nfound to have violated a provision of this article or a rule promulgated\nby the workers' compensation board or local taxi and limousine\ncommission pursuant to this article shall be liable for a fine in an\namount not to exceed five thousand dollars per violation.\n 8. If the fund has reason to believe a violation of this article by a\nfund member may have occurred, the fund shall notify the workers'\ncompensation board. Upon receipt of such a referral, the workers'\ncompensation board shall hold a hearing to determine the validity of the\ncharge, or refer the matter to the local taxi and limousine commission\nfor such determination.\n 9. The responsible persons of an independent livery base shall be\npersonally liable for the amount of any monetary penalties awarded\npursuant to this subdivision. "Responsible persons," for purposes of\nthis subdivision, shall be: (a) the directors of a livery base that is a\ncorporation; (b) the managers of a livery base that is a limited\nliability company or its members if management of a livery base is\nvested in its members; (c) the general partner or partners of a livery\nbase that is a partnership; (d) all individuals who directly or\nindirectly own, control or hold the power to vote ten percent or more of\nthe voting interests of any corporation, joint stock company,\npartnership, association, trust, limited liability company or similar\nentity that manages a livery base; and (e) the president, secretary and\ntreasurer of a livery base, regardless of its form of organization.\n 10. Failure of the independent livery base, or of its responsible\npersons, to pay any charges or penalties awarded pursuant to this\nsection within twenty days of issuance of a valid order so to do, or in\nthe event an appeal has been taken from the determination of the\nworkers' compensation board, to deposit with the workers' compensation\nboard within twenty days of the issuance of the determination from which\nthe appeal is taken the total amount of the award as security for its\npayment, shall entitle the workers' compensation board or local taxi and\nlimousine commission to file with the clerk of Albany county or the\ncounty where the local taxi and limousine commission is located a\ncertified copy of the determination of the workers' compensation board\nor the local taxi and limousine commission, and thereupon judgment shall\nbe entered in the supreme court by the clerk of the county where the\ndetermination is filed immediately upon such filing. Such judgment shall\nbe entered in the same manner, have the same effect and be subject to\nthe same proceedings as though rendered in a suit duly heard and\ndetermined by the supreme court, except that no appeal may be taken\ntherefrom.\n 11. Within twenty days after issuance by the workers' compensation\nboard of a determination adverse to a livery base pursuant to this\nsection, an appeal may be taken therefrom to the appellate division of\nthe supreme court, third department, by the aggrieved party.\n 12. If the membership of an independent livery base in the independent\nlivery fund is suspended for failure to pay assessments under this\narticle, the livery base may make application for reinstatement only\nupon payment of such assessments and such penalties and interest as the\nlocal taxi and limousine commission or workers' compensation board has\nimposed, or upon the agreement by the base and fund to a schedule for\nsuch payment.\n 13. Any sanction imposed under this section shall be after notice to\nthe independent livery base and an opportunity for a hearing.\n