91C.8 Investigations — enforcement — administrative penalties.

1. The labor commissioner and inspectors of the division of labor services of the department of workforce development have jurisdiction for investigation and enforcement in cases where contractors may be in violation of the requirements of this chapter or rules adopted pursuant to this chapter.

2. If, upon investigation, the labor commissioner or the commissioner’s authorized representative believes that a contractor has violated any of the following, the commissioner shall with reasonable promptness issue a citation to the contractor:

a. The requirement that a contractor be registered.

b. The requirement that the contractor’s registration information be substantially complete and accurate.

c. The requirement that an out-of-state contractor file a bond with the division of labor services.

3. Each citation shall be in writing and shall describe with particularity the nature of the violation, including a reference to the provision of the statute alleged to have been violated.

4. If a citation is issued, the commissioner shall, within seven days, notify the contractor by service in the same manner as an original notice or by certified mail of the administrative penalty, if any, proposed to be assessed and that the contractor has fifteen working days within which to notify the commissioner that the contractor wishes to contest the citation or proposed assessment of penalty.

5. The administrative penalties which may be imposed under this section shall be not more than five hundred dollars in the case of a first violation and not more than five thousand dollars for each violation in the case of a second or subsequent violation. All administrative penalties collected pursuant to this chapter shall be deposited in the general fund of the state.

6. If, within fifteen working days from the receipt of the notice, the contractor fails to notify the commissioner that the contractor intends to contest the citation or proposed assessment of penalty, the citation and the assessment, as proposed, shall be deemed a final order of the employment appeal board and not subject to review by any court or agency.

7. If the contractor notifies the commissioner that the contractor intends to contest the citation or proposed assessment of penalty, the commissioner shall immediately advise the employment appeal board established by section 10A.601. The employment appeal board shall review the action of the commissioner and shall thereafter issue an order, based on findings of fact, affirming, modifying, or vacating the commissioner’s citation or proposed penalty or directing other appropriate relief, and the order shall become final sixty days after its issuance.

8. The labor commissioner shall notify the department of revenue upon final agency action regarding the citation and assessment of penalty against a registered contractor.

9. Judicial review of any order of the employment appeal board issued pursuant to this section may be sought in accordance with the terms of chapter 17A. If no petition for judicial review is filed within sixty days after service of the order of the employment appeal board, the appeal board’s findings of fact and order shall be conclusive in connection with any petition for enforcement which is filed by the commissioner after the expiration of the sixty-day period. In any such case, the clerk of court, unless otherwise ordered by the court, shall forthwith enter a decree enforcing the order and shall transmit a copy of the decree to the employment appeal board and the contractor named in the petition.

88 Acts, ch 1162, §9; 89 Acts, ch 254, §2, 3; 96 Acts, ch 1186, §23; 99 Acts, ch 68, §19; 2000 Acts, ch 1154, §11; 2003 Acts, ch 145, §286

Referred to in §91C.5