161.054 Administrative fines; liability for damage; liens.—
(1) In addition to the penalties provided for in ss. 161.052, 161.053, and 161.121, any person, firm, corporation, or governmental agency, or agent thereof, refusing to comply with or willfully violating s. 161.041, s. 161.052, or s. 161.053, or any rule or order prescribed by the department thereunder, shall incur a fine for each offense in an amount up to $15,000 to be fixed, imposed, and collected by the department. Each day during any portion of which such violation occurs constitutes a separate offense.
(2) Whenever any person, firm, corporation, or governmental agency, or agent thereof, knowingly or by gross negligence violates any of the provisions of s. 161.041, s. 161.052, or s. 161.053 so that damage is caused to sovereignty lands seaward of mean high water or to beaches, shores, or beach-dune systems, including animal, plant, or aquatic life thereon, such violator shall be liable for such damage. If two or more persons, firms, corporations, or governmental agencies, or their agents, cause damage, and if liability for such damage cannot be apportioned, each violator shall be jointly and severally liable for the damage. If, however, liability for such damage can be apportioned, each violator is liable only for that portion of the damage and subject to that portion of the fine attributable to his or her violation.
(3) The imposition of a fine or an award of damages pursuant to this section shall create a lien upon the real and personal property of the violator, enforceable by the department as are statutory liens under chapter 85. The proceeds of such fines and awards of damages shall be deposited in the Florida Coastal Protection Trust Fund.
(4) Fines imposed by the department or damages awarded shall be of such amount so as to ensure immediate and continued compliance with the provisions of ss. 161.041, 161.052, and 161.053.
(5) Any applicant for a permit pursuant to s. 161.041, s. 161.052, or s. 161.053 shall be denied a permit if a lien imposed upon the property pursuant to the provisions of this section is outstanding against the applicant; however, the department may authorize a permit after the fact in accordance with s. 161.041, s. 161.052, or s. 161.053, conditioned upon a resolution of the violation.
Cited 10 times | Published | Florida 2nd District Court of Appeal | 2002 WL 31875183
...rejected, as a matter of law, the claim that the defendant was an employer or fellow employee. [5] See, e.g., Jacobs v. Seminole Canvassing Bd., 773 So.2d 519, 523 (Fla.2000) (applying gross negligence standard to misconduct for election officials); § 161.054, Fla....
Cited 9 times | Published | Florida 1st District Court of Appeal | 12 Fla. L. Weekly 659
...Grayson, Asst. Gen. Counsel, for appellee. MILLS, Judge. Richard Holmberg appeals from two final orders of the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). The first imposes a civil fine against him for willful violation of a coastal construction permit, pursuant to Section 161.054(1), Florida Statutes (1985)....
...on or objection and the meeting concluded. On 15 April, two final orders were entered by DNR. The first found as fact that the permit had been violated and that Holmberg had completed the nonconforming project despite orders to stop work. Relying on Section 161.054, which provides that "any person or agent of any person refusing to comply with or willfully violating any of the provisions of Section 161.041, Florida Statutes, or any rule or order prescribed by the Department thereunder, shall inc...
...and the project contractor, Richard Holmberg." No authority for this imposition is cited. These orders were separately appealed to this court, which appeals were consolidated for consideration and disposition. With regard to the imposition of the civil fine against Holmberg pursuant to Section 161.054(1), we reverse and remand for further agency action....
...ues of material fact sufficient to warrant a formal hearing pursuant to Section 120.57(1), Florida Statutes. We do not here determine that issue. We also reverse the imposition against Holmberg of a portion of the cost of the removal of the project. Section 161.054(1) provides for a fine for refusal to comply with or willful violation of the chapter, while subsection (2) permits imposition of the costs of reparation of any damage to sovereignity lands caused by the violation....
...s seaward of the coastal construction control line. We affirm. The record reveals that McDonough had actual notice of the conditions he was to comply with. His failure to comply under these circumstances subjects him to the penalties provided for in § 161.054(1), Florida Statutes (1980 Supp.)....
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