Oregon Revised Statutes

Or. Rev. Stat. § 656.735 (2026)

Civil penalty for noncomplying employers; amount; liability of partners and of corporate and limited liability company officers; effect of final order; penalty as preferred claim; disposition of moneys collected

✓ current as of May 2026
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      656.735 Civil penalty for noncomplying employers; amount; liability of partners and of corporate and limited liability company officers; effect of final order; penalty as preferred claim; disposition of moneys collected. (1) The Director of the Department of Consumer and Business Services shall assess any person who violates ORS 656.052 (1) a civil penalty of not more than $1,000 or twice the premium that would have been due for the period of noncompliance, whichever is the greater.

      (2) The director shall assess any person who continues to violate ORS 656.052 (1), after an order issued pursuant to ORS 656.052 (2) has become final, a civil penalty, in addition to any penalty assessed under subsection (1) of this section, of not more than $250 for each day such violation continues.

      (3)(a) When a noncomplying employer is a corporation, such corporation and the officers and directors thereof shall be jointly and severally liable for any civil penalties assessed under this section and any claim costs incurred under ORS 656.054.

      (b) When a noncomplying employer is a limited liability company, the company and its members and managers shall be jointly and severally liable for any civil penalties assessed by the director under this section and any claim costs incurred under ORS 656.054. As used in this paragraph, “limited liability company,” “manager” and “member” have the meanings for those terms provided in ORS 63.001.

      (c) When a noncomplying employer is a limited liability partnership or foreign limited liability partnership, the partnership and its limited liability partners shall be jointly and severally liable for any civil penalties assessed by the director under this section and any claim costs incurred under ORS 656.054. As used in this paragraph, “limited liability partnership” and “foreign limited liability partnership” have the meanings for those terms provided in ORS 67.005.

      (d) When a noncomplying employer is a partnership, the partnership and its partners shall be jointly and severally liable for any civil penalties assessed by the director under this section and any claim costs incurred under ORS 656.054. As used in this paragraph, “partnership” has the meaning for that term provided in ORS 67.005.

      (4) When an order assessing a civil penalty becomes final by operation of law or on appeal, unless the amount of penalty is paid within 10 days after the order becomes final, it constitutes a judgment and may be recorded with the county clerk in any county of this state. The clerk shall thereupon record the name of the person incurring the penalty and the amount of the penalty in the County Clerk Lien Record. The penalty provided in the order so recorded shall become a lien upon the title to any interest in property owned by the person against whom the order is entered, and execution may be issued upon the order in the same manner as execution upon a judgment of a court of record.

      (5) Civil penalties, and judgments entered thereon, due to the director under this section from any person shall be deemed preferred to all general claims in all bankruptcy proceedings, trustee proceedings, and proceedings for the administration of estates and receiverships involving the person liable therefor or the property of such person.

      (6) All moneys collected under this section shall be paid into the Workers’ Benefit Fund. [1973 c.447 §4; 1977 c.73 §1; 1983 c.696 §23; 1995 c.332 §65; 1995 c.641 §12; 1995 c.689 §37; 1997 c.775 §91; 2003 c.170 §8]

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 17 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1979–2022 · leading case: Dep't of Consum. & Bus. Servs. v. Muliro, 380 P.3d 270 (Or. 2016).
Dep't of Consum. & Bus. Servs. v. Muliro, 380 P.3d 270 (Or. 2016). “506; ORS 656.735. Assessments collected for the Fund are computed yearly to meet its needs.”
Armstrong v. Rogue Fed. Credit Union, 969 P.2d 382 (Or. 1998). · cites it 2× “For example, an employer is liable for a penalty under ORS 656.735 if a worker suffers a compensable injury when the employer is in a “noncomplying” status (i.”
Dep't of Consum. & Bus. Servs. v. Zurich Am., 268 P.3d 671 (Or. Ct. App. 2011). · cites it 2× ““(2) Whenever the [director] has reason to believe that any person has violated subsection (1) of this section, the director shall serve upon the person a proposed order declaring the person to be a noncomplying employer and containing the amount, if any, of civil penalty to be…”
Associated Reforestation Contractors, Inc. v. State Workers' Comp. Bd., 650 P.2d 1068 (Or. Ct. App. 1982). ““(2) Whenever the director has reason to believe that any person has violated subsection (1) of this section, the director shall serve upon him a proposed order declaring him to be a noncomplying employer and containing the *355 amount, if any, of civil penalty to be assessed…”
Brown v. Ins. Co. of North Am., 762 P.2d 330 (Or. Ct. App. 1988). · cites it 2× “**** * “On or about April 19,1983, the Department of Revenue filed a claim in the amount of $2,000 based on an assessment of civil penalties pursuant to ORS 656.735.” The complaint in this case sufficiently alleges facts that give rise to the state’s subrogation rights.”
Trojan Concrete v. Tallant, 812 P.2d 433 (Or. Ct. App. 1991). · cites it 2× ““(3) In addition to, and not in lieu of, any civil penalties assessed pursuant to ORS 656.735, all costs to the Industrial Accident Fund of a claim processed under subsection (1) of this section shall be a liability of the noncomplying employer.”
Nelander v. Dep't of Ins. & Fin., 829 P.2d 1048 (Or. Ct. App. 1992). · cites it 2× “052 and ORS 656.735, because the order does not impose a penalty.”
Candee v. State Accident Ins. Fund, 595 P.2d 1381 (Or. Ct. App. 1979). “Penalties are specifically provided for in ORS 656.735. Rather, its function is to eliminate any incentive to an employer to fail to comply with the Act.”
Green v. C & H Contractors, Inc., 631 P.2d 794 (Or. Ct. App. 1981). “Apparently, the issue intended to be presented on appeal is whether plaintiff’s complaint stated a cause of action under ORS 656.735(4), which provides: "(4) When a noncomplying employer is a corporation, such corporation and the officers and directors thereof shall be jointly…”
SAIF Corp. v. Cross River Transp., Inc., 259 P.3d 1001 (Or. Ct. App. 2011). · cites it 2× “052; ORS 656.735. In this case, the director issued an order declaring Cross River Transport a noncomplying employer (NCE) for a period from July 2004 to April 2007 for failing to carry required workers’ compensation insurance.”
DCBS v. Muliro (Or. 2016). “506; ORS 656.735. Assessments collected for the Fund are computed yearly to meet its needs.”
Capital Credit & Collection Serv., Inc. v. Kerr Contractors, Inc., 432 P.3d 315 (Or. Ct. App. 2018). “017, that I (We) shall be jointly and severally liable for any civil penalties assessed under ORS 656.735 and any claim costs incurred under ORS 656.”
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 656.735(1) — 4 cases
Dep't of Consum. & Bus. Servs. v. Zurich Am., 268 P.3d 671 (Or. Ct. App. 2011). ““(2) Whenever the [director] has reason to believe that any person has violated subsection (1) of this section, the director shall serve upon the person a proposed order declaring the person to be a noncomplying employer and containing the amount, if any, of civil penalty to be…”
Associated Reforestation Contractors, Inc. v. State Workers' Comp. Bd., 650 P.2d 1068 (Or. Ct. App. 1982). ““(2) Whenever the director has reason to believe that any person has violated subsection (1) of this section, the director shall serve upon him a proposed order declaring him to be a noncomplying employer and containing the *355 amount, if any, of civil penalty to be assessed…”
Nelander v. Dep't of Ins. & Fin., 829 P.2d 1048 (Or. Ct. App. 1992). “052 and ORS 656.735, because the order does not impose a penalty.”
In Re Comp. of Mccoy, 268 P.3d 671 (Or. Ct. App. 2011).
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 656.735(3) — 3 cases
Armstrong v. Rogue Fed. Credit Union, 969 P.2d 382 (Or. 1998). “For example, an employer is liable for a penalty under ORS 656.735 if a worker suffers a compensable injury when the employer is in a “noncomplying” status (i.”
Trojan Concrete v. Tallant, 812 P.2d 433 (Or. Ct. App. 1991). ““(3) In addition to, and not in lieu of, any civil penalties assessed pursuant to ORS 656.735, all costs to the Industrial Accident Fund of a claim processed under subsection (1) of this section shall be a liability of the noncomplying employer.”
State v. Brimhall, 860 P.2d 884 (Or. Ct. App. 1993).
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 656.735(4) — 2 cases
Green v. C & H Contractors, Inc., 631 P.2d 794 (Or. Ct. App. 1981). “Apparently, the issue intended to be presented on appeal is whether plaintiff’s complaint stated a cause of action under ORS 656.735(4), which provides: "(4) When a noncomplying employer is a corporation, such corporation and the officers and directors thereof shall be jointly…”
Green v. C & H Contractors, Inc., 619 P.2d 1356 (Or. Ct. App. 1980).
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.