7 U.S.C. § 499h : US Code - Section 499H: Grounds for suspension or revocation of license

Search 7 U.S.C. § 499h : US Code - Section 499H: Grounds for suspension or revocation of license

(a) Authority of Secretary
Whenever (1) the Secretary determines, as provided in section
499f of this title, that any commission merchant, dealer, or broker
has violated any of the provisions of section 499b of this title,
or (2) any commission merchant, dealer, or broker has been found
guilty in a Federal court of having violated section 499n(b) of
this title, the Secretary may publish the facts and circumstances
of such violation and/or, by order, suspend the license of such
offender for a period not to exceed ninety days, except that, if
the violation is flagrant or repeated, the Secretary may, by order,
revoke the license of the offender.
(b) Unlawful employment of certain persons; restrictions; bond
assuring compliance; approval of employment without bond; change
in amount of bond; payment of increased amount; penalties
Except with the approval of the Secretary, no licensee shall
employ any person, or any person who is or has been responsibly
connected with any person - 
(1) whose license has been revoked or is currently suspended by
order of the Secretary;
(2) who has been found after notice and opportunity for hearing
to have committed any flagrant or repeated violation of section
499b of this title, but this provision shall not apply to any
case in which the license of the person found to have committed
such violation was suspended and the suspension period has
expired or is not in effect; or
(3) against whom there is an unpaid reparation award issued
within two years, subject to his right of appeal under section
499g(c) of this title.
The Secretary may approve such employment at any time following
nonpayment of a reparation award, or after one year following the
revocation or finding of flagrant or repeated violation of section
499b of this title, if the licensee furnishes and maintains a
surety bond in form and amount satisfactory to the Secretary as
assurance that such licensee's business will be conducted in
accordance with this chapter and that the licensee will pay all
reparation awards, subject to its right of appeal under section
499g(c) of this title, which may be issued against it in connection
with transactions occurring within four years following the
approval. The Secretary may approve employment without a surety
bond after the expiration of two years from the effective date of
the applicable disciplinary order. The Secretary, based on changes
in the nature and volume of business conducted by the licensee, may
require an increase or authorize a reduction in the amount of the
bond. A licensee who is notified by the Secretary to provide a bond
in an increased amount shall do so within a reasonable time to be
specified by the Secretary, and if the licensee fails to do so the
approval of employment shall automatically terminate. The Secretary
may, after thirty days notice and an opportunity for a hearing,
suspend or revoke the license of any licensee who, after the date
given in such notice, continues to employ any person in violation
of this section. The Secretary may extend the period of employment
sanction as to a responsibly connected person for an additional one-
year period upon the determination that the person has been
unlawfully employed as provided in this subsection.
(c) Fraud in procurement
If, after a license shall have been issued to an applicant, the
Secretary believes that the license was obtained through a false or
misleading statement in the application therefor or through a
misrepresentation, concealment, or withholding of facts respecting
any violation of this chapter by any officer, agent, or employee,
he may, after thirty days' notice and an opportunity for a hearing,
revoke said license, whereupon no license shall be issued to said
applicant or any applicant in which the person responsible for such
false or misleading statement or misrepresentation, concealment, or
withholding of facts is financially interested, except under the
conditions set forth in section 499d(b) of this title.
(d) Injunction
In addition to being subject to the penalties provided by section
499c(a) of this title, any commission merchant, dealer, or broker
who engages in or operates such business without a valid and
effective license from the Secretary shall be liable to be
proceeded against in any court of competent jurisdiction in a suit
by the United States for an injunction to restrain such defendant
from further continuing so to engage in or operate such business,
and, if the court shall find that the defendant is continuing to
engage in such business without a valid and effective license, the
court shall issue an injunction to restrain such defendant from
continuing to engage in or to operate such business without such
license.
(e) Alternative civil penalties
In lieu of suspending or revoking a license under this section
when the Secretary determines, as provided by section 499f of this
title, that a commission merchant, dealer, or broker has violated
section 499b of this title or subsection (b) of this section, the
Secretary may assess a civil penalty not to exceed $2,000 for each
violative transaction or each day the violation continues. In
assessing the amount of a penalty under this subsection, the
Secretary shall give due consideration to the size of the business,
the number of employees, and the seriousness, nature, and amount of
the violation. Amounts collected under this subsection shall be
deposited in the Treasury of the United States as miscellaneous
receipts.