{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-2-2-2a-9","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 2, § 2-2A-9","heading":"Violations of act, permit, rule or order - Recovery of","body":"damages - Right of intervention - Notice - Hearings - Penalties -\n\nReview.\n\nA. Whenever there are reasonable grounds to believe that there\n\nhas been a violation of any of the provisions of the Oklahoma\n\nAgriculture Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Act, any permit,\n\nany rule, or any order of the Director of the Agriculture Pollutant\n\nDischarge Elimination System, the Director shall have the authority\n\nand powers to proceed as specified in the Administrative Procedures\n\nAct unless otherwise provided herein. However, provisions of this\n\nsection for written notice, enforcement hearing, and administrative\n\norders shall not be conditions precedent for seeking action in the\n\ndistrict court as provided by the Oklahoma Agriculture Pollutant\n\nDischarge Elimination System Act or other applicable provisions of\n\nlaw.\n\nB. The Oklahoma Agriculture Pollutant Discharge Elimination\n\nSystem Act shall not in any way impair or in any way affect the\n\nright of a person to recover damages for pollution that are\n\notherwise allowed by law in a court of competent jurisdiction.\n\nC. Any person having any interest connected with the geographic\n\narea or waters or water system affected, including but not limited\n\nto any health, environmental, pecuniary, or property interest, which\n\ninterest is or may be adversely affected, shall have the right to\n\nintervene as a party in any administrative proceeding before the\n\nDepartment, or in any civil proceeding, relating to violations of\n\nthe Oklahoma Agriculture Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Act\n\nor rules, permits or orders issued hereunder.\n\nD. Whenever, on the basis of any information available, the\n\nDepartment finds that any person regulated by the Department is in\n\nviolation of any act, rule, order, permit, condition or limitation\n\nimplementing the Oklahoma Agriculture Pollutant Discharge\n\nElimination System Act, or any previously issued discharge permit,\n\nthe Director may issue an order requiring the person or entity to\n\ncomply with the provision or requirement, commence appropriate\n\nadministrative enforcement proceedings, or bring a civil action.\n\nProvided, however, the issuance of a compliance order or denial,\n\nplacing on probation, reinstatement, suspension or revocation of a\n\npermit shall not be considered a condition precedent to the accrual\n\nor imposition of penalties or fines in any administrative, civil, or\n\ncriminal proceeding.\n\nE. 1. A copy of any order issued pursuant to this section\n\nshall be sent immediately to the violator. In any case in which an\n\norder or notice to a violator is issued to a corporation, a copy of\n\nthe order shall be served on any appropriate individual officers or\n\nservice agents.\n\n2. Any order issued pursuant to this section shall state with\n\nreasonable specificity the nature of the violation, and shall\n\nspecify a time for compliance not to exceed thirty (30) days in the\n\ncase of a violation of an interim compliance schedule or operation\n\nand maintenance requirement and not to exceed a reasonable time in\n\nthe case of a violation of a final deadline, taking into account the\n\nseriousness of the violation and any good faith efforts to comply\n\nwith applicable requirements. Any order or notice issued by the\n\nDirector may be served in any manner allowed by Oklahoma Rules of\n\nCivil Procedure applicable to a civil summons.\n\nF. 1. Whenever on the basis of any information available the\n\nDirector finds that any person regulated by the Department has\n\nviolated any of the provisions of the Oklahoma Agriculture Pollutant\n\nDischarge Elimination System Act, or any permit, rule, order or\n\ncondition or limitation implementing any of these sections, or\n\npreviously issued discharge permit or related order, the Director\n\nmay assess, after providing notice and opportunity for an\n\nenforcement hearing to the alleged violator, an administrative fine\n\nof not more than Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) per day for each\n\nviolation.\ncharge Elimination System Act, or any permit, rule, order or\n\ncondition or limitation implementing any of these sections, or\n\npreviously issued discharge permit or related order, the Director\n\nmay assess, after providing notice and opportunity for an\n\nenforcement hearing to the alleged violator, an administrative fine\n\nof not more than Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) per day for each\n\nviolation.\n\n2. The total amount of the administrative fine shall not exceed\n\nOne Hundred Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($125,000.00) per\n\nviolation. In determining the amount of any penalty assessed under\n\nthis subsection, the Director shall take into account the nature,\n\ncircumstances, extent and gravity of the violation, or violations,\n\nand, with respect to the violator, the ability to pay, any prior\n\nhistory of violations, the degree of culpability, the economic\n\nbenefit savings, if any, resulting from the violation, and any other\n\nmatters as justice may require. For purposes of this subsection, a\n\nsingle operational upset which leads to simultaneous violations of\n\nmore than one pollutant parameter shall be treated as a single\n\nviolation.\n\n3. Enforcement hearings shall be conducted in accordance with\n\nthe procedures set out in the Administrative Procedures Act.\n\nG. 1. The Director is authorized to commence a civil action\n\nfor appropriate relief, including a permanent or temporary\n\ninjunction, for any violation for which the Director is authorized\n\nto issue a compliance order under subsection D of this section.\n\n2. Any person who violates any provision of the Oklahoma\n\nAgriculture Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Act, any permit\n\ncondition or limitation implementing any of such provisions in a\n\npermit issued under the Oklahoma Agriculture Pollutant Discharge\n\nElimination System Act, and any person who violates any order issued\n\nby the Director under subsection D of this section, shall be subject\n\nto a civil penalty not to exceed Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00)\n\nper day for each violation.\n\n3. In determining the amount of the civil penalty, the court\n\nshall consider the seriousness of the violation or violations, the\n\neconomic benefit, if any, resulting from the violation, any history\n\nof violations, any good faith efforts to comply with the applicable\n\nrequirements, the economic impact of the penalty on the violator,\n\nand any other matters as justice may require. For purposes of this\n\nsubsection, a single operational upset which leads to simultaneous\n\nviolations of more than one pollutant parameter shall be treated as\n\na single violation.\n\n4. Any action pursuant to this subsection may be brought in the\n\ndistrict court for the district in which the property or defendant\n\nis located or defendant resides or is doing business, and the court\n\nshall have jurisdiction to restrain any violation and to require\n\ncompliance.\n\n5. The prior revocation of a permit shall not be a condition\n\nprecedent to the filing of a civil action under the Oklahoma\n\nAgriculture Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Act.\n\nH. 1. Any person who violates any provision of this act, any\n\norder of the Director, or any condition or limitation in a permit\n\nissued pursuant to this act may be punishable by a fine of not less\n\nthan Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) nor more than Ten Thousand\n\nDollars ($10,000.00) per day for each violation, or by imprisonment\n\nfor not more than six (6) months for each violation, or both.\n\n2. Any person who knowingly makes any false material statement,\n\nrepresentation, or certification in, omits material data from, or\n\ntampers with any application, notice, record, report, plan, or other\n\ndocument filed or required to be maintained under the Oklahoma\n\nAgriculture Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Act or who\n\nknowingly falsifies, tampers with, or renders inaccurate any\n\nmonitoring device or method required to be maintained under the\nits material data from, or\n\ntampers with any application, notice, record, report, plan, or other\n\ndocument filed or required to be maintained under the Oklahoma\n\nAgriculture Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Act or who\n\nknowingly falsifies, tampers with, or renders inaccurate any\n\nmonitoring device or method required to be maintained under the\n\nOklahoma Agriculture Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Act,\n\nshall be punishable, upon conviction, by a fine of not more than Ten\n\nThousand Dollars ($10,000.00) per day for each violation, or by\n\nimprisonment for not more than two (2) years, or by both. If a\n\nconviction of a person is for a violation committed after a first\n\nconviction of that person under this paragraph, punishment shall be\n\nby a fine of not more than Twenty Thousand Dollars ($20,000.00) per\n\nday for each violation, or by imprisonment for not more than four\n\n(4) years, or by both. In addition, the Director shall deny\n\nissuance of the permit or require submission of a new application.\n\n3. For purposes of this subsection, a single operational upset\n\nwhich leads to simultaneous violations of more than one pollutant\n\nparameter shall be treated as a single violation.\n\nI. 1. Whenever, on the basis of information available, the\n\nDepartment finds that an owner or operator of any source is\n\nintroducing a pollutant into a treatment works in violation of the\n\nOklahoma Agriculture Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Act or\n\nany requirement, rule, permit, or order issued under this act, the\n\nDepartment shall notify the owner or operator of the treatment works\n\nof the violation.\n\n2. If the operator of the treatment works does not commence\n\nappropriate enforcement action within thirty (30) days of the date\n\nof the notification, the Department may commence a civil action for\n\nappropriate relief, including but not limited to a permanent or\n\ntemporary injunction, against the owner or operator of the treatment\n\nworks.\n\n3. In the civil action, the Department shall join the operator\n\nof the source as a party to the action.\n\n4. The action shall be brought in the district court in the\n\ncounty in which the treatment works is located.\n\n5. The court shall have jurisdiction to restrain the violation\n\nand to require the operator of the treatment works and the operator\n\nof the source to take any action as may be necessary to come into\n\ncompliance with the Oklahoma Agriculture Pollutant Discharge\n\nElimination System Act.\n\n6. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to limit or\n\nprohibit any other authority the Department may have under this\n\nsection.\n\nJ. 1. Any person against whom an administrative compliance or\n\npenalty order is issued under this section may obtain review of the\n\norder by filing a petition for review in district court pursuant to\n\nthe Oklahoma Administrative Procedures Act. The court shall not\n\nimpose additional civil penalties for the same violation unless the\n\nassessment of the penalty constitutes an abuse of discretion. No\n\nstay of an administrative penalty order shall be granted until the\n\namount of penalty assessed has been deposited with the reviewing\n\ndistrict court pending resolution of the petition for review.\n\n2. If any person fails to pay an assessment of an\n\nadministrative penalty:\n\na. after the order making the assessment has become final,\n\nor\n\nb. after a court in an action brought under paragraph 1 of\n\nthis subsection has entered a final judgment in favor\n\nof the Department, as the case may be,\n\na civil action may be brought in an appropriate district court to\n\nrecover the amount assessed plus interest at currently prevailing\n\nrates from the date of the final order or the date of the final\n\njudgment, as the case may be. In such an action, the validity,\n\namount, and appropriateness of the penalty shall not be subject to\n\nreview.\n\n3. Any person who fails to pay on a timely basis the amount of\ncivil action may be brought in an appropriate district court to\n\nrecover the amount assessed plus interest at currently prevailing\n\nrates from the date of the final order or the date of the final\n\njudgment, as the case may be. In such an action, the validity,\n\namount, and appropriateness of the penalty shall not be subject to\n\nreview.\n\n3. Any person who fails to pay on a timely basis the amount of\n\nan assessment of an administrative or civil penalty shall be\n\nrequired to pay, in addition to the amount and interest, attorney\n\nfees and costs for the collection proceeding and a quarterly\n\nnonpayment penalty for each quarter during which the failure to pay\n\npersists. The nonpayment penalty shall be in an amount equal to\n\ntwenty percent (20%) of the aggregate amount of the penalties of the\n\nperson and nonpayment penalties which are unpaid as of the beginning\n\nof the quarter.\n\nK. 1. The Attorney General or the district attorney of the\n\nappropriate district court of Oklahoma may bring an action in a\n\ncourt of competent jurisdiction for the prosecution of a violation\n\nby any person of a provision of this act, any rule, any order of the\n\nDirector, or any condition or limitation in a permit issued pursuant\n\nto this act.\n\n2. Any action for injunctive relief to redress or restrain a\n\nviolation of any person of a provision of this act, any rule, any\n\norder of the Director, or any condition or limitation in a permit\n\nissued pursuant to this act or recovery of any administrative or\n\ncivil penalty assessed may be brought by:\n\na. the district attorney of the appropriate district\n\ncourt of the State of Oklahoma,\n\nb. the Attorney General on behalf of the State of\n\nOklahoma, or\n\nc. the Department on behalf of the State of Oklahoma.\n\n3. It shall be the duty of the Attorney General and district\n\nattorney if requested by the Director to bring such action.","path":["OK Code","Title 2"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os2.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"45deac5cbafd5fd20527383a83fb3028b179dac76cb79763d4f67b748a989187","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-2-2-2a-8","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-2-2-3-100"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}