[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 31, Volume 1]
[Revised as of July 1, 2002]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 31CFR16.31]

[Page 205]
 
                  TITLE 31--MONEY AND FINANCE: TREASURY
 
PART 16--REGULATIONS IMPLEMENTING THE PROGRAM FRAUD CIVIL REMEDIES ACT OF 1986--Table of Contents
 
Sec. 16.31  Determining the amount of penalties and assessments.

    (a) In determining an appropriate amount of civil penalties and 
assessements, the ALJ and upon appeal, the authority head, should 
evaluate any circumstances that mitigate or aggravate the violation and 
should articulate in their opinions the reasons that support the 
penalties and assessments they impose. Because of the intangible costs 
of fraud, the expense of investigating such conduct, and the need to 
deter others who might be similarly tempted, double damages and a 
significant civil penalty ordinarily should be imposed.
    (b) Although not exhaustive, the following factors are among those 
that may influence the ALJ and the authority head in determining the 
amount of penalties and assessments to impose with respect to the 
misconduct (i.e., the false, fictitious, or fraudulent claims or 
statements) charged in the complaint:
    (1) The number of false, fictitious, or fraudulent claims or 
statements;
    (2) The time period over which such claims or statements were made;
    (3) The degree of the defendant's culpability with respect to the 
misconduct;
    (4) The amount of money or the value of the property, services, or 
benefit falsely claimed;
    (5) The value of the Government's actual loss as a result of the 
misconduct, including foreseeable consequential damages and the costs of 
investigation;
    (6) The relationship of the amount imposed as civil penalties to the 
amount of the Government's loss;
    (7) The potential or actual impact of the misconduct upon national 
defense, public health or safety, or public confidence in the management 
of Government programs and operations;
    (8) Whether the defendant has engaged in a pattern of the same or 
similar misconduct;
    (9) Whether the defendant attempted to conceal the misconduct;
    (10) The degree to which the defendant has involved others in the 
misconduct or in concealing it;
    (11) Where the misconduct of employees or agents is imputed to the 
defendant, the extent to which the defendant's practices fostered or 
attempted to preclude such misconduct;
    (12) Whether the defendant cooperated in or obstructed an 
investigation of the misconduct;
    (13) Whether the defendant assisted in identifying and prosecuting 
other wrongdoers;
    (14) The complexity of the program or transaction, and the degree of 
the defendant's sophistication with respect to it, including the extent 
of the defendant's prior participation in the program or in similar 
transactions;
    (15) Whether the defendant has been found, in any criminal, civil, 
or administrative proceeding to have engaged in similar misconduct or to 
have dealt dishonestly with the Government of the United States or of a 
State, directly or indirectly; and
    (16) The need to deter the defendant and others from engaging in the 
same or similar misconduct.
    (c) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the ALJ or 
the authority head from considering any other factors that in any given 
case may mitigate or aggravate the offense for which penalties and 
assessments are imposed.