Sec. 2252.125.  CIVIL PENALTY.  (a)  The attorney general or a district, county, or municipal attorney may institute an action in district court to recover a civil penalty against a person who claims disadvantaged or historically underutilized business status and a general contractor who knowingly contracts with a person claiming the disadvantaged or historically underutilized business status in violation of Section 2252.123.
(b)  A civil penalty imposed under this section may not exceed $1,000 for each violation and may not exceed $100,000, in the aggregate, for all violations arising from a single action.  Each day a violation occurs constitutes a separate violation for purposes of imposing the penalty.
(c)  A civil penalty recovered in an action brought by the attorney general shall be deposited in the state treasury.  A civil penalty recovered in an action brought by a political subdivision shall be deposited in the general fund of that political subdivision.
(d)  A civil penalty imposed under this section is in addition to any other criminal, civil, or administrative penalty that may be imposed by the state or a political subdivision and to which a person in violation of Section 2252.123 may be liable.
Added by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 1420, Sec. 9.013(a), eff. Sept. 1, 2001.