Title 7 — AgricultureRelease 119-73not60

§7107 Enforcement

Title 7 › Chapter 99— SHEEP PROMOTION, RESEARCH, AND INFORMATION › § 7107

Last updated Apr 3, 2026|Official source

Summary

Federal courts can enforce and stop people from breaking orders or rules made under this law. Normally the Secretary must send civil cases to the Attorney General for action. But the Secretary can choose instead to give a written warning or use an administrative step under section 7106 if that seems enough. The Secretary may fine a person up to $1,000 for each willful violation. If someone willfully fails to pay, collect, or send a required assessment, the Secretary can add a penalty equal to that assessment. Each violation is treated separately. The Secretary can also order a person to stop the violation. Before issuing a fine or a stop order, the Secretary must give notice and a chance for a formal hearing with a record. Orders are final unless the person appeals within 30 days after getting the order. To appeal, the person must file a notice within 30 days in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the circuit where they live or do business, or in the D.C. Circuit, and mail a copy to the Secretary by certified mail. The Secretary must send the court the official record. A court will overturn the Secretary’s finding only if it lacks substantial evidence. If someone disobeys a valid stop order after a hearing, the Secretary can fine up to $500 for each offense, and each day counts as a separate violation. If a person won’t pay a valid fine, the Secretary will ask the Attorney General to collect it in a federal district court where the person lives or works; that court will not re‑decide whether the fine was proper. These penalties and orders do not block other legal remedies.

Full Legal Text

Title 7, §7107

Agriculture — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Each district court of the United States shall have jurisdiction specifically to enforce, and to prevent and restrain a person from violating, an order or regulation issued under this chapter.

(b)A civil action authorized to be brought under this section shall be referred to the Attorney General for appropriate action, except that the Secretary is not required to refer to the Attorney General a violation of this chapter, if the Secretary believes that the administration and enforcement of this chapter would be adequately served by providing a suitable written notice or warning to the person who committed the violation or by an administrative action under section 7106 of this title.

(c)(1)A person who willfully violates an order or regulation issued by the Secretary under this chapter may be assessed by the Secretary—

(A)a civil penalty of not more than $1,000 for each such violation; and

(B)in the case of a willful failure to pay, collect, or remit an assessment as required by the order, an additional penalty equal to the amount of the assessment.

(2)Each violation shall be a separate offense.

(3)In addition to, or in lieu of, the civil penalty, the Secretary may issue an order requiring the person to cease and desist from violating the order or regulation.

(4)No order assessing a penalty or cease-and-desist order may be issued by the Secretary under this subsection unless the Secretary provides notice and an opportunity for a hearing on the record with respect to the violation.

(5)An order assessing a penalty or a cease-and-desist order issued under this subsection by the Secretary shall be final and conclusive unless the person against whom the order is issued files an appeal from the order with the United States court of appeals, as provided in subsection (d), not later than 30 days after the person receives notice of the order.

(d)(1)A person against whom an order is issued under subsection (c) may obtain review of the order by—

(A)filing, not later than 30 days after the date of the order, a notice of appeal in—

(i)the United States court of appeals for the circuit in which the person resides or carries on business; or

(ii)the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit; and

(B)simultaneously sending a copy of the notice of appeal by certified mail to the Secretary.

(2)The Secretary shall file promptly in the court a certified copy of the record on which the Secretary has determined that the person has committed a violation.

(3)A finding of the Secretary under this section shall be set aside only if the finding is found to be unsupported by substantial evidence.

(e)A person who fails to obey a valid cease-and-desist order issued by the Secretary under this section, after an opportunity for a hearing, shall be subject to a civil penalty assessed by the Secretary of not more than $500 for each offense. Each day during which the failure continues shall be considered to be a separate violation of the order.

(f)If a person fails to pay a valid civil penalty imposed under this section by the Secretary, the Secretary shall refer the matter to the Attorney General for recovery of the amount assessed in the district court of the United States for any district in which the person resides or carries on business. In the action, the validity and appropriateness of the order imposing the civil penalty shall not be subject to review.

(g)The remedies provided in this section shall be in addition to, and not exclusive of, other remedies that may be available.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

7 U.S.C. § 7107

Title 7 — Agriculture

Last Updated

Apr 3, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60