§ 13499.2

(a) A person who knowingly makes or causes to be made any false statement, material misrepresentation, or false certification in any submittal to the state board relating to an agreement, including, but not limited to, applications, records, reports, certifications, plans, invoices, forms, or other documents that are submitted, filed, or required to be received by the state board for purposes of obtaining or administering a financial assistance agreement, shall, upon conviction, be punished by a criminal fine of not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or by imprisonment in a county jail for not more than one year, or in the state prison for 16 months, two years, or three years, or by both that fine and imprisonment.

(b) The Attorney General, or a district attorney, upon request of the state board, may bring an action in superior court to impose the criminal penalty specified in subdivision (a).

(c) Nothing in this chapter shall prevent the state board from refusing to enter into an agreement with a recipient if the recipient has been convicted for a fraud crime or found civilly liable for fraud or misrepresentation in a civil or administrative proceeding.

(Added by Stats. 2021, Ch. 187, Sec. 6. (SB 776) Effective January 1, 2022.)