2018 Maryland Code
General Provisions
Title 8 - False Claims.
§ 8-102. General consideration.
(a) Applicability. -- This section does not apply to claims, records, or statements related to State or local taxes.
(b) In general. -- A person may not:
(1) knowingly present or cause to be presented a false or fraudulent claim for payment or approval;
(2) knowingly make, use, or cause to be made or used a false record or statement material to a false or fraudulent claim;
(3) conspire to commit a violation under this title;
(4) have possession, custody, or control of money or other property used or to be used by or on behalf of a governmental entity and knowingly deliver or cause to be delivered to the governmental entity less than all of that money or other property;
(5)
(i) be authorized to make or deliver a receipt or other document certifying receipt of money or other property used or to be used by a governmental entity; and
(ii) make or deliver a receipt or document intending to defraud the governmental entity, knowing that the information contained in the receipt or document is not true;
(6) knowingly buy or receive as a pledge of an obligation or a debt publicly owned property from an officer, employee, or agent of a governmental entity who lawfully may not sell or pledge the property;
(7) knowingly make, use, or cause to be made or used a false record or statement material to an obligation to pay or transmit money or other property to a governmental entity;
(8) knowingly conceal, or knowingly and improperly avoid or decrease, an obligation to pay or transmit money or other property to a governmental entity, including misrepresenting the time at which a trade was made to make the transaction appear less favorable; or
(9) knowingly make any other false or fraudulent claim against a governmental entity.
(c) Penalties. --
(1) A person that is found to have violated subsection (b) of this section is liable to the governmental entity for:
(i) a civil penalty of not more than $ 10,000 for each violation; and
(ii) an additional amount of not more than three times the amount of damages that the governmental entity sustains as a result of the acts of that person in violation of subsection (b) of this section.
(2) The total amount owed by a person under paragraph (1) of this subsection may not be less than the amount of the actual damages the governmental entity incurs as a result of the person's violation of subsection (b) of this section.
(d) Determination of amount of fines and damages. -- In determining the appropriate amount of fines and damages under subsection (c) of this section, the court shall consider:
(1) the number, nature, and severity of the violations of this title for which the person has been found liable;
(2) the number, nature, and severity of any previous violations of this title;
(3) the degree of loss suffered by the governmental entity;
(4) the person's history of billing compliance;
(5) whether the person has a compliance program in place;
(6) the extent to which the person has taken steps to address and correct the violation since the person became aware of the violation;
(7) any funds previously returned to the governmental entity in compliance with federal requirements regarding overpayments, to the extent the funds represented losses to the governmental entity caused by the violation;
(8)
(i) whether the person self-reported the violation;
(ii) the timeliness of the self-reporting;
(iii) the extent to which the person otherwise cooperated in the investigation of the violation; and
(iv) the extent to which the person had prior knowledge of an investigation or other action relating to the violation; and
(9) any other factor as justice requires.
(e) Penalties additional to criminal, civil, or administrative penalties under other statutes or regulations. -- The penalties provided in subsection (c) of this section are in addition to any criminal, civil, or administrative penalties provided under any other State or federal statute or regulation.