Notice posted: May 27, 2022
When determining whether to eliminate or reduce an assessed civil penalty, either during settlement negotiations, upon protest, or after a protest has been submitted, the Indiana Department of Revenue (DOR) may consider certain defenses and other mitigating factors, including:
- whether the motor carrier (Carrier) does or does not have a history of oversize/overweight civil penalties, including violations that resulted in warning letters;
- if the Carrier and DOR have entered into previous agreement(s) to settle civil penalties, whether the Carrier is current on the terms of the settlement agreement(s) or has fulfilled the terms of the settlement agreement(s);
- whether the civil penalty will result in a financial hardship;
- whether, despite the exercise of due diligence, the Carrier did not know, or could not have known, that the vehicle was oversize or overweight at the time of inspection by the Indiana State Police;
- whether, despite the exercise of due diligence, the Carrier did not know, or could not have known, that an oversize/overweight permit was required;
- whether the Carrier had no access to, or control of, the load when it was loaded;
- the extent to which the vehicle was oversize/overweight.
DOR’s assessment is presumed to be correct. The Carrier bears the burden to establish and document the existence of any defense or mitigating factors. Any Carrier that wishes to object to the issuance or the amount of civil penalties may submit to the DOR any documentation or make any argument it believes should be taken into consideration to mitigate the civil penalty. DOR reserves the right to request additional documentation. DOR will not consider a defense or mitigating factor if the Carrier fails to provide any requested documentation.