15 U.S.C. § 645 — Offenses and penalties

(a) False statements; overvaluation of securities. A person who knowingly makes a false statement or willfully overvalues a security to obtain a loan or its extension, affect the Administration’s action, or obtain money, property, or anything valuable under this chapter may be fined up to $5,000, imprisoned up to two years, or both. (b) Embezzlement, etc. A person connected with the Administration who (1) steals, takes, or willfully misuses its money, funds, securities, or other valuables; (2) intends to defraud it or another person or deceive its officer, auditor, or examiner and makes a false entry or unauthorizedly issues or assigns an obligation or court-related financial instrument; (3) intends to defraud and receives or shares in money, profit, property, or a benefit through an Administration transaction or act; or (4) gives unauthorized information about a future Administration action or plan that could affect security values, or uses such knowledge to invest or speculate in a company receiving Administration assistance, may be fined up to $10,000, imprisoned up to five years, or both. (c) Concealment, etc. A person who intends to defraud and knowingly conceals, removes, disposes of, or converts for personal or another’s use property mortgaged or pledged to, or held by, the Administration may be fined up to $5,000, imprisoned up to five years, or both. If the property is worth no more than $100, the maximum fine is $1,000 and the maximum imprisonment is one year. (d) Misrepresentation, etc. (1) A person who falsely claims that a concern or person has one of the listed statuses—“small business concern,” “qualified HUBZone small business concern,” a small business owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans, veterans, socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, or women—to obtain for self or another a listed prime contract or subcontract is subject to paragraph (2). The listed contracts include contracts under sections 637, 638, 644, 657a, 657f, or 657f–1; subcontracts under section 637(a); subcontracts counted toward a section 637(d) subcontracting-plan goal; and contracts or subcontracts under another Federal law that specifically uses section 637(d) for eligibility. This section does not define those quoted status terms. (2) A violator may be fined up to $500,000 or imprisoned up to 10 years, or both; face the administrative remedies in the Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act of 1986; be suspended or debarred under title 48, Code of Federal Regulations, subpart 9.4; and be barred for up to three years from programs or activities under this chapter or the Small Business Investment Act of 1958. (3) This subsection does not apply to conduct violating subsection (a) when the defendant relied in good faith on a written advisory opinion from a Small Business Development Center or an entity in the Procurement Technical Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program. Neither entity must provide such an opinion, and giving one does not make it liable if the Administrator later finds the concern is not small. The issuing entity must send the opinion to the Administration’s General Counsel, who may reject it. If rejected, the Administration must notify the issuer and recipient, and the concern may no longer rely on it. (e) Representations under subsection (d) to be in writing. Any representation of one of the listed small-business statuses made to obtain a covered prime contract or subcontract must be written. This section does not define the quoted status terms. (f) Misrepresentation of compliance with section 636(j)(10)(I). A person who falsely certifies past compliance with that section is subject to subsection (d)’s penalties. (g) Subcontracting limitations. (1) A person who violates a requirement under section 657s is subject to subsection (d)’s penalties. If an entity exceeded a subcontracting limit, the fine in subsection (d)(2)(A) is the greater of $500,000 or the amount it spent on subcontractors above the permitted level. (2) Within one year after January 2, 2013, the Administrator must take needed action to modify the existing Federal subcontracting-reporting system so it alerts the Administrator, the appropriate Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization director, and the appropriate contracting officer when a section 657s requirement is violated.