
British Columbia has become the latest North American jurisdiction to give utility regulators - in this case the BC Utilities Commission - the power to impose "administrative penalties". Administrative penalties are like fines, but are imposed directly by the regulator outside the court process. The fines can range from $25,000 to $1,000,000 per day, depending on the infraction, and in some cases can be imposed personally on officers and directors. Read the entire bulletin here.