Willful or negligent discharge of oil; civil penalty; authority of director to mitigate

(1) Any person who willfully or negligently causes or permits the discharge of oil into the waters of the state shall incur, in addition to any other penalty provided by law, a civil penalty commensurate with the amount of damage incurred. The amount of the penalty shall be determined by the Director of the Department of Environmental Quality with the advice of the State Fish and Wildlife Director after taking into consideration the gravity of the violation, the previous record of the violator in complying, or failing to comply, with the provisions of ORS 468B.450 to 468B.460, and such other considerations as the director considers appropriate. The penalty provided for in this subsection shall be imposed and enforced in accordance with ORS 468.135. (2) The director may, upon written application therefor received within 15 days after receipt of notice under ORS 468.135, and when considered in the best interest of this state in carrying out the purposes of ORS chapters 468, 468A and 468B, remit or mitigate any penalty provided for in subsection (1) of this section or discontinue any prosecution to recover the same upon such terms as the director in the director’s discretion considers proper.