R.I. Gen. Laws § 5-65-19

This is the official text of R.I. Gen. Laws § 5-65-19, part of Rhode Island’s Gen. Laws — part of the compiled statutory law of Rhode Island, published by the state as "Gen. Laws." Browse the sections below, each linked to its official government source.

Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.

§ 5-65-19. Penalty for operating without a registration €” Failure to comply with a final order or decision €” Repeat offenses.

Official statutory text

In addition to any other penalties provided under this chapter:

(1) Any person who fails to register as a contractor as adjudged in a final order issued by the board, upon proper written notification, is deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be imprisoned for a term not exceeding one year, fined not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), or both, for a first or second offense. A third or subsequent violation of this chapter by a person for failure to register as a contractor is deemed a felony and, upon conviction, the violator shall be imprisoned for a term not exceeding two (2) years, fined not more than two thousand dollars ($2,000), or both.

(2) Any person who violates a final order of the board where the monetary total of the order is not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000), upon proper written notification, is deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction, shall be imprisoned for a term not exceeding one year, fined not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), or both.

(3) Any person who violates a final order of the board where the monetary total of the order is five thousand dollars ($5,000) or more, upon written notification, is deemed guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, shall be imprisoned for a term not exceeding ten (10) years, fined not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or both.

(4) In addition to any sentence or fine imposed by the court under subsections (1), (2), and (3), the court shall order a defendant to comply with any outstanding final order or decision of the board or office, including payment of any outstanding fine or fines previously imposed by the board or office pursuant to this chapter.

(5) If by final orders or decisions of the board or office a contractor is found to have committed violations of this chapter with respect to three (3) or more separate contracts with three (3) separate individuals/aggrieved parties and the violations occurred within a twenty-four-month (24) period, the violations shall be deemed and prosecuted as a felony and upon conviction the violator shall be subject to imprisonment for a term not to exceed ten (10) years or fined not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site

Need a lawyer in Rhode Island?

Find a Rhode Island lawyer
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the Open US Law dataset (Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine (Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.