(1) The department must assess a penalty of five times the annual registration fee for failure to renew an aircraft registration and submit full fee payment before March 1 each year, or initially register an aircraft within 30 days of the date of invoice.

(2) Under 67-3-202, MCA, a person who owns or causes or authorizes an aircraft to be operated or who operates an aircraft required to be registered in this state without displaying a decal of current registration issued by the department commits a misdemeanor.

(3) An aircraft owner may, at the department's sole discretion, receive department waiver of the late fee penalty, upon completion of the department's agency action form found on the department's website. The owner must meet the following criteria:

(a) be a member of the United States Armed Forces who is deployed and unable to receive a registration renewal invoice. A copy of military deployment orders must be submitted to the department; or

(b) owner provides documentation of legitimate inability to timely pay (e.g., medical situations).

(4) An aircraft owner who fails to pay all assessed registration fees and any assessed penalty fees by the appropriate deadline is subject to department collection actions. Collection actions may include:

(a) filing of judicial complaint seeking a judgment against the aircraft owner;

(b) all judicial collection remedies including seizure of personal or real property and garnishment of wages;

(c) county attorney prosecution as a misdemeanor;

(d) department placement of an FAA lien against the aircraft title which shall not be released until the full assessed registration fees and all penalties are paid in full to the department.