Rhode Island General Laws Title 5. Businesses and Professions § 5-84-6. Cease and desist authority

If the director has reason to believe that any person, firm, corporation, or association is conducting any activity under the jurisdiction of the division of building, design and fire professionals including professional engineering, professional land surveying, architecture, or landscape architecture without obtaining a license or registration, or who after the denial, suspension, or revocation of a license or registration is conducting that business, the director, or the director's designee, may, either on his or her own initiative or upon recommendation of the appropriate board, issue an order to that person, firm, corporation, or association commanding them to appear before the department at a hearing to be held not sooner than ten (10) days, nor later than twenty (20) days, after issuance of that order to show cause why the director, or the director's designee, should not issue an order to that person to cease and desist from the violation of the provisions of this chapter or chapters 1, 8, 8.1, 51, and/or 65 of this title. That order to show cause may be served on any person, firm, corporation, or association named by any person in the same manner that a summons in a civil action may be served, or by mailing a copy of the order, certified mail, return receipt requested, to that person at any address at which that person has done business or at which that person lives. If during that hearing the director, or the director's designee, is satisfied that the person, firm, corporation, or association is in fact violating any provision of this chapter, the director, or the director's designee, may order that person, firm, corporation, or association, in writing, to cease and desist from that violation and/or impose an appropriate fine under § 5-84-5 or other applicable law and/or refer the matter to the attorney general for appropriate action under chapters 1, 8, 8.1, 51, and/or 65 of this title. All these hearings are governed in accordance with the administrative procedures act. If that person fails to comply with an order of the department after being afforded a hearing, the superior court for Providence county has jurisdiction upon complaint of the department to restrain and enjoin that person from violating chapters 1, 8, 8.1, 51, 65, and/or 84 of this title.