SECTION 1.  Section 2 of chapter 138 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2014 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting at the end thereof the following:-

“As an alternative to initiating criminal proceedings for violations sections 34, 34A, 34B, and 34C of chapter 138, any investigator of the commission may issue a civil citation for violations of said laws in the amount of the criminal fine provided for said violation, to be paid within 21 days of the date of issuance of such citation. Any person aggrieved by any citation issued pursuant to this section may appeal said citation by filing a notice of appeal with the commission within seven days of the receipt of the citation. Any such appellant shall be granted a hearing before the commission in accordance with chapter 30A. The commission may affirm, vacate or modify the citation. Any person aggrieved by a decision of the commission may file an appeal in superior court pursuant to the provisions of said chapter 30A. If a person fails to comply with the requirement set forth in any citation issued pursuant to this section, or shall fail to pay any civil penalty provided thereby within 21 days of the date of issuance of such citation, or within 30 days following the decision of the commission if such citation has been appealed, excluding any time during which judicial review of the commission’s decision remains pending, the commission may apply for a criminal complaint against such person for the violation, or may initiate a civil action in district court. All monies collected by the commission under said civil citations shall be credited to the general fund.”.