Law360, New York (January 15, 2016, 1:51 PM EST) -- The Occupational Safety and Health Administration penalty structure, which hasn't changed since 1990, is about to get a boost to catch up with current prices. The long-standing maximum penalty amounts of $7,000 for a serious violation and $70,000 for a willful or repeat violation may jump to as much as $12,400 and $124,000, respectively. On the other end of the spectrum, in an extreme example of an enforcement action, OSHA, in conjunction with the U.S. Attorney's Office, recently prosecuted an employer for violations under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act) and other federal laws, for making false statements to OSHA investigators which carries a maximum sentence of 25 years imprisonment. These trends, along with a new policy by OSHA on how it counts inspections for statistical purposes, will likely lead to increased numbers of citations and penalty amounts....