Vasudeva

We must decide whether the regulation governing civil monetary penalties in lieu of permanent disqualification for trafficking in food stamps, 7 C.F.R. § 278.6 (j), complies with the Administrative Procedure Act, comports with substantive due process, and was applied in this case against owners of three 7-11 stores in the Seattle area consistent with the Excessive Fines Clause of the Eighth Amendment. 1 The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and we affirm.

I

Owners of three 7-11 stores participated in the Food Stamp Program pursuant to an agreement in which they agreed to accept responsibility on behalf of the firm to prevent violations of Food Stamp regulations, including trafficking regulations, and to accept responsibility for violations committed by the firm’s employees. During March of 1996 investigators from the USDA visited the three stores as part of a compliance check on stores in the Seattle area. On the first visit to the Vasudeva store, the agent unsuccessfully tried to purchase ineligible items. On the second, third and fourth visits respectively, the agent sold $65, $120 and $100 in food stamps to…