Distraint cost penalty

Whenever the secretary uses the distraint procedure to enforce the collection of any tax, there shall be imposed with respect to the tax for the collection of which the distraint procedure is used a specific penalty in an amount to compensate for the costs of the distraint procedure, provided that the amount charged by a third party for distraint concerning the seizure of a vehicle shall not exceed two hundred seventy-five dollars. This specific penalty shall be in addition to any penalty assessed as provided by law and shall be an obligation to be collected and accounted for in the same manner as if it were part of the tax due, and may be enforced either in a separate action or in the same action for the collection of the tax.