The U.S. Financial Industry Regulatory Authority announced that it has fined and suspended 16 current and former registered representatives of mutual fund dealer, State Farm VP Management Corp., for misconduct involving FINRA’s Continuing Education requirements for registered representatives.

State Farm VP Management Corp. is based in Bloomington, Ill.

The individual representatives received fines ranging from US$5,000 to US$10,000 and suspensions ranging from 30 days to six months. One representative also was barred as a principal.

Nine of the sanctioned representatives were supervisors who directed or allowed subordinates to take a proficiency test for them. One was a supervisor who directed a subordinate to take the test for other registered representatives. Six of the sanctioned representatives completed the test for their superiors.

The representatives engaged in this misconduct without any authorization from State Farm, FINRA said. The firm reported the misconduct to FINRA after uncovering irregularities in one of its regions and conducting a preliminary investigation. State Farm then expanded its internal investigation nationwide and provided FINRA with its findings.

“The Continuing Education requirement leads to better trained and informed securities industry professionals and promotes investor protection,” said Susan Merrill, FINRA executive vice president and chief of enforcement. “In this case, while the failures by the firm’s brokers to complete the requirements are disappointing enough, it is especially troubling that supervisors directed subordinates to help them avoid this important requirement.”