Connecticut businesses that violate the state’s COVID-19 restrictions and capacity limits will now be subject to fines of $10,000 per violation beginning Thursday.

The new penalty dramatically increases the current $500 fine for breaking the so-called sector rules for different types of businesses as the state clamps down ahead of the holiday shopping season as cases surge in nearly every area of the state.

“The sector rules and capacity limits we’ve implemented are intended to mitigate the spread of this disease to the greatest extent possible,” Gov. Ned Lamont said in a statement Tuesday evening. “While the overwhelming majority of businesses in Connecticut have shown an incredible amount of leadership and have been fantastic partners in this front, we have seen a small number of businesses in flagrant violation of these public health rules, and that’s all you need to cause a super-spreading event that leads to a large number of cases and hospitalizations.”

The new penalty was crafted after feedback from municipal leaders, public health officials and the business community about the current fine structure as officials try to stem the second wave of coronavirus cases that have pushed the number of hospitalized COVID patients to their highest totals since mid-May.