The county clerks or permit agents entitled to issue permits as provided by sections 37-434 to 37-446 shall remit the fees for the permits to the commission in the manner and at the times prescribed by the rules and regulations of the commission. Any permit agent who receives permit fees under sections 37-434 to 37-446 and who fails to remit the fees to the commission within a reasonable time after demand by the commission shall be liable to the commission in damages for double the amount of the funds wrongfully withheld. A permit agent who purposefully fails to remit such fees with the intention of converting them is guilty of theft. The penalty for such violation shall be determined by the amount converted as specified in section 28-518.