[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 128 (Wednesday, July 6, 2005)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 38804-38805]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-13185]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration

49 CFR Parts 209, 213, 214, 215, 216, 217, 218, 219, 220, 221, 222, 
223, 225, 228, 229, 230, 231, 232, 233, 234, 235, 236, 238, 239, 
240, 241, and 244

[Docket No. FRA-2004-17529; Notice No. 4]
RIN 2130-AB66


Inflation Adjustment of the Ordinary Maximum Civil Monetary 
Penalty for a Violation of a Federal Railroad Safety Law or Federal 
Railroad Administration Safety Regulation

AGENCY: Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Department of 
Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Final rule; withdrawal.

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SUMMARY: FRA is withdrawing its final rule that adjusted from $11,000 
to $15,000 the ordinary maximum civil penalty that applies when a civil 
penalty for a violation of railroad safety statutes and regulations is 
assessed under its authority, due to an error in the application of the 
rounding rules found in the applicable statute. The ordinary maximum 
civil penalty will remain at $11,000.

DATES: The final rule published on June 8, 2005, at 70 FR 33380 is 
withdrawn in its entirety as of July 6, 2005.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carolina Mirabal, Trial Attorney, 
Office

[[Page 38805]]

of Chief Counsel, FRA, 1120 Vermont Avenue, NW., Mail Stop 10, 
Washington, DC 20590 (telephone 202-493-6043), 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 
Adjustment Act of 1990 (Inflation Act) requires that an agency adjust 
by regulation each maximum civil monetary penalty (CMP), or range of 
minimum and maximum CMPs, within that agency's jurisdiction by October 
23, 1996 and to adjust those penalty amounts once every four years 
thereafter to reflect inflation. Public Law 101-410, 104 Stat. 890, as 
amended by Section 31001(s) of the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 
1996, Public Law 104-134, 110 Stat. 1321-373, April 26, 1996, 28 U.S.C. 
2461, note. Congress recognized the important role that CMPs play in 
deterring violations of Federal law and regulations and realized that 
inflation has diminished the impact of these penalties. In the 
Inflation Act, Congress found a way to counter the effect that 
inflation has had on the CMPs by having the agencies charged with 
enforcement responsibility administratively adjust the CMPs.

Calculation of the Adjustment

    Under the Inflation Act, the inflation adjustment is calculated by 
increasing the maximum CMP, or the range of minimum and maximum CMPs, 
by the percentage that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the month of 
June of the calendar year preceding the adjustment (here, June 2004) 
exceeds the CPI for the month of June of the last calendar year in 
which the amount of such penalty was last set or adjusted (here, June 
1998 for the ordinary maximum). Section 5(a) of the Inflation Act also 
specifies that the amount of the adjustment must be rounded to the 
nearest multiple of $100 for a penalty between $100 and $1,000, or to 
the nearest multiple of $5,000 for a penalty of more than $10,000 and 
less than or equal to $100,000. The first adjustment may not exceed an 
increase of ten percent. FRA utilized Bureau of Labor Statistics data 
to calculate adjusted CMP amounts.
    FRA is authorized as the delegate of the Secretary of 
Transportation to enforce the Federal railroad safety statutes and 
regulations, including the civil penalty provisions at 49 U.S.C. ch. 
213. 49 CFR 1.49; 49 U.S.C. ch. 201-213. FRA currently has 27 
regulations that contain provisions that reference its authority to 
impose civil penalties if a person violates any requirement in the 
pertinent portion of a statute or the Code of Federal Regulations. In 
this final rule, FRA is retracting its June 8, 2005 amendments to each 
of those separate regulatory provisions and the corresponding footnotes 
in each Schedule of Civil Penalties that raised the ordinary maximum 
CMP from $11,000 to $15,000. The ordinary maximum CMP should remain at 
$11,000, as shown below:
    The June 2004 CPI of 568.2 divided by the June 1998 CPI of 488.2 
equals an inflation factor of 1.164; $11,000 multiplied by 1.164 equals 
$12,804, or an increase of $1,804. The increase of $1,804 is then 
rounded to the nearest multiple of $5,000, which in this case is $0. 
Thus, the ordinary maximum will remain at $11,000. In the final rule, 
70 FR 33380, FRA erroneously rounded to the nearest multiple of $5,000 
the amount of $12,804, instead of the increased amount ($1,804) as 
required by the Inflation Act.

List of Subjects in 49 CFR Parts 209, 213, 214, 215, 216, 217, 218, 
219, 220, 221, 222, 223, 225, 228, 229, 230, 231, 232, 233, 234, 
235, 236, 238, 239, 240, 241, and 244

    Penalties, Railroad safety.

The Final Rule

    In consideration of the foregoing, the final rule published on June 
8, 2005 at 70 FR 33380 is hereby withdrawn.

    Issued in Washington, DC on June 28, 2005.
Joseph H. Boardman,
Administrator, Federal Railroad Administration.
[FR Doc. 05-13185 Filed 7-5-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-06-P