[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 30 (Wednesday, February 15, 2017)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 10719-10720]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-00271]


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FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION

46 CFR Part 506

[Docket No. 17-01]
RIN 3072-4C67


Inflation Adjustment of Civil Monetary Penalties

AGENCY: Federal Maritime Commission.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Commission is publishing its adjustments to inflation 
annually, pursuant to the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment 
Act Improvements Act of 2015 (2015 Act). The 2015 Act requires that 
agencies adjust and publish their civil penalties by January 15th each 
year.

DATES: This rule is effective on February 15, 2017, and is applicable 
beginning January 15, 2017.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tyler Wood, General Counsel, Federal 
Maritime Commission, 800 North Capitol Street NW., Room 1018, 
Washington, DC 20573, (202) 523-5740.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This rule adjusts the civil monetary 
penalties assessable by the Commission in accordance with the 2015 Act, 
which became effective on November 2, 2015. The 2015 Act further 
amended the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990 
(FCPIAA), Public Law 101-410, 104 Stat. 890 (codified as amended at 28 
U.S.C. 2461 note), in order to improve the effectiveness of civil 
monetary penalties and to maintain their deterrent effect.
    The 2015 Act requires agencies to adjust CMPs under their 
jurisdiction by January 15, 2017, based on changes in the consumer 
price index (CPI-U) using data from October in the previous calendar 
year. On December 16, 2016, Office of Management and Budget published 
guidance stating that the CPI-U multiplier for October 2016 is 
1.01636.\1\ In order to complete the adjustment for January 2017, 
agencies must multiply the most recent civil penalty amounts in 46 CFR 
part 506, i.e., those that include the catch-up adjustment required by 
the 2015 Act by 1.01636.\2\ For the Commission, this means applying the 
multiplier to the penalty amounts set forth in the Commission's June 
30, 2016 interim final rule, which went into effect on August 1, 
2016.\3\
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    \1\ Office of Management and Budget, M-17-11, Implementation of 
the 2017 annual adjustment pursuant to the Federal Civil Penalties 
Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015, at 1 (Dec. 16, 
2016) (M-17-11).
    \2\ Id. at 2-3.
    \3\ 81 FR 42552.
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Rulemaking Analyses and Notices

Notice and Effective Date

    Adjustments under the FCPIAA, as amended by the 2015 Act, are not 
subject to the procedural rulemaking requirements of the Administrative 
Procedure Act (APA) (5 U.S.C. 553), including the requirements for 
prior notice, an opportunity for comment, and a delay between the 
issuance of a final rule and its effective date.\4\ As noted above, the 
2015 Act requires that the Commission adjust its CMPs no later than 
January 15 of each year.
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    \4\ FCPIAA Sec.  4(b)(2); M-17-11 at 2.
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Congressional Review Act

    The rule is not a ``major rule'' as defined by the Congressional 
Review Act, codified at 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq. The rule will not result 
in: (1) An annual effect on the economy of $100,000,000 or more; (2) a 
major increase in costs or prices; or (3) significant adverse effects 
on competition, employment, investment, productivity, innovation, or 
the ability of United States-based companies to compete with foreign-
based companies. 5 U.S.C. 804(2).

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act (codified as amended at 5 U.S.C. 
601-612) provides that whenever an agency promulgates a final rule 
after being required to publish a notice of proposed rulemaking under 
the APA (5 U.S.C. 553), the agency must prepare and make available a 
final regulatory flexibility analysis (FRFA) describing the impact of 
the rule on small entities. 5 U.S.C. 604. As indicated above, this 
final rule is not subject to the APA's notice and comment requirements, 
and the Commission is not required to prepare an FRFA in conjunction 
with this final rule.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3521) requires 
an agency to seek and receive approval from the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) before collecting information from the public. 44 
U.S.C. 3507. The agency must submit collections of information in rules 
to OMB in conjunction with the publication of the notice of proposed 
rulemaking. 5 CFR 1320.11. This final rule does not contain any 
collections of information, as defined by 44 U.S.C. 3502(3) and 5 CFR 
1320.3(c).

Regulation Identifier Number

    The Commission assigns a regulation identifier number (RIN) to each 
regulatory action listed in the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory 
and Deregulatory Actions (Unified Agenda). The Regulatory Information 
Service Center publishes the Unified Agenda in April and October of 
each year. You may use the RIN contained in the heading at the 
beginning of this document to find this action in the Unified Agenda, 
available at http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/eAgendaMain.

List of Subjects in 46 CFR Part 506

    Administrative practice and procedure, Penalties.

    For the reasons stated in the preamble, Part 506 of title 46 of the 
Code of Federal Regulations is amended as follows:

[[Page 10720]]

PART 506--CIVIL MONETARY PENALTY INFLATION ADJUSTMENT

0
1. The authority citation for part 506 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  28 U.S.C. 2461.

0
2. Amend Sec.  506.4 by revising paragraph (d) to read as follows:


Sec.  506.4  Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties.

* * * * *
    (d) Inflation adjustment. Maximum Civil Monetary Penalties within 
the jurisdiction of the Federal Maritime Commission are adjusted for 
inflation as follows:

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                                                                                      Maximum
                                                                                  penalty amount      Maximum
        United States code citation           Civil monetary penalty description     prior  to     penalty as of
                                                                                   January  15,    January  15,
                                                                                       2017            2017
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46 U.S.C. 42304............................  Adverse impact on U.S. carriers by        1,978,690       2,011,061
                                              foreign shipping practices.
46 U.S.C. 41107(a).........................  Knowing and Willful violation/               56,467          57,391
                                              Shipping Act of 1984, or
                                              Commission regulation or order.
46 U.S.C. 41107(b).........................  Violation of Shipping Act of 1984,           11,293          11,478
                                              Commission regulation or order,
                                              not knowing and willful.
46 U.S.C. 41108(b).........................  Operating in foreign commerce after         112,934         114,782
                                              tariff suspension.
46 U.S.C. 42104............................  Failure to provide required                   8,908           9,054
                                              reports, etc./Merchant Marine Act
                                              of 1920.
46 U.S.C. 42106............................  Adverse shipping conditions/              1,781,560       1,810,706
                                              Merchant Marine Act of 1920.
46 U.S.C. 42108............................  Operating after tariff or service            89,078          90,535
                                              contract suspension/Merchant
                                              Marine Act of 1920.
46 U.S.C. 44102............................  Failure to establish financial               22,500          22,868
                                              responsibility for non-performance             750             762
                                              of transportation.
46 U.S.C. 44103............................  Failure to establish financial               22,500          22,868
                                              responsibility for death or injury.            750             762
31 U.S.C. 3802(a)(1).......................  Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act/            10,781          10,957
                                              makes false claim.
31 U.S.C. 3802(a)(2).......................  Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act/            10,781          10,957
                                              giving false statement.
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    By the Commission.
Rachel E. Dickon,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2017-00271 Filed 2-14-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE P