[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 8 (Wednesday, January 13, 2021)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 2560-2562]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-00323]


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FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION

46 CFR Part 506

[Docket No. 21-01]
RIN 3072-AC85


Inflation Adjustment of Civil Monetary Penalties

AGENCY: Federal Maritime Commission.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Maritime Commission (Commission) is publishing 
this final rule to adjust for inflation the civil monetary penalties 
assessed or enforced by the Commission, 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 15 each year.

DATES: This rule is effective January 15, 2021.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rachel E. Dickon, Secretary; Phone: 
(202) 523-5725; Email: [email protected].

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. Public Law 114-74, section 
701. 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 civil monetary penalties 
under their jurisdiction by January 15 each year, based on changes in 
the consumer price index (CPI-U) for the month of October in the 
previous calendar year. On December 23, 2020, the Office of Management 
and Budget published guidance stating that the CPI-U multiplier for 
October 2020 is 1.01182.\1\ In order to complete the adjustment for

[[Page 2561]]

January 2021, the Commission must multiply the most recent civil 
penalty amounts in 46 CFR part 506 by the multiplier, 1.01182.
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    \1\ Office of Management and Budget, M-21-10, Implementation of 
Penalty Inflation Adjustments for 2021, Pursuant to the Federal 
Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015, 
at 1 (Dec. 23, 2020) (M-21-10).
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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.\2\ As noted above, the 
2015 Act requires that the Commission adjust its civil monetary 
penalties no later than January 15 of each year.
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    \2\ FCPIAA section 4(b)(2); M-21-10 at 3.
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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 describing the impact of the rule 
on small entities or the head of the agency must certify that the rule 
will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of 
small entities. 5 U.S.C. 604-605. As indicated above, this final rule 
is not subject to the APA's notice and comment requirements, and the 
Commission is not required to either conduct a regulatory flexibility 
analysis or certify that the final rule would not have a significant 
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.

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 
collection 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. The public 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, Claims, Penalties.

    For the reasons stated in the preamble, 46 CFR part 506 is amended 
as follows:

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:

                                            Table 1 to Paragraph (d)
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                                                                                Maximum penalty  Maximum penalty
        United States Code citation         Civil monetary penalty description   as of January    as of January
                                                                                    15, 2020         15, 2021
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46 U.S.C. 42304...........................  Adverse impact on U.S. carriers by       $2,140,973       $2,166,279
                                             foreign shipping practices.
46 U.S.C. 41107(a)........................  Knowing and Willful violation/               61,098           61,820
                                             Shipping Act of 1984, or
                                             Commission regulation or order.
46 U.S.C. 41107(a)........................  Violation of Shipping Act of 1984,           12,219           12,363
                                             Commission regulation or order,
                                             not knowing and willful.
46 U.S.C. 41108(b)........................  Operating in foreign commerce               122,197          123,641
                                             after tariff suspension.
46 U.S.C. 42104...........................  Failure to provide required                   9,639            9,753
                                             reports, etc./Merchant Marine Act
                                             of 1920.
46 U.S.C. 42106...........................  Adverse shipping conditions/              1,927,676        1,950,461
                                             Merchant Marine Act of 1920.
46 U.S.C. 42108...........................  Operating after tariff or service            96,384           97,523
                                             contract suspension/Merchant
                                             Marine Act of 1920.
46 U.S.C. 44102, 44104....................  Failure to establish financial               24,346           24,634
                                             responsibility for non-                        812              822
                                             performance of transportation.
46 U.S.C. 44103, 44104....................  Failure to establish financial               24,346           24,634
                                             responsibility for death or                    812              822
                                             injury.
31 U.S.C. 3802(a)(1)......................  Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act/            11,665           11,803
                                             making false claim.
31 U.S.C. 3802(a)(2)......................  Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act/            11,665           11,803
                                             giving false statement.
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[[Page 2562]]

    By the Commission.
Rachel Dickon,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2021-00323 Filed 1-12-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6730-02-P