[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 7 (Wednesday, January 11, 2023)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 1517-1519]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-00399]


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FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION

46 CFR Part 506

[Docket No. 22-77]
RIN 3072-AC94


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 new civil 
penalties by January 15 each year.

DATES: This rule is effective January 15, 2023.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William Cody, 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

[[Page 1518]]

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 15, 2022, the Office of Management 
and Budget published guidance stating that the CPI-U multiplier for 
October 2022 is 1.07745.\1\ In order to complete the annual adjustment, 
the Commission must multiply the most recent civil penalty amounts in 
46 CFR part 506 by the multiplier, 1.07745.
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    \1\ Office of Management and Budget, M-23-05, Implementation of 
Penalty Inflation Adjustments for 2023, Pursuant to the Federal 
Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015, 
at 1 (Dec. 15, 2022) (M-23-05).
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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\ Id. at 3-4; FCPIAA section 4(b)(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 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 https://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 as  Maximum penalty as
        United States Code  citation            Civil monetary penalty      of January 15,      of January 15,
                                                     description                 2022                2023
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46 U.S.C. 42304............................  Adverse impact on U.S.               $2,301,065          $2,479,282
                                              carriers by foreign
                                              shipping practices.
46 U.S.C. 41107(a).........................  Knowing and Willful                      65,666              70,752
                                              violation/Shipping Act of
                                              1984, or Commission
                                              regulation or order.
46 U.S.C. 41107(a).........................  Violation of Shipping Act                13,132              14,149
                                              of 1984, Commission
                                              regulation or order, not
                                              knowing and willful.
46 U.S.C. 41108(b).........................  Operating in foreign                    131,334             141,506
                                              commerce after tariff
                                              suspension.
46 U.S.C. 42104............................  Failure to provide required              10,360              11,162
                                              reports, etc./Merchant
                                              Marine Act of 1920.
46 U.S.C. 42106............................  Adverse shipping conditions/          2,071,819           2,232,281
                                              Merchant Marine Act of
                                              1920.
46 U.S.C. 42108............................  Operating after tariff or               103,591             111,614
                                              service contract
                                              suspension/Merchant Marine
                                              Act of 1920.
46 U.S.C. 44102, 44104.....................  Failure to establish                     26,167              28,194
                                              financial responsibility                   873                 941
                                              for non-performance of
                                              transportation.
46 U.S.C. 44103, 44104.....................  Failure to establish                     26,167              28,194
                                              financial responsibility                   873                 941
                                              for death or injury.

[[Page 1519]]

 
31 U.S.C. 3802(a)(1).......................  Program Fraud Civil                      12,537              13,508
                                              Remedies Act/making false
                                              claim.
31 U.S.C. 3802(a)(2).......................  Program Fraud Civil                      12,537              13,508
                                              Remedies Act/giving false
                                              statement.
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    By the Commission.
William Cody,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2023-00399 Filed 1-10-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6730-02-P