[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 121 (Monday, June 26, 2017)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 28760-28763]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-13209]
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NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
14 CFR Parts 1264 and 1271
RIN 2700-AE30
[Document Number NASA-17-039: Docket Number--NASA-2017-0002]
Implementation of the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation
Adjustment Act
AGENCY: National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
ACTION: Interim final rule with request for public comment.
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SUMMARY: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is
publishing for public comment an interim final rule to adjust the civil
monetary penalties within its jurisdiction for inflation, as required
by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990 (the
Inflation Adjustment Act or the Act), as amended by the Debt Collection
Improvement Act of 1996 and further amended by the Federal Civil
Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015 (2015 Act).
The revision to this rule is part of NASA's retrospective plan under
Executive Order (E.O.) 13563 completed in August 2011. NASA's full plan
can be accessed on the Agency's open Government Web site at http://www.nasa.gov/open/.
DATES: This interim final rule is effective August 25, 2017.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bryan R. Diederich, Office of the
General Counsel, NASA Headquarters, telephone (202) 358-0216.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
[[Page 28761]]
I. Background
The Inflation Adjustment Act, as amended by the 2015 Act, requires
Federal agencies to adjust the civil penalty amounts within their
jurisdiction for inflation by July 1, 2016, and then by January 15
every year thereafter.\1\ Agencies must make the initial 2016
adjustments through an interim final rulemaking published in the
Federal Register.\2\ Under the amended Act, any increase in a civil
penalty made under the Act will apply to penalties assessed after the
increase takes effect, including penalties whose associated violation
predated the increase.\3\ The inflation adjustments mandated by the Act
serve to maintain the deterrent effect of civil penalties and to
promote compliance with the law.
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\1\ See 28 U.S.C. 2461 note.
\2\ The statute also provides that, for the initial 2016
adjustment, an agency may adjust a civil penalty by less than the
otherwise required amount if (1) it determines, after publishing a
notice of proposed rulemaking and providing an opportunity for
comment, that increasing the civil penalty by the otherwise required
amount would have a negative economic impact or that the social
costs of increasing the civil penalty by the otherwise required
amount outweigh the benefits, and (2) the Director of the Office of
Management and Budget concurs with that determination. Inflation
Adjustment Act section 4(c), codified at 28 U.S.C. 2461 note. NASA
has chosen not to make use of this exception.
\3\ Inflation Adjustment Act section 6, codified at 28 U.S.C.
2461 note.
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II. Method of Calculation
The Inflation Adjustment Act prescribes a specific method for
calculating the inflation adjustments.\4\ As amended by the 2015 Act,
the Act provides that the maximum (and minimum, if applicable) amounts
for each civil penalty must be increased by the ``cost-of-living
adjustment,'' a term that the Act defines. For purposes of the initial
adjustments that agencies must make by July 1, 2016, the ``cost-of-
living adjustment'' is defined as the percentage increase in the
Consumer Price Index between (1) October of the calendar year during
which the civil penalty amount was established or adjusted under a
provision of law other than the Inflation Adjustment Act and (2)
October 2015. The Consumer Price Index to be used for purposes of this
calculation is the Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers (CPI-U)
published by the Department of Labor.\5\ The Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) has published guidance for implementing this
requirement.\6\ OMB's guidance memorandum provides multipliers that
agencies should use to adjust penalty amounts based on the year the
penalty was established or last adjusted under authority other than the
Inflation Adjustment Act.
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\4\ Inflation Adjustment Act section 5, codified at 28 U.S.C.
2461 note.
\5\ U.S. Dep't of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, CPI Tables,
http://www.bls.gov/cpi/#tables.
\6\ Memorandum from Shaun Donovan, Director, Office of
Management and Budget, to the Heads of Executive Departments and
Agencies (Feb. 24, 2016), https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/memoranda/2016/m-16-06.pdf.
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To determine the new penalty amount, the agency must apply the
multiplier reflecting the ``cost-of-living adjustment'' \7\ to the
penalty amount as it was most recently established or adjusted under a
provision of law other than the Inflation Adjustment Act. The agency
must then round that amount to the nearest dollar.\8\ The increase made
by this initial adjustment may not exceed 150 percent of the penalty
amount in effect on the date the 2015 Act was enacted, November 2,
2015.
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\7\ [thinsp]The multipliers reflecting the ``cost-of-living
adjustment'' that OMB provides are rounded to five decimal places.
NASA has used the OMB multipliers in calculating its civil penalty
adjustments.
\8\ In rounding to the nearest dollar, NASA has rounded down
where the digit immediately following the decimal point is less than
5 and has rounded up where the digit immediately following the
decimal point is 5 or greater.
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III. Description of the Interim Final Rule
This interim final rule establishes the inflation-adjusted maximum
amounts for each civil penalty within NASA's jurisdiction. The
following table lists the civil penalties within NASA's jurisdiction
and summarizes the relevant information needed to calculate the
inflation adjustments pursuant to the statutory method.
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Penalty amount Year penalty
as established established or
or last last adjusted Penalty amount
adjusted under under a in effect on
Law Penalty description a provision provision other November 2,
other than the than the 2015
Inflation Inflation
Adjustment Act Adjustment Act
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Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act of Maximum penalties for $5,000 1986 $5,000
1986. false claims.
Department of the Interior and Minimum penalty for use 10,000 1989 10,000
Related Agencies Appropriations Act of appropriated funds
of 1989, Public Law 101-121, sec. to lobby or influence
319. certain contracts.
Department of the Interior and Maximum penalty for use 100,000 1989 100,000
Related Agencies Appropriations Act of appropriated funds
of 1989, Public Law 101-121, sec. to lobby or influence
319. certain contracts.
Department of the Interior and Minimum penalty for 10,000 1989 10,000
Related Agencies Appropriations Act failure to report
of 1989, Public Law 101-121, sec. certain lobbying
319. transactions.
Department of the Interior and Maximum penalty for 100,000 1989 100,000
Related Agencies Appropriations Act failure to report
of 1989, Public Law 101-121, sec. certain lobbying
319. transactions.
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NASA followed the procedure outlined above in part II to calculate
the adjusted civil penalty amounts. In accordance with the statutory
requirements and OMB guidance, NASA multiplied each penalty amount as
established or last adjusted under a provision other than the Inflation
Adjustment Act by the OMB multiplier corresponding to the appropriate
year, and then rounded that amount to the nearest dollar, to calculate
the new, inflation-adjusted civil penalty amount. The following chart
summarizes the results of these calculations:
[[Page 28762]]
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Penalty amount Year penalty
as established established or
or last last adjusted OMB ``cost-of- New penalty
adjusted under under a living New penalty amount adjusted
Law Penalty description a provision provision other adjustment'' amount for 150%
other than the than the multiplier threshold
Inflation Inflation
Adjustment Act Adjustment Act
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Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act of Maximum Penalties for $5,000 1986 2.15628 $10,781 $10,781
1986. False Claims.
Department of the Interior and Related Minimum Penalty for use of 10,000 1989 1.89361 18,936 18,936
Agencies Appropriations Act of 1989, appropriated funds to
Public Law 101-121, sec. 319. lobby or influence
certain contracts.
Department of the Interior and Related Maximum Penalty for use of 100,000 1989 1.89361 189,361 189,361
Agencies Appropriations Act of 1989, appropriated funds to
Public Law 101-121, sec. 319. lobby or influence
certain contracts.
Department of the Interior and Related Minimum penalty for 10,000 1989 1.89361 18,936 18,936
Agencies Appropriations Act of 1989, failure to report certain
Public Law 101-121, sec. 319. lobbying transactions.
Department of the Interior and Related Maximum penalty for 100,000 1989 1.89361 189,361 189,361
Agencies Appropriations Act of 1989, failure to report certain
Public Law 101-121, sec. 319. lobbying transactions.
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This rule codifies these civil penalty amounts by amending parts
1264 and 1271 of title 14 of the CFR.
IV. Legal Authority and Effective Date
NASA issues this rule under the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation
Adjustment Act of 1990,\9\ as amended by the Debt Collection
Improvement Act of 1996,\10\ and further amended by the Federal Civil
Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015,\11\ which
requires NASA to adjust the civil penalties within its jurisdiction for
inflation according to a statutorily prescribed formula.
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\9\ Public Law 101-410, 104 Stat. 890 (1990).
\10\ Public Law 104-134, section 31001(s)(1), 110 Stat. 1321,
1321-373 (1996).
\11\ Public Law 114-74, section 701, 129 Stat. 584, 599 (2015).
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The Administrative Procedure Act (APA) generally requires an agency
to publish a rule at least 30 days before its effective date.\12\ This
rule satisfies that requirement.
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\12\ See 5 U.S.C. 533(d).
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V. Request for Comment
Although notice and comment rulemaking procedures are not required,
NASA invites comments on this notice. Commenters are specifically
encouraged to identify any technical issues raised by the rule.
VI. Regulatory Requirements
Notice and Comment
Under the APA, notice and opportunity for public comment are not
required if NASA finds that notice and public comment are
impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to the public interest.\13\
This interim final rule adjusts the civil penalty amounts within the
NASA's jurisdiction for inflation, as required by the Federal Civil
Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990, as amended by the Debt
Collection Improvement Act of 1996 and further amended by the Federal
Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015. The
amendments in this interim final rule are technical, and they merely
apply the statutory method for adjusting civil penalty amounts. For
these reasons, NASA has determined that publishing a notice of proposed
rulemaking and providing opportunity for public comment are
unnecessary. Moreover, the statute expressly requires NASA to make
these initial adjustments through an interim final rulemaking to be
published by July 1, 2016,\14\ and OMB's guidance confirms that
agencies need not complete a notice-and-comment process before
promulgating the rule.\15\ Therefore, the amendments are adopted in
final form.
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\13\ 5 U.S.C. 533(b)(B).
\14\ Inflation Adjustment Action, section 4(b)(1)(A), codified
at 28 U.S.C. 2461 note.
\15\ Memorandum from Shaun Donovan, Director, Office of
Management and Budget, to the Heads of Executive Departments and
Agencies 3 (Feb. 24, 2016), https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/memoranda/2016/m-16-06.pdf.
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Regulatory Flexibility Act
Because no notice of proposed rulemaking is required, the
Regulatory Flexibility Act does not require an initial or final
regulatory flexibility analysis.\16\
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\16\ 5 U.S.C. 603(a), 604(a).
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Paperwork Reduction Act
In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995,\17\ NASA
reviewed this interim final rule. No collections of information
pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act are contained in the interim
final rule.
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\17\ 44 U.S.C. 3506-.
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List of Subjects in 14 CFR Parts 1264 and 1271
Claims, Penalties, Lobbying.
For the reasons stated in the preamble, the National Aeronautics
and Space Administration amends 14 CFR parts 1264 and 1271 as follows:
PART 1264--IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROGRAM FRAUD CIVIL PENALTIES ACT
OF 1986
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1. The authority citation for part 1264 continues to read as follows:
[[Page 28763]]
Authority: 31 U.S.C. 3809, 51 U.S.C. 20113(a).
Sec. 1264.102 [Amended]
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2. In Sec. 1264.102, paragraphs (a) and (b), remove the number
``$5,000'' and add in its place the number ``$10,781''.
PART 1271--NEW RESTRICTIONS ON LOBBYING
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3. The authority citation for part 1271 continues to read as follows:
Authority: Section 319, Pub. L. 101-121 (31 U.S.C. 1352); Pub.
L. 97-258 (31 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.).
Subpart D--Penalties and Enforcement
Sec. 1271.400 [Amended]
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4. In Sec. 1271.400:
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a. In paragraphs (a) and (b), remove the words ``not less than $10,000
and not more than $100,000'' and add in their place the words ``not
less than $18,936 and not more than $189,361''; and
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b. In paragraph (e), remove the two occurrences of ``$10,000'' and add
in their places ``$18,936'' and remove ``$100,000'' and add in its
place ``$189,361''.
Appendix A to Part 1271 [Amended]
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6. In appendix A to part 1271, in paragraph following paragraph (3) and
in the last paragraph of the appendix, remove the words ``not less than
$10,000 and not more than $100,000'' and add in their place the words
``not less than $18,936 and not more than $189,361''.
Cheryl E. Parker,
NASA Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 2017-13209 Filed 6-23-17; 8:45 am]
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