67096 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 248 / Friday, December 28, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 

federalism implications under Executive 

Order 13132. 

Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice 

Reform. This rule meets the applicable 

standards of Executive Order 12988. 

Paperwork Reduction Act. This rule 

does not involve any collection of 

information for purposes of the 

Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 

3501 et seq. 

List of Subjects in 44 CFR Part 64 

Flood insurance, Floodplains. 

Accordingly, 44 CFR part 64 is 

amended as follows: 

PART 64—[AMENDED] 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 64 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.; 

Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978, 3 CFR, 

1978 Comp.; p. 329; E.O. 12127, 44 FR 19367, 

3 CFR, 1979 Comp.; p. 376. 

§ 64.6 [Amended] 

■ 2. The tables published under the 

authority of § 64.6 are amended as 

follows: 

State and location Community 

No. 

Effective date authorization/cancellation of sale of 

flood insurance in community 

Current effective 

map date 

Date certain 

Federal assistance 

no longer available 

in SFHAs 

Region IV 

Florida: Inglis, Town of, Levy County ........................ 120586 January 10, 1986, Emerg; January 10, 1986, Reg; 

January 18, 2019, Susp.

Jan. 18, 2019. ...... Jan. 18, 2019. 

South Carolina: 

Greenville, City of, Greenville County ................ 450091 January 15, 1974, Emerg; February 1, 1980, Reg; ..

January 18, 2019, Susp ............................................

......do * ................. Do. 

Greenville County, Unincorporated Areas .......... 450089 February 12, 1974, Emerg; December 2, 1980, 

Reg; January 18, 2019, Susp.

......do ................... Do. 

Region X 

Oregon: 

Clackamas County, Unincorporated Areas ........ 415588 April 2, 1971, Emerg; March 1, 1978, Reg; January 

18, 2019, Susp.

......do ................... Do. 

Sandy, City of, Clackamas County .................... 410023 June 25, 1974, Emerg; December 11, 1979, Reg; 

January 18, 2019, Susp.

......do ................... Do. 

Washington: 

Bellingham, City of, Whatcom County ............... 530199 April 30, 1975, Emerg; September 2, 1982, Reg; 

January 18, 2019, Susp.

......do ................... Do. 

Blaine, City of, Whatcom County ....................... 530273 June 10, 1975, Emerg; July 16, 1979, Reg; January 

18, 2019, Susp.

......do ................... Do. 

Everson, City of, Whatcom County .................... 530200 August 16, 1974, Emerg; August 2, 1982, Reg; 

January 18, 2019, Susp.

......do ................... Do. 

Ferndale, City of, Whatcom County ................... 530201 May 27, 1975, Emerg; June 1, 1983, Reg; January 

18, 2019, Susp.

......do ................... Do. 

Lummi Indian Reservation, Whatcom County .... 530331 October 14, 1997, Emerg; January 16, 2004, Reg; 

January 18, 2019, Susp.

......do ................... Do. 

Lynden, City of, Whatcom County ..................... 530202 May 27, 1975, Emerg; November 3, 1982, Reg; 

January 18, 2019, Susp.

......do ................... Do. 

Nooksack, City of, Whatcom County ................. 530203 November 28, 1975, Emerg; September 2, 1982, 

Reg; January 18, 2019, Susp.

......do ................... Do. 

Sumas, City of, Whatcom County ...................... 530204 February 14, 1975, Emerg; May 15, 1985, Reg; 

January 18, 2019, Susp.

............................. Do. 

Whatcom County, Unincorporated Areas ........... 530198 February 18, 1972, Emerg; September 30, 1977, 

Reg; January 18, 2019, Susp.

January 18, 2019. January 18, 2019. 

* ......do = Ditto. 

Code for reading third column: Emerg.—Emergency; Reg.—Regular; Susp.—Suspension. 

Dated: December 19, 2018. 

Eric Letvin, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Mitigation, Federal Insurance and Mitigation 

Administration—FEMA Resilience, 

Department of Homeland Security, Federal 

Emergency Management Agency. 

[FR Doc. 2018–28153 Filed 12–27–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9110–12–P 

CORPORATION FOR NATIONAL AND 

COMMUNITY SERVICE 

45 CFR Parts 1230 and 2554 

RIN 3045–AA71 

Annual Civil Monetary Penalties 

Inflation Adjustment 

AGENCY: Corporation for National and 

Community Service. 

ACTION: Interim final rule. 

SUMMARY: The Corporation for National 

and Community Service (CNCS) is 

updating its regulations to reflect 

required annual inflation-related 

increases to the civil monetary penalties 

in its regulations, pursuant to the 

Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 

2015. 

DATES: 

Effective date: This rule is effective 

January 15, 2019. 

Comment due date: Technical 

comments may be submitted until 

January 28, 2019. 

ADDRESSES: You may send your 

comments electronically through the 

Federal government’s one-stop 

rulemaking website at 

www.regulations.gov. Also, you may 

mail or deliver your comments to 

Stephanie Soper, Law Office Manager, 

Office of General Counsel, at the 

Corporation for National and 

Community Service, 250 E Street SW, 

Washington, DC 20525. Due to 

continued delays in CNCS’s receipt of 

mail, we strongly encourage comments 

to be submitted online electronically. 

The TDD/TTY number is 800–833– 

3722. You may request this notice in an 

alternative format for the visually 

impaired. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Stephanie Soper, Law Office Manager, 

Office of General Counsel, at 202–606– 

6747 or email to ssoper@cns.gov. 

Individuals who use a 

telecommunications device for the deaf 

(TTY–TDD) may call 800–833–3722 

between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Eastern Time, 

Monday through Friday. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 


amozie on DSK3GDR082PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 248 / Friday, December 28, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 67097 

I. Background 

The Corporation for National and 

Community Service (CNCS) is a federal 

agency that engages millions of 

Americans in service through its 

AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, and 

Volunteer Generation Fund programs to 

further its mission to improve lives, 

strengthen communities, and foster 

civic engagement through service and 

volunteering. For more information, 

visit NationalService.gov. 

The Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 

2015 (Sec. 701 of Pub. L. 114–74) (the 

‘‘Act’’), which is intended to improve 

the effectiveness of civil monetary 

penalties and to maintain the deterrent 

effect of such penalties, requires 

agencies to adjust the civil monetary 

penalties for inflation annually. 

II. Method of Calculation 

CNCS has two civil monetary 

penalties in its regulations. A civil 

monetary penalty under the Act is a 

penalty, fine, or other sanction that is 

for a specific monetary amount as 

provided by Federal law or has a 

maximum amount provided for by 

federal law and is assessed or enforced 

by an agency pursuant to federal law 

and is assessed or enforced pursuant to 

an administrative proceeding or a civil 

action in the federal courts. (See 28 

U.S.C. 2461 note). 

The inflation adjustment for each 

applicable civil monetary penalty is 

determined using the percent increase 

in the Consumer Price Index for all 

Urban Consumers (CPI–U) for the month 

of October of the year in which the 

amount of each civil money penalty was 

most recently established or modified. 

In the December 14, 2018, OMB Memo 

for the Heads of Executive Agencies and 

Departments, M–19–04, Implementation 

of Penalty Inflation Adjustments for 

2019, Pursuant to the Federal Civil 

Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act 

Improvements Act of 2015, OMB 

published the multiplier for the 

required annual adjustment. The costof-living adjustment multiplier for 2019, 

based on the CPI–U for the month of 

October 2018, not seasonally adjusted, 

is 1.02522. 

CNCS identified two civil penalties in 

its regulations: (1) The penalty 

associated with Restrictions on 

Lobbying (45 CFR 1230.400) and (2) the 

penalty associated with the Program 

Fraud Civil Remedies Act (45 CFR 

2554.1). 

The civil monetary penalties related 

to Restrictions on Lobbying (Section 

319, Pub. L. 101–121; 31 U.S.C. 1352) 

range from $19,639 to $196,387. Using 

the 2019 multiplier, the new range of 

possible civil monetary penalties is from 

$20,134 to $201,340. 

The Program Fraud Civil Remedies 

Act of 1986 (Pub. L. 99–509) civil 

monetary penalty has an upper limit of 

$11,181. Using the 2019 multiplier, the 

new upper limit of the civil monetary 

penalty is $11,463. 

III. Summary of Final Rule 

This final rule adjusts the civil 

monetary penalty amounts related to 

Restrictions on Lobbying (45 CFR 

1230.400) and the Program Fraud Civil 

Remedies Act of 1986 (45 CFR 2554.1). 

The range of civil monetary penalties 

related to Restrictions on Lobbying 

increase from ‘‘$19,639 to $196,387’’ to 

‘‘$20,134 to $201,340.’’ The civil 

monetary penalties for the Program 

Fraud Civil Remedies Act of 1986 

increase from ‘‘up to $11,181’’ to ‘‘up to 

$11,463.’’ 

IV. Regulatory Procedures 

A. Determination of Good Cause for 

Publication Without Notice and 

Comment 

CNCS finds, under 5 U.S.C. 

553(b)(3)(B), that there is good cause to 

except this rule from the public notice 

and comment provisions of the 

Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. 

553(b). Because CNCS is implementing 

a final rule pursuant to the Federal Civil 

Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act 

Improvements Act of 2015, which 

requires CNCS to update its regulations 

based on a prescribed formula, CNCS 

has no discretion in the nature or 

amount of the change to the civil 

monetary penalties. Therefore, notice 

and comment for these proscribed 

updates is impracticable and 

unnecessary. As an interim final rule, 

no further regulatory action is required 

for the issuance of this legally binding 

rule. If you would like to provide 

technical comments, however, they may 

be submitted until January 28, 2019. 

B. Review Under Procedural Statutes 

and Executive Orders 

CNCS has determined that making 

technical changes to the amount of civil 

monetary penalties in its regulations 

does not trigger any requirements under 

procedural statutes and Executive 

Orders that govern rulemaking 

procedures. 

V. Effective Date 

This rule is effective January 15, 2019. 

The adjusted civil penalty amounts 

apply to civil penalties assessed on or 

after January 15, 2019, when the 

violation occurred after November 2, 

2015. If the violation occurred prior to 

November 2, 2015, or a penalty was 

assessed prior to August 1, 2016, the 

pre-adjustment civil penalty amounts in 

effect prior to August 1, 2106, will 

apply. 

List of Subjects 

45 CFR Part 1230 

Government contracts, Grant 

programs, Loan programs, Lobbying, 

Penalties, Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

45 CFR Part 2554 

Claims, Fraud, Organization and 

functions (Government agencies), 

Penalties. 

For the reasons discussed in the 

preamble, under the authority of 42 

U.S.C. 12651c(c), the Corporation for 

National and Community Service 

amends chapters XII and XXV, title 45 

of the Code of Federal Regulations as 

follows: 

PART 1230—NEW RESTRICTIONS ON 

LOBBYING 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 1230 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: Section 319, Pub. L. 101–121 

(31 U.S.C. 1352); Pub. L. 93–113; 42 U.S.C. 

4951, et seq.; 42 U.S.C. 5060. 

§ 1230.400 [Amended] 

■ 2. Amend § 1230.400: 

■ a. In paragraphs (a), (b), and (e), by 

removing ‘‘$19,639’’ and adding in its 

place ‘‘$20,134’’ each place it appears. 

■ b. In paragraphs (a), (b), and (e), by 

removing ‘‘$196,387’’ and adding in its 

place ‘‘$201,340’’ each place it appears. 

Appendix A to Part 1230 [Amended] 

■ 3. Amend appendix A to part 1230 in 

both the undesignated paragraph 

following paragraph (3) and the last 

paragraph by removing ‘‘$19,639’’ and 

adding in its place ‘‘$20,134’’ and by 

removing ‘‘$196,387’’ and adding in its 

place ‘‘$201,340’’. 

PART 2554—PROGRAM FRAUD CIVIL 

REMEDIES ACT REGULATIONS 

■ 4. The authority citation for part 2554 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: Pub. L. 99–509, Secs. 6101– 

6104, 100 Stat. 1874 (31 U.S.C. 3801–3812); 

42 U.S.C. 12651c–12651d. 

§ 2554.1 [Amended] 

■ 5. Amend § 2554.1 in paragraph (b) by 

removing ‘‘$11,181’’ and adding in its 

place ‘‘$11,463.’’ 


amozie on DSK3GDR082PROD with RULES
67098 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 248 / Friday, December 28, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 

Dated: December 21, 2018. 

Tim Noelker, 

General Counsel. 

[FR Doc. 2018–28266 Filed 12–27–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6050–28–P 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMISSION 

47 CFR Parts 1, 32, 51, 61, and 69 

[WC Docket Nos. 17–144, 16–143, 05–25; 

FCC 18–146] 

Regulation of Business Data Services 

for Rate-of-Return Local Exchange 

Carriers; Business Data Services in an 

internet Protocol Environment; Special 

Access for Price Cap Local Exchange 

Carriers 

AGENCY: Federal Communications 

Commission. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: The Commission continues its 

efforts to modernize its rules governing 

the pricing of business data services 

(BDS) by allowing rate-of-return carriers 

to voluntarily elect to transition their 

BDS offerings out of rate-of-return 

regulation to a lighter-touch regulatory 

framework. This action is intended to 

promote competition and reduce costly 

regulatory burdens which no longer 

serve the public interest. Under this 

new framework, rate-of-return carriers 

would be incentivized to use the savings 

realized from the regulatory relief to 

improve existing networks and service. 

DATES: The amendments contained in 

this final rule shall become effective 

February 26, 2019. 

ADDRESSES: Federal Communications 

Commission, 445 12th Street SW, 

Washington, DC 20554. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Justin Faulb, Pricing Policy Division of 

the Wireline Competition Bureau at 

202–418–1540 or by email at 

Justin.Faulb@fcc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a 

summary of the Commission’s Report 

and Order, released October 24, 2018. A 

full-text version may be obtained at the 

following internet address: https://

www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-spurscompetition-rural-business-dataservices-0. 

I. Background 

1. In 1990, the Commission began the 

process of encouraging carriers to move 

from rate-of-return to incentive 

regulation by adopting price cap rules 

governing the largest incumbent LECs’ 

interstate access charges and allowing 

other incumbent LECs to elect price cap 

regulation voluntarily. Price cap 

regulation was designed to ‘‘reward 

companies that became more productive 

and efficient, while ensuring that 

productivity and efficiency gains are 

shared with ratepayers.’’ Through a 

series of subsequent decisions, the 

Commission allowed other carriers to 

convert voluntarily from rate-of-return 

to price cap regulation. 

2. Since then, the Commission has 

taken additional steps to transition 

certain services and revenues of rate-ofreturn carriers from rate-of-return 

regulation to other more efficient forms 

of regulation. In 2011, as part of 

comprehensive universal service and 

intercarrier compensation reform, the 

Commission imposed rate caps on rateof-return carriers’ switched access 

services, removing those services from 

the obligations that accompany 

traditional rate-or-return regulation. In 

the USF/ICC Transformation Order, 76 

FR 73830, November 29, 2011, the 

Commission also changed its method for 

calculating high-cost universal service 

support received by rate-of-return 

affiliates of price cap carriers. 

Specifically, the Commission began to 

treat rate-of-return operating companies 

affiliated with price-cap holding 

companies as price cap LECs for the 

purposes of the Connect America Fund 

(CAF) Phase I distribution mechanism. 

As a result, rate-of-return carriers 

affiliated with price-cap companies now 

receive the same type of fixed universal 

service support that their price cap 

affiliates receive. 

3. Two years ago, the Commission 

gave rate-of-return carriers the option of 

receiving forward looking, model-based 

universal service support based on the 

Alternative Connect America Cost 

Model (A–CAM), which more than 200 

carriers opted to receive (A–CAM 

carriers). The Commission observed that 

‘‘the carriers that choose to take the 

voluntary path to the model are electing 

incentive regulation for common line 

offerings.’’ Consequently, for A–CAM 

carriers, only their BDS offerings are 

currently subject to rate-of-return 

regulation. 

4. In 2016, the Commission also 

adopted the Alaska Plan Order, 81 FR 

69696, October 7, 2016, which allowed 

Alaskan rate-of-return carriers to elect 

fixed universal service support on a 

state-wide basis for a defined term in 

exchange for committing to deployment 

obligations. Specifically, the 

Commission provided a one-time 

opportunity for Alaskan rate-of-return 

carriers to elect to receive universal 

service support frozen at adjusted 2011 

levels for a 10-year term in exchange for 

meeting individualized performance 

benchmarks to offer voice and 

broadband services. Subsequently, in 

2016, the Wireline Competition Bureau 

(Bureau) authorized 13 Alaskan rate-ofreturn carriers to receive universal 

service support under the Alaska Plan 

(Alaska Plan carriers). Similar to A– 

CAM carriers, Alaska Plan carriers 

receive fixed universal service support 

that is not based on current cost, and 

only file cost studies for purposes of 

their BDS offerings. 

5. In addition to encouraging carriers 

to migrate from cost-based to incentive 

regulation, over time the Commission 

has reduced ex ante pricing regulation 

in favor of relying on competition to the 

extent possible. In 1999, the 

Commission granted pricing flexibility 

to price cap carriers that provided 

service in areas where carriers could 

demonstrate threshold levels of 

deployment by competitive providers. 

Pricing flexibility allowed eligible 

carriers to offer BDS using contract 

tariffs, volume and term discounts and, 

in markets that demonstrated higher 

levels of competition, at unregulated 

rates. Beginning in 2007, the 

Commission granted forbearance from 

dominant carrier regulation, including 

tariffing and pricing regulation, to a 

number of price cap incumbent LECs for 

their newer packet-based broadband 

services. These forbearance orders 

concluded that forbearance from 

dominant carrier regulation was 

warranted given the existence of 

competition for these newer services, 

which ensured that rates and practices 

for these services remained just and 

reasonable, adequately protected 

consumers, and was in the public 

interest. 

6. In 2017, the Commission adjusted 

BDS pricing regulation to the reality of 

a dynamically competitive BDS market 

in areas where incumbent LECs were 

subject to price cap regulation. The 

Commission premised its reductions in 

ex ante pricing regulation in part on a 

substantial data collection and in part 

on its predictive judgment that dynamic 

and growing competition in the BDS 

market, driven increasingly by the 

emergence of cable competition, would 

allow reliance on competition rather 

than regulation to ensure rates remain 

just and reasonable. The BDS Order, 82 

FR 25660, June 2, 2017, represented yet 

another step in the process of reducing 

dominant carrier regulation in response 

to the growth of competition. In that 

order, the Commission found that 

reducing government intervention and 

allowing market forces to continue 

working would further spur entry, 

innovation, and competition in BDS 

markets served by price cap carriers. 


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