Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 234 / Friday, December 4, 2020 / Rules and Regulations 78223 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 187 

[Docket No.: FAA–2020–1002] 

Policy Clarifying Collection and 

Enforcement of Overflight Fees 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), Department of 

Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Statement of enforcement 

policy. 

SUMMARY: This document announces 

that the FAA will pursue all delinquent 

balances for overflight fees including 

the collection of interest, penalties, and 

administrative charges as authorized by 

law. 

DATES: This policy is effective January 1, 

2021. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Michelle Leissner, Financial Service 

Division, Office of General Accounting, 

Federal Aviation Administration, Mike 

Monroney Aeronautical Center, 6500 S 

MacArthur Blvd., Oklahoma City, OK 

73169; telephone: (405) 954–9984; 

email: michelle.leissner@faa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Availability of This Policy 

You can obtain an electronic copy 

using the internet by— 

(1) Searching the Federal 

eRulemaking Portal (http://

www.regulations.gov); 

(2) Visiting the FAA’s Regulations and 

Policies web page at http://

www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/; or 

(3) Accessing the Federal Register’s 

website at https://

www.federalregister.gov/. 

You can also obtain a copy by sending 

a request to the Federal Aviation 

Administration, Office of Rulemaking, 

ARM–1, 800 Independence Avenue SW, 

Washington, DC 20591, or by calling 

(202) 267–9677. Make sure to identify 

the docket number of this policy. 

Background 

The FAA must collect fees for air 

traffic control and related services it 

provides to aircraft other than military 

and civilian aircraft of the United States 

Government or of a foreign government 

that neither take off from, nor land in, 

the United States. 49 U.S.C. 45301(a). 

Title 14 CFR part 187 implements the 

requirement by prescribing the 

collection of the fees for such flights 

that transit United States-controlled 

airspace (commonly known as 

‘‘overflights’’). 14 CFR 187.51. The FAA 

implemented overflight fees in their 

current form in 2001. Fees for FAA 

Services for Certain Flights final rule, 66 

FR 43680 (Aug. 20, 2001). The FAA last 

updated part 187 in 2016. Update of 

Overflight Fee Rates final rule, 81 FR 

85843 (Nov. 29, 2016). 

In its 2001 final rule, the FAA stated 

it would assess administrative charges 

and interest for delinquent invoices in 

accordance with 49 CFR part 89. See 66 

FR at 43716. The FAA also stated it 

would pursue all delinquent balances to 

the extent provided by law. Id. Part 89, 

which contains Department of 

Transportation (DOT) provisions 

implementing the Federal Claims 

Collection Act (31 U.S.C. 3701–3720), 

sets forth the procedures by which the 

DOT collects certain claims owed to the 

United States, and determines and 

collects interest and other charges on 

those claims. Section 89.23 requires the 

FAA, by DOT delegation in § 89.5(c), to 

charge interest at the Treasury Current 

Value of Funds Rate (or higher) from the 

due date, to waive interest charges on 

debts paid within 30 calendar days of 

the due date, to charge a late payment 

penalty of six percent on any portion of 

the debt that is more than 90 days past 

due, and to assess administrative 

charges to cover additional costs 

incurred in processing and handling the 

debt beyond the payment due date. 

While the FAA has collected costs 

aggressively on the delinquent debts 

associated with overflight fees, the FAA 

has not pursued charging interest, late 

payment penalties, or administrative 

costs on delinquent debts. 

Discussion of the Notification of 

Enforcement Policy 

In accordance with 49 CFR 89.23, the 

FAA will enforce its rules regarding the 

collection of interest, administrative 

charges, and late payment penalties on 

delinquent overflight fee invoices. The 

agency will update invoices, consistent 

with 49 CFR 89.21, to include the 

interest, penalties, and administrative 

charges applicable to the billed amount 

and the date on which these charges 

begin to accrue. Charging interest, 

administrative charges, and penalties 

will compensate the Government for the 

loss of use of funds when a debt is not 

paid timely, discourage delinquencies, 

encourage early payment of the 

delinquent debt in full, and cover the 

expenses associated with collecting a 

debt. 

In accordance with 49 CFR 89.23, 

interest on debt will begin to accrue on 

an outstanding debt at the Treasury 

Current Value of Funds Rate on the 

calendar date following the specified 

due date of the debt. Interest on debt 

will accrue only on the principal of the 

debt (simple interest) at a fixed rate and 

will accrue until payment is received. 

The FAA will waive interest on debt 

that is paid within 30 calendar days 

from the due date. 49 CFR 89.23(c). 

Administrative charges will consist of 

a fixed fee of $16. The FAA will 

compute these charges to cover the cost 

of processing and handling delinquent 

debt. The FAA sends to debtors a total 

of three progressively-stronger written 

demand letters consistent with 49 CFR 

89.21: An invoice, a delinquency notice, 

and a Treasury referral notification 

letter. The invoice includes the due date 

and debt amount. The FAA sends a 

delinquency notice to a debtor if the 

debt remains unpaid by the due date. If 

the debt remains unpaid 30 days past 

due date, the FAA sends the debtor a 

Treasury referral notification letter 

stating that any portion of the debt that 

is not paid within another 15 days (45 

days from the due date) will be referred 

to the Treasury for collection. The FAA 

will refer the debt to Treasury when the 

debt remains unpaid for 45 days after 

the due date. The fixed $16 charge 

represents the average cost to the FAA 

to process and handle delinquency 

notices, Treasury referral notification 

letters, or Treasury referrals, including 

labor, mailing, and overhead costs. The 

FAA will assess the $16 charge each 

time the FAA sends delinquency 

notices, sends Treasury referral 

notification letters, or refers the debt to 

the Treasury for collection. The FAA 

prepared a White Paper on 

Administrative Charges Applied to 

Delinquent Overflight Fee Invoices that 

explains the $16 amount. The paper is 

available in the public docket that 

contains this Notification. 

The FAA is authorized to charge a 

penalty on any portion of delinquent 

debt that is more than 90 days past due. 

49 CFR 89.23(a). The FAA sends any 

delinquent debt to the Treasury for 

collection before the debt becomes more 

than 90 days past due. For bills that 

remain unpaid more than 90 days past 

due, the FAA applies—and the Treasury 

Department implements—the six 

percent penalty. In all cases of referred 

debt, Treasury applies its own 

collection charges, which are separate 

from FAA’s penalty charges. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on November 

23rd, 2020. 

Nathan Tash, 

Acting Assistant Administrator for Finance 

and Management. 

[FR Doc. 2020–26251 Filed 12–2–20; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P