83816 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 247 / Wednesday, December 23, 2020 / Rules and Regulations 

‘‘unknown’’ for this field. Effective 

December 24, 2021, filers may not state 

‘‘unknown’’ for this field. 

(iii) For purposes of paragraph 

(c)(1)(xv) of this section: 

(A) The field in the license 

application requiring identification of 

the country where the product was most 

recently cast applies to the country 

where the aluminum (with or without 

alloying elements) was last liquified by 

heat and cast into a solid state. The final 

solid state can take the form of either a 

semi-finished product (slab, billets or 

ingots) or a finished aluminum product. 

(B) Filers may not state ‘‘not 

applicable’’ for this field. 

(C) Filers may not state ‘‘unknown’’ 

for this field. 

(4) Upon completion of the form, the 

importer, customs broker or the 

importer’s agent will certify as to the 

accuracy and completeness of the 

information and submit the form 

electronically. After refreshing the page, 

the system will automatically issue an 

aluminum import license number. The 

refreshed form containing the submitted 

information and the newly issued 

license number will appear on the 

screen (the ‘‘license form’’). Filers can 

print the license form themselves only 

at that time. For security purposes, users 

will not be able to retrieve licenses 

themselves from the license system at a 

later date for reprinting. If needed, 

copies of completed license forms can 

be requested from Commerce during 

normal business hours. 

(d) Duration of the aluminum import 

license. The aluminum import license 

can be applied for up to 60 days prior 

to the expected date of importation and 

until the date of filing of the entry 

summary documents, or in the case of 

FTZ admissions, the filing of Customs 

Form 214, or their electronic 

equivalents. With the exception of the 

licenses for FTZ admission (see 

§ 361.101(c)), the aluminum import 

license is valid for 75 days; however, 

import licenses that were valid on the 

date of importation but expired prior to 

the filing of entry summary data will be 

accepted. 

(e) Correcting submitted license 

information. Users will need to correct 

licenses themselves if they determine 

that there was an error submitted. To 

access a previously issued license, a 

user must log on with his username and 

identify the license number and the 

volume (quantity in kilograms) for the 

first product shown on the license. The 

information on the license should match 

the information presented in the entry 

summary data as closely as possible. 

This includes the value and quantity of 

the shipment, the expected date of 

importation, and the Customs port of 

entry. 

(f) Low-value licenses. There is one 

exception to the requirement for 

obtaining a unique license for each 

Customs entry. If the total value of the 

covered aluminum portion of an entry is 

less than $5,000, applicants may apply 

to Commerce for a low-value license 

that can be used in lieu of a single-entry 

license for low-value entries. 

§ 361.104 Aluminum import monitoring. 

(a) Commerce will maintain an import 

monitoring system on the public AIM 

system website that will report certain 

aggregate information on imports of 

aluminum products obtained from the 

aluminum licenses and, where 

available, from publicly available U.S. 

import statistics. Aggregate data will be 

reported, as appropriate, on a monthly 

basis by country of origin, country of 

smelt, country of last cast, relevant 

aluminum product grouping, etc., and 

will include import quantity (metric 

tons), import Customs value (U.S. $), 

and average unit value ($/metric ton). 

The website will also contain certain 

aggregate data at the 6-digit Harmonized 

Tariff Schedule level and will also 

present a range of historical data for 

comparison purposes. Provision of 

aggregate data on the website may be 

revisited should concerns arise over the 

possible release of proprietary data. 

(b) Reported monthly import data will 

be refreshed each week, as appropriate, 

with new data on licenses issued during 

the previous week. This data will also 

be adjusted periodically for cancelled or 

unused aluminum import licenses, as 

appropriate. Additionally, outdated 

license data will be replaced, where 

available, with publicly available U.S. 

import statistics. 

§ 361.105 [Reserved] 

§ 361.106 Fees. 

No fees will be charged for obtaining 

a username, issuing an aluminum 

import license or accessing the 

aluminum import monitoring system. 

§ 361.107 Hours of operation. 

The automatic licensing system will 

generally be accessible 24 hours a day, 

7 days a week but may be unavailable 

at selected times for server maintenance. 

If the system is unavailable for an 

extended period of time, parties will be 

able to obtain licenses from Commerce 

directly via email (aluminum.license@

trade.gov) during regular business 

hours. Should the system be 

inaccessible for an extended period of 

time, Commerce would advise CBP to 

consider this as part of mitigation on 

any liquidated damage claims that may 

be issued. 

§ 361.108 Loss of electronic licensing 

privileges. 

Should Commerce determine that a 

filer consistently files inaccurate 

licensing information or otherwise 

abuses the licensing system, Commerce 

may revoke its electronic licensing 

privileges without prior notice. The filer 

will then only be able to obtain a license 

directly from Commerce. Because of the 

additional time needed to review such 

forms, Commerce may require up to 10 

working days to process such forms. 

Delays in filing caused by the removal 

of a filer’s electronic filing privilege will 

not be considered a mitigating factor by 

CBP. 

[FR Doc. 2020–28166 Filed 12–22–20; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

Office of the Secretary 

29 CFR Part 20 

RIN 1290–AA44 

Second and Subsequent Notifications 

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, Labor. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: This final rule makes two 

changes. First, the final rule more 

clearly permits Department of Labor 

agency heads (or designees) to send 

second and subsequent demand letters 

at intervals of time separated by less 

than thirty days. Second, the final rule 

encourages debt collection efforts to 

proceed promptly so that, if needed, 

uncollected debt may be referred to the 

Department of Justice in a timely 

manner. 

DATES: This final rule is effective on 

December 23, 2020. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Erin 

FitzGerald, Senior Policy Advisor, U.S. 

Department of Labor, Room S–2312, 200 

Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, 

DC 20210; telephone: (202) 693–5076 

(this is not a toll-free number). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Overview of Amendments 

Agencies within the Department of 

Labor (Department) often must collect 

debt owed them, including debt relating 

to legal violations such as citation 

penalties. To collect such debt, agencies 

sometimes must send multiple demand 

letters. Prior to this final rule, 29 CFR 

20.55(a) provided that ‘‘second and 

subsequent demands shall generally be 


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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 247 / Wednesday, December 23, 2020 / Rules and Regulations 83817 

1See OMB Circular No. A–129, Policies for 

Federal Credit Programs and Non-Tax Receivables. 

Section V.E.1. January 2013. 

made at 30 day intervals from the first.’’ 

The Department’s Office of the Chief 

Financial Officer (OCFO) has indicated 

that agencies may have an increased 

likelihood of securing debt payments if 

second and subsequent demands are 

sent at intervals of time separated by 

less than thirty days. In particular, in 

reviewing enforcement agency debt 

collection practices, OCFO has noted 

that agencies that send out demand 

letters more quickly and at shorter 

intervals have higher collection rates 

than agencies that do not. Although 

agency heads (or designees) could send 

second and subsequent demand letters 

at intervals of time separated by less 

than thirty days pursuant to 29 CFR 

20.55(a) as it existed before this final 

rule, this final rule amends 29 CFR 

20.55(a) to provide clearer notice to the 

public that agency heads (or designees) 

can send demand letters in their sole 

discretion more often than every thirty 

days. 

This final rule also amends 29 CFR 

20.55(a) to better describe current 

Department practice. Prior to this final 

rule, 29 CFR 20.55(a) stated that 

‘‘agencies should give due regard to the 

need to act promptly so that, as a 

general rule, if necessary to refer the 

debt to the Department of Justice for 

litigation, such referral can be made 

within one year of the final 

determination of the fact and the 

amount of the debt.’’ It has been revised 

to state that ‘‘agencies should give due 

regard to the need to act promptly so 

that, if necessary, the debt may be 

referred in a timely manner to the 

Department of Justice for litigation.’’ 

This change better reflects current 

practice, pursuant to which the 

Department of Treasury typically seeks 

to collect federal debt for up to two 

years.1 After two years, the Department 

of Treasury refers uncollected debt back 

to the relevant agency, including 

agencies within the Department of 

Labor. Because debt is not typically 

referred back to agencies until the debt 

is at least two years old, referral to the 

Department of Justice will generally not 

be made until the debt is at least two 

years old. 

II. Administrative Procedure Act 

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553, this rule is 

being published as a final rule to have 

immediate effect upon publication in 

the Federal Register. This final rule 

deals only with internal operating 

procedures regarding the Department’s 

debt-collection practices. This final rule 

thus qualifies as a rule ‘‘of agency 

organization, procedure, or practice’’ or 

a ‘‘general statement of policy’’ under 5 

U.S.C. 553(b)(A), so it is exempt from 

the notice-and-comment requirements 

of the Administrative Procedure Act. 

This rule is not a ‘‘major rule’’ under 

5 U.S.C. 801(a)(3) nor a ‘‘substantive 

rule’’ under 5 U.S.C. 553(d) and may 

also qualify as a ‘‘statement[ ] of policy’’ 

under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(2). Thus it can be 

effective immediately. The Department 

is making it effective immediately 

because of its strong interest in 

promptly collecting debt, especially 

debt derived from legal violations. The 

prompt collection of such debt provides 

the regulated public a stronger incentive 

to follow the law by showing that duly 

levied citations and other penalties 

must in fact be paid. Collecting debts 

also strengthens the Department’s fisc, 

which assists with budgeting and offsets 

funds that might otherwise be requested 

from Congress and, ultimately, the 

nation’s taxpayers. Delaying the 

effective date of this rule would 

unnecessarily hinder the Department’s 

law-enforcement mission. 

III. Executive Orders 12866, 13563; 

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act; Regulatory Flexibility; 

Paperwork Reduction Act; Unfunded 

Mandates Reform Act 

Executive Order 12866 requires that 

regulatory agencies assess both the costs 

and benefits of significant regulatory 

actions. Under the Executive Order, a 

‘‘significant regulatory action’’ is one 

meeting any of a number of specified 

conditions, including the following: 

Having an annual effect on the economy 

of $100 million or more; creating a 

serious inconsistency or interfering with 

an action of another agency; materially 

altering the budgetary impact of 

entitlements or the rights of entitlement 

recipients; or raising novel legal or 

policy issues. 

The Office of Information and 

Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) in the Office 

of Management and Budget (OMB) has 

determined that this rule is not a 

‘‘significant regulatory action’’ under 

Executive Order 12866 and waived 

review. This final rule deals only with 

internal operating procedures regarding 

the Department’s debt collection 

practices. Because no notice of proposed 

rulemaking is required for this rule 

under section 553(b) of the APA, the 

requirements of the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601) pertaining 

to regulatory flexibility do not apply to 

this rule. See 5 U.S.C. 601(2). 

Accordingly, the Department is not 

required to either certify that the final 

rule would not have a significant 

economic impact on a substantial 

number of small entities or conduct a 

regulatory flexibility analysis. Because, 

as noted above, no notice of proposed 

rulemaking is required for this rule, no 

requirements of the Unfunded Mandates 

Reform Act of 1995 are triggered. In 

addition, the amended regulation 

contain no additional informationcollection or record-keeping 

requirements under the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), 44 U.S.C. 

3501 et seq., and the implementing 

regulations at 5 CFR part 1320. 

List of Subjects in 29 CFR Part 20 

Claims, Income taxes, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements, Wages. 

For the reasons discussed in the 

preamble, the Department of Labor 

amends 29 CFR part 20 as follows: 

PART 20—FEDERAL CLAIMS 

COLLECTION 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 20 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 31 U.S.C. 3711 et seq.; Subpart 

D is also issued under 5 U.S.C. 5514; Subpart 

E is also issued under 31 U.S.C. 3720A; 

Subpart F is also issued under 31 U.S.C. 

3720D. 

■ 2. Amend § 20.55 by revising 

paragraph (a) to read as follows: 

§ 20.55 Second and subsequent 

notifications 

(a) In accordance with guidelines 

established by the Chief Financial 

Officer, the responsible agency head (or 

designee) shall send progressively 

stronger second and subsequent 

demands for payment, if payment or 

other appropriate response is not 

received within the time specified by 

the initial demand. Unless a response to 

the first or second demand indicates 

that a further demand would be futile or 

the debtor’s response does not require 

rebuttal, the second and subsequent 

demands shall generally be made at 30- 

day intervals from the first, and shall 

state that a 6 percent per annum penalty 

will be assessed after the debt has been 

delinquent 90 days, accruing from the 

date it became delinquent. An agency 

head (or designee), however, in his or 

her sole discretion can send second and 

subsequent demands at shorter 

intervals. The second and subsequent 

demands shall identify the amount of 

interest then accrued on the debt, as 

well as administrative costs thus far 

assessed. In determining the timing of 

the demand letters, agencies should give 

due regard to the need to act promptly 

so that, if necessary, the debt may be 

referred in a timely manner to the 

Department of Justice for litigation. 


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83818 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 247 / Wednesday, December 23, 2020 / Rules and Regulations 

1The Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment 

Act of 1990, Public Law 101–410, 28 U.S.C. 2461 

note, defines ‘‘civil monetary penalty’’ as any 

penalty, fine, or other sanction that—(1)(i) is for a 

specific monetary amount as provided by Federal 

law; or (ii) has a maximum amount provided for by 

Federal law; and (2) is assessed or enforced by an 

agency pursuant to Federal law; and (3) is assessed 

or enforced pursuant to an administrative 

proceeding or a civil action in the Federal courts. 

2The Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment 

Act Improvements Act of 2015 (Section 701 of Pub. 

L. 114–74) was signed into law on November 2, 

2015, and further amended the Federal Civil 

Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990. 

3Under Section 3(2)(A) of the 2015 Act, ‘‘civil 

monetary penalty’’ means ‘‘a specific monetary 

amount as provided by Federal law’’; or ‘‘has a 

maximum amount provided for by Federal law.’’ 

EPA-administered statutes generally refer to 

statutory maximum penalties, with the following 

exceptions: Section 311(b)(7)(D) of the Clean Water 

Act, 33 U.S.C. 1321(b)(7)(D), refers to a minimum 

penalty of ‘‘not less than $100,000 . . .’’; Section 

104B(d)(1) of the Marine Protection, Research, and 

Sanctuaries Act, 33 U.S.C. 1414b(d)(1), refers to an 

exact penalty of $600 ‘‘[f]or each dry ton (or 

equivalent) of sewage sludge or industrial waste 

dumped or transported by the person in violation 

of this subsection in calendar year 1992. . .’’; and 

Section 325(d)(1) of the Emergency Planning and 

Community Right-to-Know Act, 42 U.S.C. 

11045(d)(1), refers to an exact civil penalty of 

$25,000 for each frivolous trade secret claim. 

4Current and historical CPI–U’s can be found on 

the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ website here: https:// 

www.bls.gov/cpi/tables/supplemental-files/ 

historical-cpi-u-202010.pdf. 

When the agency head (or designee) 

deems it appropriate to protect the 

government’s interests (for example, to 

prevent the statute of limitations 28 

U.S.C. 2415, from expiring), written 

demand may be preceded by other 

appropriate actions, including 

immediate referral for litigation. 

* * * * * 

Signed on the 18th day of December, 2020, 

in Washington, DC. 

Eugene Scalia, 

Secretary, Department of Labor. 

[FR Doc. 2020–28469 Filed 12–22–20; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4510–FN–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 19 

[FRL–10018–13–OECA] 

Civil Monetary Penalty Inflation 

Adjustment 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is promulgating this final 

rule to adjust the level of the maximum 

(and minimum) statutory civil monetary 

penalty amounts under the statutes the 

EPA administers. This action is 

mandated by the Federal Civil Penalties 

Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990, as 

amended through the Federal Civil 

Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act 

Improvements Act of 2015 (‘‘the 2015 

Act’’). The 2015 Act prescribes a 

formula for annually adjusting the 

statutory maximum (and minimum) 

amount of civil monetary penalties to 

reflect inflation, maintain the deterrent 

effect of statutory civil monetary 

penalties, and promote compliance with 

the law. The rule does not establish 

specific civil monetary penalty amounts 

the EPA may seek in particular cases, as 

appropriate given the facts of particular 

cases and applicable agency penalty 

policies. The EPA’s civil penalty 

policies, which guide enforcement 

personnel on how to exercise the EPA’s 

discretion within statutory penalty 

authorities, take into account a number 

of fact-specific considerations, e.g., the 

seriousness of the violation, the 

violator’s good faith efforts to comply, 

any economic benefit gained by the 

violator as a result of its noncompliance, 

and a violator’s ability to pay. 

DATES: This final rule is effective 

December 23, 2020. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

David Smith-Watts, Office of Civil 

Enforcement, Office of Enforcement and 

Compliance Assurance, Mail Code 

2241A, Environmental Protection 

Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue 

NW, Washington, DC 20460, telephone 

number: (202) 564–4083; smithwatts.david@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

Since 1996, Federal agencies have 

been required to issue regulations 

adjusting for inflation the statutory civil 

monetary penalties 1 that can be 

imposed under the laws administered 

by that agency. The Federal Civil 

Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 

1990, as amended by the Debt 

Collection Improvement Act of 1996 

(DCIA), required agencies to review 

their statutory civil monetary penalties 

every four years, and to adjust the 

statutory civil monetary penalty 

amounts for inflation if the increase met 

the DCIA’s adjustment methodology. In 

accordance with the DCIA, the EPA 

reviewed and, as appropriate, adjusted 

the civil monetary penalty levels under 

each of the statutes the agency 

implements in 1996 (61 FR 69360), 2004 

(69 FR 7121), 2008 (73 FR 75340), and 

2013 (78 FR 66643). 

The 2015 Act 2 required each Federal 

agency to adjust the level of statutory 

civil monetary penalties under the laws 

implemented by that agency with an 

initial ‘‘catch-up’’ adjustment through 

an interim final rulemaking. The 2015 

Act also required Federal agencies, 

beginning on January 15, 2017, to make 

subsequent annual adjustments for 

inflation. Section 4 of the 2015 Act 

requires each Federal agency to publish 

these adjustments by January 15 of each 

year. The purpose of the 2015 Act is to 

maintain the deterrent effect of civil 

monetary penalties by translating 

originally enacted statutory civil penalty 

amounts to today’s dollars and rounding 

statutory civil penalties to the nearest 

dollar. 

As required by the 2015 Act, the EPA 

issued a catch-up rule on July 1, 2016, 

which was effective August 1, 2016 (81 

FR 43091). The EPA has made four 

annual adjustments since then: On 

January 12, 2017, effective on January 

15, 2017 (82 FR 3633); on January 10, 

2018, effective on January 15, 2018 (83 

FR 1190); on February 6, 2019, effective 

February 6, 2019 (84 FR 2056), and 

issued a subsequent correction on 

February 25, 2019 (84 FR 5955); and on 

January 13, 2020, effective the same day 

(85 FR 1751). This rule implements the 

fifth annual adjustment mandated by 

the 2015 Act. 

The 2015 Act provides a formula for 

calculating the adjustments. Each 

statutory maximum and minimum 3

civil monetary penalty as currently 

adjusted is multiplied by the cost-ofliving adjustment multiplier, which is 

the percentage by which the Consumer 

Price Index for all Urban Consumers 

(CPI–U) for the month of October 2020 

exceeds the CPI–U for the month of 

October 2019.4

With this rule, the new statutory 

maximum and minimum penalty levels 

listed in the third column of Table 1 of 

40 CFR 19.4 will apply to all civil 

monetary penalties assessed on or after 

December 23, 2020, for violations that 

occurred after November 2, 2015, the 

date the 2015 Act was enacted. The 

former maximum and minimum 

statutory civil monetary penalty levels, 

which are in the fourth column of Table 

1 to 40 CFR 19.4, will now apply only 

to violations that occurred after 

November 2, 2015, where the penalties 

were assessed on or after January 13, 

2020, but before December 23, 2020. 

The statutory civil monetary penalty 

levels that apply to violations that 

occurred on or before November 2, 

2015, are codified at Table 2 to 40 CFR 

19.4. The fifth column of Table 1 and 

the seventh column of Table 2 display 

the statutory civil monetary penalty 

levels as originally enacted. 

The formula for determining the costof-living or inflation adjustment to 


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