This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains regulatory documents having general

applicability and legal effect, most of which

are keyed to and codified in the Code of

Federal Regulations, which is published under

50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.

The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by

the Superintendent of Documents.

Rules and Regulations Federal Register

7797 

Vol. 86, No. 20 

Tuesday, February 2, 2021 

MERIT SYSTEMS PROTECTION 

BOARD 

5 CFR Part 1201 

Civil Monetary Penalty Inflation 

Adjustment 

AGENCY: Merit Systems Protection 

Board. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: This final rule adjusts the 

level of civil monetary penalties (CMPs) 

in regulations maintained and enforced 

by the Merit Systems Protection Board 

(MSPB) with an annual adjustment 

under the Federal Civil Penalties 

Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements 

Act of 2015 (the 2015 Act) and Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) 

guidance. 

DATES: This final rule is effective on 

February 2, 2021. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jennifer Everling, Acting Clerk of the 

Board, Merit Systems Protection Board, 

1615 M Street NW, Washington, DC 

20419; Phone: (202) 653–7200; Fax: 

(202) 653–7130; or email: mspb@

mspb.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

The Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

Adjustment Act of 1990 (the 1990 Act), 

Public Law 101–410, provides for the 

regular evaluation of CMPs by Federal 

agencies. Periodic inflationary 

adjustments of CMPs ensure that the 

consequences of statutory violations 

adequately reflect the gravity of such 

offenses and that CMPs are properly 

accounted for and collected by the 

Federal Government. In April 1996, the 

1990 Act was amended by the Debt 

Collection Improvement Act of 1996 

(the 1996 Act), Public Law 104–134, 

requiring Federal agencies to adjust 

their CMPs at least once every four 

years. However, because inflationary 

adjustments to CMPs were statutorily 

capped at ten percent of the maximum 

penalty amount, but only required to be 

calculated every four years, CMPs in 

many cases did not correspond with the 

true measure of inflation over the 

preceding four-year period, leading to a 

decline in the real value of the penalty. 

To remedy this decline, the 2015 Act 

(section 701 of Pub. L. 114–74) requires 

agencies to adjust CMP amounts with 

annual inflationary adjustments through 

a rulemaking using a methodology 

mandated by the legislation. The 

purpose of these adjustments is to 

maintain the deterrent effect of civil 

penalties. 

A civil monetary penalty is ‘‘any 

penalty, fine, or other sanction’’ that: (1) 

‘‘is for a specific amount’’ or ‘‘has a 

maximum amount’’ under Federal law; 

and (2) a Federal agency assesses or 

enforces ‘‘pursuant to an administrative 

proceeding or a civil action in the 

Federal courts.’’ 28 U.S.C. 2461 note. 

The MSPB is authorized to assess 

CMPs pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 1215(a)(3) 

and 5 U.S.C. 7326 in disciplinary 

actions brought by the Special Counsel. 

The corresponding MSPB regulation for 

both CMPs is 5 CFR 1201.126(a). As 

required by the 2015 Act, and pursuant 

to guidance issued by the OMB, the 

MSPB is now making an annual 

adjustment for 2021, according to the 

prescribed formulas. 

II. Calculation of Adjustment 

The CMP listed in 5 U.S.C. 1215(a)(3) 

was established in 1978 with the 

enactment of the Civil Service Reform 

Act of 1978 (CSRA), Public Law 95–454, 

section 202(a), 92 Stat. 1121–30 (Oct. 

13, 1978), and originally codified at 5 

U.S.C. 1207(b). That CMP was last 

amended by section 106 of the 

Whistleblower Protection Enhancement 

Act of 2012, Public Law 112–199, 12 

Stat. 1468 (Nov. 27, 2012), now codified 

at 5 U.S.C. 1215(a)(3), which provided 

for a CMP ‘‘not to exceed $1,000.’’ The 

CMP authorized in 5 U.S.C. 7326 was 

established in 2012 by section 4 of the 

Hatch Act Modernization Act of 2012 

(Hatch Act), Public Law 112–230, 126 

Stat. 1617 (Dec. 28, 2012), which 

provided for a CMP ‘‘not to exceed 

$1,000.’’ On March 4, 2020, the MSPB 

issued a final rule which increased the 

maximum CMP allowed under both 5 

U.S.C. 1215(a)(3) and 5 U.S.C. 7326 to 

$1,112 for the year 2020. See 85 FR 

12723 (Mar. 4, 2020). This increase 

reflected the annual increase for the 

year 2020 mandated by the 2015 Act. 

On December 23, 2020, OMB issued 

guidance on calculating the annual 

inflationary adjustment for 2021. See 

Memorandum from Russell T. Vought, 

Dir., OMB, to Heads of Executive 

Departments and Agencies re: 

Implementation of Penalty Inflation 

Adjustments for 2021, Pursuant to the 

Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 

2015, M–21–10 (Dec. 23, 2020). Therein, 

OMB notified agencies that the annual 

adjustment multiplier for 2021, based 

on the Consumer Price Index for All 

Urban Consumers (CPI–U), is 1.01182 

and that the 2021 annual adjustment 

amount is obtained by multiplying the 

2020 penalty amount by the 2021 

annual adjustment multiplier, and 

rounding to the nearest dollar. 

Therefore, the new maximum penalty 

under the CSRA and the Hatch Act is 

$1,112 × 1.01182 = $1,125.14, which 

rounds to $1,125. 

III. Effective Date of Penalties 

The revised CMP amounts will go into 

effect on February 2, 2021. All 

violations for which CMPs are assessed 

after the effective date of this rule will 

be assessed at the adjusted penalty level 

regardless of whether the violation 

occurred before the effective date. 

IV. Procedural Requirements 

A. Administrative Procedure Act 

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b), the MSPB 

has determined that good cause exists 

for waiving the general notice of 

proposed rulemaking and public 

comment procedures as to these 

technical amendments. The notice and 

comment procedures are being waived 

because Congress has specifically 

exempted agencies from these 

requirements when implementing the 

2015 Act. The 2015 Act explicitly 

requires the agency to make subsequent 

annual adjustments notwithstanding 5 

U.S.C. 553, the section of the 

Administrative Procedure Act that 

normally requires agencies to engage in 

notice and comment. It is also in the 

public interest that the adjusted rates for 

CMPs under the CSRA and the Hatch 

Act become effective as soon as possible 

to maintain their effective deterrent 

effect. 


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7798 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 20 / Tuesday, February 2, 2021 / Rules and Regulations 

B. Regulatory Impact Analysis: E.O. 

12866 

The MSPB has determined that this is 

not a significant regulatory action under 

E.O. 12866. Therefore, no regulatory 

impact analysis is required. 

C. Regulatory Flexibility Act 

The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) 

requires an agency to prepare a 

regulatory flexibility analysis for rules 

unless the agency certifies that the rule 

will not have a significant economic 

impact on a substantial number of small 

entities. The RFA applies only to rules 

for which an agency is required to first 

publish a proposed rule. See 5 U.S.C. 

603(a) and 604(a). As discussed above, 

the 2015 Act does not require agencies 

to first publish a proposed rule when 

adjusting CMPs within their 

jurisdiction. Thus, the RFA does not 

apply to this final rule. 

D. Paperwork Reduction Act 

This document does not contain 

information collection requirements 

subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act 

of 1995, Public Law 104–13 (44 U.S.C. 

Chapter 35). 

E. Congressional Review Act 

Pursuant to the Congressional Review 

Act (5 U.S.C. 801, et seq.), the Office of 

Information and Regulatory Affairs 

designated this rule as not a ‘‘major 

rule’’ as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2). 

List of Subjects in 5 CFR Part 1201 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Civil rights, Government 

employees. 

For the reasons set forth above, 5 CFR 

part 1201 is amended as follows: 

PART 1201—PRACTICES AND 

PROCEDURES 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 1201 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 1204, 1305, and 7701, 

and 38 U.S.C. 4331, unless otherwise noted. 

§ 1201.126 [Amended] 

■ 2. Section 1201.126 is amended in 

paragraph (a) by removing ‘‘$1,112’’ and 

adding in its place ‘‘$1,125’’. 

Jennifer Everling, 

Acting Clerk of the Board. 

Editorial Note: This document was 

received for publication by the Office of the 

Federal Register on January 12, 2021. 

[FR Doc. 2021–00932 Filed 2–1–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7400–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

10 CFR Part 431 

[EERE–2017–BT–TP–0047] 

RIN 1904–AE18 

Energy Conservation Program: Test 

Procedures for Small Electric Motors 

and Electric Motors 

AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and 

Renewable Energy, Department of 

Energy. 

ACTION: Final rule; delay of effective 

date. 

SUMMARY: This document delays the 

effective date of a recently published 

final rule amending the test procedures 

for small electric motors and electric 

motors. DOE also seeks comment on any 

further delay of the effective date, 

including the impacts of such delay, as 

well comment on the legal, factual, or 

policy issues raised by the rule. 

DATES: The effective dates of the final 

rule published January 4, 2021, at 86 FR 

4, and the accompanying correction 

published January 15, 2021, at 86 FR 

3747, are delayed to March 21, 2021. 

Written comments and information will 

be accepted on or before March 4, 2021. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

Jeremy Dommu, U.S. Department of 

Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and 

Renewable Energy, Building 

Technologies Office, EE–2J, 1000 

Independence Avenue SW, Washington, 

DC 20585–0121. Telephone: (202) 586– 

9870. Email: 

ApplianceStandardsQuestions@

ee.doe.gov. 

Mr. Michael Kido, U.S. Department of 

Energy, Office of the General Counsel, 

GC–33, 1000 Independence Ave. SW, 

Washington, DC 20585–0121. Phone: 

(202) 586–8145. Email: Michael.Kido@

hq.doe.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On 

January 20, 2021, the Assistant to the 

President and Chief of Staff (‘‘Chief of 

Staff’’) issued a memorandum outlining 

the President’s plan for managing the 

Federal regulatory process at the outset 

of the new Administration. In 

implementation of one of the measures 

directed by that memorandum, the 

United States Department of Energy 

(‘‘DOE’’) hereby temporarily postpones 

the effective date of its final rule 

amending the test procedures for small 

electric motors and electric motors 

published in the Federal Register on 

January 4, 2021 (86 FR 4) and an 

accompanying correction document 

published in the Federal Register on 

January 15, 2021 (86 FR 3747). The 

January 4, 2021 rule amends the test 

procedures for measuring the energy 

efficiency of small electric motors and 

electric motors. Consistent with the 

memorandum, DOE is temporarily 

postponing the effective date of the final 

rule by 60 days, starting from January 

20, 2021. The temporary 60-day delay in 

effective date is necessary to give DOE 

officials the opportunity for further 

review and consideration of new 

regulations, consistent with the Chief of 

Staff’s memorandum of January 20, 

2021. 

To the extent that 5 U.S.C. 553 applies 

to this action, it is exempt from notice 

and comment because it constitutes a 

rule of procedure under 5 U.S.C. 

553(b)(A). Alternatively, DOE’s 

implementation of this action without 

opportunity for public comment, 

effective immediately upon publication 

in the Federal Register, is based on the 

good cause exceptions in 5 U.S.C. 

553(b)(B) and 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3). 

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), DOE has 

determined that good cause exists to 

forego the requirement to provide prior 

notice and an opportunity for public 

comment thereon for this rule as such 

procedures would be impracticable, 

unnecessary and contrary to the public 

interest. DOE is temporarily postponing 

for 60 days the effective date of this 

regulation pursuant to the previouslynoted memorandum of the Chief of Staff 

and is exercising no discretion in 

implementing this specific provision of 

the memorandum. As a result, seeking 

public comment on this delay is 

unnecessary and contrary to the public 

interest. For these same reasons, DOE 

finds good cause to waive the 30-day 

delay in effective date provided for in 5 

U.S.C. 553(d). DOE is, however, seeking 

comment on any further delay of the 

effective date, including the impacts of 

such delay, as well comment on the 

legal, factual, or policy issues raised by 

the rule. 

Signing Authority 

This document of the Department of 

Energy was signed on January 26, 2021, 

by John T. Lucas, Acting General 

Counsel, Office of the General Counsel, 

pursuant to delegated authority from the 

Acting Secretary of Energy. That 

document with the original signature 

and date is maintained by DOE. For 

administrative purposes only, and in 

compliance with requirements of the 

Office of the Federal Register, the 

undersigned DOE Federal Register 

Liaison Officer has been authorized to 

sign and submit the document in 

electronic format for publication, as an 

official document of the Department of 

Energy. This administrative process in 


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