Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 10 / Tuesday, January 16, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 2073 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 

U.S.C., Chapter 35) 

This rulemaking will not impose any 

‘‘information collection’’ requirements 

under the Paperwork Reduction Act. 

Under the act, information collection 

means the obtaining or disclosure of 

facts or opinions by or for an agency by 

10 or more nonfederal persons. 

Unfunded Mandates Act of 1995 

(Section 202, Pub. L. 104–4) 

This rulemaking does not contain a 

Federal mandate that will result in the 

expenditure by State, local, and tribal 

governments, in the aggregate, or by the 

private sector of $100 million or more 

in any one year. 

National Environmental Policy Act of 

1969 (5 U.S.C. 804) 

The final rule will not have 

significant effect on the human 

environment. 

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act of 1996 (Sec. 804, Pub. L. 

104–121) 

This final rule would not be a major 

rule as defined in section 804 of the 

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act of 1996. This final rule will 

not result in an annual effect on the 

economy of $100,000,000 or more, a 

major increase in costs or prices, 

significant adverse effects on 

competition, employment, investment, 

productivity, innovation, or on the 

ability of United States-based 

companies to compete with foreign 

based companies in domestic and 

export markets. 

E-Government Act of 2002 (44 U.S.C. 

3504) 

Section 206 of the E-Government Act 

requires agencies, to the extent 

practicable, to ensure that all 

information about that agency required 

to be published in the Federal Register 

is also published on a publicly 

accessible website. All information 

about the NEA required to be published 

in the Federal Register may be accessed 

at www.arts.gov. This Act also requires 

agencies to accept public comments on 

their rules ‘‘by electronic means.’’ See 

heading ‘‘Public Participation’’ for 

directions on electronic submission of 

public comments on this final rule. Finally, the E-Government Act 

requires, to the extent practicable, that 

agencies ensure that a publicly 

accessible Federal Government website 

contains electronic dockets for 

rulemakings under the Administrative 

Procedure Act of 1946 (5 U.S.C. 551 et 

seq.). Under this Act, an electronic 

docket consists of all submissions under 

section 553(c) of title 5, United States 

Code; and all other materials that by 

agency rule or practice are included in 

the rulemaking docket under section 

553(c) of title 5, United States Code, 

whether or not submitted electronically. 

The website https://

www.regulations.gov contains electronic 

dockets for the NEA’s rulemakings 

under the Administrative Procedure Act 

of 1946. 

Plain Writing Act of 2010 (5 U.S.C. 301) 

Under this Act, the term ‘‘plain 

writing’’ means writing that is clear, 

concise, well-organized, and follows 

other best practices appropriate to the 

subject or field and intended audience. 

To ensure that this rule has been written 

in plain and clear language so that it can 

be used and understood by the public, 

the NEA has modeled the language of 

this rule on the Federal Plain Language 

Guidelines. 

Public Participation 

The NEA encourages public 

participation by ensuring its 

documentation is understandable by the 

general public, and has written this final 

rule in compliance with E.O. 13563 by 

ensuring its accessibility, consistency, 

simplicity of language, and overall 

comprehensibility. 

List of Subjects in 45 CFR Parts 1149 

and 1158 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Government contracts, Grant 

programs, Loan programs, Lobbying, 

Penalties. 

For the reasons stated in the 

preamble, the NEA amends 45 CFR 

chapter XI, subchapter B, as follows: 

PART 1149—PROGRAM FRAUD CIVIL 

REMEDIES ACT REGULATIONS 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 1149 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 5 U.S.C. App. 8G(a)(2); 20 

U.S.C. 959; 28 U.S.C. 2461 note; 31 U.S.C. 

3801–3812. 

■ 2. Revise § 1149.9(a)(1) to read as 

follows: 

§ 1149.9 What civil penalties and 

assessments may I be subjected to? 

(a) * * * 

(1) A civil penalty of not more than 

$10,957 for each false, fictitious or 

fraudulent statement or claim; and 

* * * * * 

PART 1158—NEW RESTRICTIONS ON 

LOBBYING 

■ 3. The authority citation for part 1158 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 20 U.S.C. 959; 28 U.S.C. 2461; 

31 U.S.C. 1352. 

■ 4. Revise § 1158.400(a), (b), and (e) to 

read as follows: 

§ 1158.400 Penalties. 

(a) Any person who makes an 

expenditure prohibited herein shall be 

subject to a civil penalty of not less than 

$19,639 and not more than $196,387 for 

each such expenditure. 

(b) Any person who fails to file or 

amend the disclosure form (see 

appendix B of this part) to be filed or 

amended if required herein, shall be 

subject to a civil penalty of not less than 

$19,639 and not more than $196,387 for 

each such failure. 

* * * * * 

(e) First offenders under paragraph (a) 

or (b) of this section shall be subject to 

a civil penalty of $19,639, absent 

aggravating circumstances. Second and 

subsequent offenses by persons shall be 

subject to an appropriate civil penalty 

between $19,639 and $196,387, as 

determined by the agency head or his or 

her designee. 

* * * * * 

Appendix A to Part 1158 [Amended] 

■ 5. Amend appendix A to part 1158 by: 

■ a. Removing ‘‘$19,246’’ and adding in 

its place ‘‘$19,639’’ each place it 

appears. 

■ b. Removing ‘‘$192,459’’ and adding 

in its place ‘‘$196,387’’ each place it 

appears. 

Dated: January 9, 2018. 

Jillian Miller, 

Director of Guidelines and Panel Operations, 

Administrative Services, National 

Endowment for the Arts. 

[FR Doc. 2018–00537 Filed 1–12–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE P 

CORPORATION FOR NATIONAL AND 

COMMUNITY SERVICE 

45 CFR Parts 1230 and 2554 

RIN 3045–AA68 

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. 


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2074 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 10 / Tuesday, January 16, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 

DATES: Effective date: This rule is 

effective January 15, 2018. 

Comment due date: Technical 

comments may be submitted until 

February 15, 2018. 

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 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. Eastern 

Time, Monday through Friday. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

The Corporation for National and 

Community Service (CNCS) is a federal 

agency that engages more than five 

million 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 15, 2017, OMB Memo 

for the Heads of Executive Agencies and 

Departments, M–18–03, Implementation 

of Penalty Inflation Adjustments for 

2018, 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 2018, 

based on the CPI–U for the month of 

October 2017, not seasonally adjusted, 

is 1.02041. 

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 $19,246 to $192,459. Using 

the 2018 multiplier, the new range of 

possible civil monetary penalties is from 

$19,639 to $196,387. 

The Program Fraud Civil Remedies 

Act of 1986 (Pub. L. 99–509) civil 

monetary penalty has an upper limit of 

$10,957. Using the 2018 multiplier, the 

new upper limit of the civil monetary 

penalty is $11,181. 

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 ‘‘$19,246 to $192,459’’ to 

‘‘$19,639 to $196,387.’’ The civil 

monetary penalties for the Program 

Fraud Civil Remedies Act of 1986 

increase from ‘‘up to $10,957’’ to ‘‘up to 

$11,181.’’ 

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 February 15, 2018. 

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, 2018. 

The adjusted civil penalty amounts 

apply to civil penalties assessed on or 

after January 15, 2018, 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. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 10 / Tuesday, January 16, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 2075 

§ 1230.400 [Amended] 

■ 2. Amend § 1230.400 by: 

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

removing ‘‘$19,246’’ and adding in its 

place ‘‘$19,639’’ each place it appears. 

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

removing ‘‘$192,459’’ and adding in its 

place ‘‘$196,387’’ each place it appears. 

Appendix A to Part 1230 [Amended] 

■ 3. Amend appendix A to part 1230 by: 

■ a. Removing ‘‘$19,246’’ and adding in 

its place ‘‘$19,639’’ each place it 

appears. 

■ b. Removing ‘‘$192,459’’ and adding 

in its place ‘‘$196,387’’ each place it 

appears. 

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 by removing 

‘‘$10,957’’ in paragraph (b) and adding 

in its place ‘‘$11,181.’’ 

Dated: January 5, 2018. 

Tim Noelker, 

General Counsel. 

[FR Doc. 2018–00558 Filed 1–12–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6050–28–P 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMISSION 

47 CFR Part 54 

[WC Docket Nos. 17–287, 11–42, 09–197; 

FCC 17–155] 

Bridging the Digital Divide for LowIncome Consumers, Lifeline and Link 

Up Reform and Modernization, 

Telecommunications Carriers Eligible 

for Universal Service Support 

AGENCY: Federal Communications 

Commission. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal 

Communications Commission 

(Commission) takes a fresh look at the 

Commission’s Lifeline program and 

makes changes to the Lifeline rules to 

ensure that the program can more 

effectively and efficiently help close the 

digital divide for low-income 

consumers, while minimizing the 

contributions burden on ratepayers by 

tackling waste, fraud, and abuse. 

DATES: Effective February 15, 2018, 

except for § 54.411, which will become 

effective March 19, 2018, and 

§§ 54.403(a)(3), 54.413, and 54.414 

which contain information collection 

requirements that have not been 

approved by OMB. The Federal 

Communications Commission will 

publish a document in the Federal 

Register announcing the effective date 

of those rules awaiting OMB approval. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jodie Griffin, Wireline Competition 

Bureau, (202) 418–7400 or TTY: (202) 

418–0484. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a 

summary of the Commission’s Fourth 

Report and Order, Order on 

Reconsideration, and Memorandum 

Opinion and Order in WC Docket Nos. 

17–287, 11–42, 09–197; FCC 17–155, 

adopted on November 16, 2017 and 

released on December 1, 2017. The full 

text of this document is available for 

public inspection during regular 

business hours in the FCC Reference 

Center, Room CY–A257, 445 12th Street 

SW, Washington, DC 20554 or at the 

following internet address: http://

transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_

Business/2017/db1201/FCC-17- 

155A1.pdf. The Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking (NPRM) and Notice of 

Inquiry (NOI) that was adopted 

concurrently with the Fourth Report 

and Order, Order on Reconsideration, 

Memorandum Opinion and Order are 

published elsewhere in this issue of the 

Federal Register. 

I. Introduction 

1. This Fourth Report and Order, 

Order on Reconsideration, and 

Memorandum Opinion and Order takes 

a series of steps to address ongoing areas 

of concern in the Lifeline program to 

prevent waste, fraud, and abuse. 

Specifically, the Orders target enhanced 

Lifeline support to residents of rural 

areas on Tribal lands, establish mapping 

resources to identify rural Tribal lands, 

require independent certification of 

residency on rural Tribal lands, and 

direct enhanced support to facilitiesbased providers. In addition, this 

document makes changes to increase 

Lifeline benefit portability by 

eliminating the port freezes for voice 

and broadband internet access services. 

This document also clarifies that 

‘‘premium Wi-Fi’’ and other similar 

networks of Wi-Fi-delivered broadband 

internet access service do not qualify as 

mobile broadband under the Lifeline 

program rules. Together, the Orders 

target enhanced Lifeline support for 

Tribal lands to support the deployment 

of modern communications networks, 

promote consumer choice within the 

program, and remove uncertainty and 

streamline our rules regarding the 

application of Lifeline support and 

eligibility for Lifeline reimbursement. 

II. Fourth Report and Order 

2. In this Fourth Report and Order, 

the Commission adopts several reforms 

to our Tribal Lifeline policies to 

increase the availability and 

affordability of high-quality 

communications services on Tribal 

lands. The Commission first targets 

enhanced Lifeline support on Tribal 

lands to residents of rural areas on 

Tribal lands. Since 2000, the Lifeline 

and Link Up programs have provided an 

enhanced subsidy of up to an additional 

$25 per month for service provided to 

qualified residents of Tribal lands, and 

a Link Up reduction of up to $100 for 

the cost to initiate supported service for 

qualifying residents of Tribal lands. 

This targeted support is in recognition 

of not only the low income levels but 

also the particularly poor connectivity 

on many Tribal lands. When it adopted 

the enhanced Lifeline Tribal subsidy, 

the Commission noted that the 

‘‘unavailability or unaffordability of 

telecommunications service on Tribal 

lands is at odds with our statutory goal 

of ensuring access to such services to 

‘[c]onsumers in all regions of the 

Nation, including low-income 

consumers,’’’ and explained that the 

added Lifeline and Link Up support 

would help lead to the deployment of 

more robust networks. While the 

Commission provided the enhanced 

support as a discount on services, that 

support was focused to most efficiently 

encourage ‘‘investment and 

deployment’’ in facilities, especially 

since all Lifeline providers in the 

program at the time were facilitiesbased. Because of an overly-broad 

definition of the geographic areas 

eligible for the enhanced subsidy, 

however, many areas where this 

enhanced subsidy is currently available 

are not lacking in either voice or 

broadband networks. To remedy this, 

the Commission refines its approach to 

target enhanced Lifeline support to 

residents of rural areas on Tribal lands. 

Focusing the enhanced subsidy for 

Tribal lands on rural areas is consistent 

with the enhanced subsidy’s purpose 

and will ensure that the Fund is better 

directed toward the residents of Tribal 

lands who typically have the least 

choice for communications services. 

3. The Commission believes that 

targeting enhanced support toward 

rural, facilities-based providers is 

consistent with the intent of the 2000 

Tribal Order, 65 FR 47883, August 4, 

2000. While the 2000 Tribal Order 

referenced reducing the costs of 


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