1832 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 8 / Thursday, January 11, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

GENERAL SERVICES 

ADMINISTRATION 

41 CFR Part 105–70 

[FPMR Case 2024–01; Docket No. GSA– 

FPMR–2023–0027; Sequence No. 1] 

RIN 3090–AK77 

Civil Monetary Penalties Inflation 

Adjustment 

AGENCY: The Office of the General 

Counsel, General Services 

Administration. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

Adjustment Act of 1990, as amended by 

the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 

1996, and further amended by the 

Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

Adjustment Act Improvement Act of 

2015, this final rule applies the inflation 

adjustments for GSA’s civil monetary 

penalties. 

DATES: Effective January 15, 2024. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

Aaron Pound, Assistant General 

Counsel, General Law Division (LG), 

General Services Administration, 1800 F 

Street NW, Washington, DC 20405. 

Telephone Number 202–501–1460. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. The Debt Collection Improvement Act 

of 1996 

To maintain the remedial impact of 

civil monetary penalties (CMPs) and to 

promote compliance with the law, the 

Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

Adjustment Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 101– 

410) was amended by the Debt 

Collection Improvement Act of 1996 

(Pub. L. 104–134) and the Federal Civil 

Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act 

Improvement Act of 2015 (Sec. 701 of 

Pub. L. 114–74) to require Federal 

agencies to regularly adjust certain 

CMPs for inflation. As amended, the law 

requires each agency to make an initial 

inflationary adjustment for all 

applicable CMPs, and to make further 

adjustments at least once every year 

thereafter for these penalty amounts. 

The Debt Collection Improvement Act of 

1996 further stipulates that any 

resulting increases in a CMP due to the 

calculated inflation adjustments shall 

apply only to violations which occur 

after the date the increase takes effect, 

i.e., thirty (30) days after date of 

publication in the Federal Register. 

Pursuant to the 2015 Act, agencies are 

required to adjust the level of the CMP 

with an initial ‘‘fix‘‘, and make 

subsequent annual adjustments for 

inflation. Catch up adjustments are 

based on the percent change between 

the Consumer Price Index for Urban 

Consumers (CPI–U) for the month of 

October for the year of the previous 

adjustment, and the October 2015 CPI– 

U. Annual inflation adjustments will be 

based on the percent change between 

the October CPI–U preceding the date of 

adjustment and the prior year’s October 

CPI–U. 

II. The Program Fraud Civil Remedies 

Act of 1986 

Sections 6103 and 6104 of the 

Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 

1986 (Pub. L. 99–509) set forth the 

Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act of 

1986 (PFCRA). Specifically, this statute 

imposes a CMP and an assessment 

against any person who, with 

knowledge or reason to know, makes, 

submits, or presents a false, fictitious, or 

fraudulent claim or statement to the 

Government. The General Services 

Administration’s regulations, published 

in the Federal Register (61 FR 246, 

December 20, 1996) and codified at 41 

CFR part 105–70, currently set forth a 

CMP of up to $13,000 for each false 

claim or statement made to the agency. 

Based on the penalty amount inflation 

factor calculation, derived from 

originally dividing the October 2022 CPI 

by the October 2023 CPI and making the 

CPI-based annual adjustment thereafter, 

after rounding, we are adjusting the 

maximum penalty amount for this CMP 

to $13,400 for each false claim or 

statement made to the agency. 

III. Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking 

In developing this final rule, we are 

waiving the usual notice of proposed 

rulemaking, public comment, and 

effective date procedures set forth in the 

Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. 

553 (APA). The APA, at 5 U.S.C. 559, 

provides that a subsequent statute may 

supersede the APA if it does so 

expressly. This rulemaking effectuates 

the statutory requirements set forth in 

section 4(b)(2) of the 2015 Act, which 

provides that each agency shall make 

the annual inflation adjustments 

‘‘notwithstanding section 553’’ of the 

APA. Furthermore, the APA provides an 

exception to the usual notice of 

proposed rulemaking, public comment, 

and effective date procedures when an 

agency finds there is good cause for 

dispensing with such procedures on the 

basis that they are impracticable, 

unnecessary, or contrary to the public 

interest. We have determined that, 

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

553(d)(3), good cause exists for 

dispensing with these procedures. The 

2015 Act provides a non-discretionary 

cost-of-living formula for making the 

annual adjustment to the civil monetary 

penalties. GSA merely performs the 

ministerial task of calculating the 

amount of the adjustments. Therefore, 

under the clear terms of the APA and 

the language of the 2015 Act, this rule 

is not subject to notice, an opportunity 

for public comment, or a delayed 

effective date, and will be final and 

effective on January 15, 2024. 

IV. Executive Orders 12866 and 13563 

Executive Orders (E.O.s) 12866 and 

13563 direct agencies to assess all costs 

and benefits of available regulatory 

alternatives and, if regulation is 

necessary, to select regulatory 

approaches that maximize net benefits 

(including potential economic, 

environmental, public health and safety 

effects, distributive impacts, and 

equity). E.O. 13563 emphasizes the 

importance of quantifying both costs 

and benefits, of reducing costs, of 

harmonizing rules, and of promoting 

flexibility. The Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) has reviewed this 

final rule in accordance with the 

provisions of E.O. 12866 and has 

determined that it does not meet the 

criteria for a significant regulatory 

action and thus was not subject to 

review under Section 6(b) of E.O. 12866. 

As indicated above, the provisions 

contained in this final rulemaking set 

forth the inflation adjustments in 

compliance with the Federal Civil 

Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 

1990, as amended, for specific 

applicable CMPs. The great majority of 

individuals, organizations and entities 

addressed through these regulations do 

not engage in such prohibited conduct, 

and as a result, we believe that any 

aggregate economic impact of these 

revised regulations will be minimal, 

affecting only those limited few who 

may engage in prohibited conduct in 

violation of the statute. As such, this 

final rule and the inflation adjustment 

contained therein should have no effect 

on Federal or state expenditures. 

V. Congressional Review Act 

The agency and the Office of 

Information and Regulatory Affairs, 

OMB have determined that this rule is 

not a major rule under 5 U.S.C. 804(2). 

Subtitle E of the Small Business 

Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 

1996 (codified at 5 U.S.C. 801–808), also 

known as the Congressional Review Act 

or CRA, generally provides that before a 

rule may take effect, the agency 

promulgating the rule must submit a 

rule report, which includes a copy of 

the rule, to each House of the Congress 

and to the Comptroller General of the 

United States. GSA will submit a report 


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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 8 / Thursday, January 11, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 1833 

containing this rule and other required 

information to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. 

House of Representatives, and the 

Comptroller General of the United 

States. 

VI. 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 explained above, 

GSA is not required to first publish a 

proposed rule here. Thus, the RFA does 

not apply to this final rule. 

VII. Paperwork Reduction Act 

This final rule imposes no new 

reporting or recordkeeping requirements 

necessitating clearance by OMB. 

List of Subjects in 41 CFR Part 105–70 

Administrative hearing, Claims, 

Program fraud. 

Robin Carnahan, 

Administrator. 

Accordingly, 41 CFR part 105–70 is 

amended as set forth below: 

PART 105–70—IMPLEMENTATION OF 

THE PROGRAM FRAUD CIVIL 

REMEDIES ACT OF 1986 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 105– 

70 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 40 U.S.C. 121(c); 31 U.S.C. 

3809. 

§ 105–70.003 [Amended] 

■ 2. Amend § 105–70.003 by— 

■ a. Removing from paragraph (a)(1)(iv) 

the amount ‘‘13,000’’ and adding 

‘‘13,400’’ in its place; and 

■ b. Removing from paragraph (b)(1)(ii) 

the amount ‘‘13,000’’ and adding 

‘‘13,400’’ in its place. 

[FR Doc. 2024–00446 Filed 1–10–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6820–81–P 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMISSION 

47 CFR Part 54 

[WC Docket Nos. 10–90, 14–58, 09–197, 16– 

271; RM 11868; FCC 23–60; FR ID 196019] 

Connect America Fund 

AGENCY: Federal Communications 

Commission. 

ACTION: Final rule; announcement of 

effective date. 

SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal 

Communications Commission 

(Commission) announces that the Office 

of Management and Budget (OMB) has 

approved, for a period of three years, an 

information collection associated with 

the rules for Enhanced Alternative 

Connect America Cost Model (A–CAM) 

contained in the Commission’s 

Enhanced A–CAM Order (Order), WC 

Docket No. 10–90 et al., FCC 23–60. 

This document is consistent with the 

Order, which stated that the 

Commission would publish a document 

in the Federal Register announcing the 

effective date of the revised information 

collection requirements. 

DATES: The amendments to 

§ 54.308(e)(2) and (6) published at 88 FR 

55918, August 17, 2023, are effective 

January 11, 2024. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jesse Jachman, Wireline Competition 

Bureau at (202) 418–7400. For 

additional information concerning the 

Paperwork Reduction Act information 

collection requirements contact Nicole 

Ongele at (202) 418–2991 or via email 

at Nicole.Ongele@fcc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Commission submitted new information 

collection requirements for review and 

approval by OMB, as required by the 

Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 

1995, on November 22, 2023. OMB 

approved the new information 

collection requirements on January 2, 

2024. The information collection 

requirements are contained in the 

Commission’s Enhanced A–CAM Order, 

FCC 23–60, published at 88 FR 55918, 

August 17, 2023. The OMB Control 

Number is 3060–1319. The Commission 

publishes this document as an 

announcement of the effective date of 

the rules published on August 17, 2023. 

If you have any comments on the 

burden estimates listed in the following, 

or how the Commission can improve the 

collections and reduce any burdens 

caused thereby, please contact Nicole 

Ongele, Federal Communications 

Commission, 45 L Street NE, 

Washington, DC 20554. Please include 

the OMB Control Number, 3060–1319, 

in your correspondence. The 

Commission will also accept your 

comments via email at PRA@fcc.gov. To 

request materials in accessible formats 

for people with disabilities (Braille, 

large print, electronic files, audio 

format), send an email to fcc504@fcc.gov 

or call the Consumer and Governmental 

Affairs Bureau at (202) 418–0530. 

Synopsis 

As required by the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3507), 

the Commission is notifying the public 

that it received OMB approval on 

January 2, 2024, for the amendments to 

47 CFR 54.308(e)(2) and (6) published at 

88 FR 55918, August 17, 2023. 

Under 5 CFR part 1320, an agency 

may not conduct or sponsor a collection 

of information unless it displays a 

current, valid OMB Control Number. No 

person shall be subject to any penalty 

for failing to comply with a collection 

of information subject to the Paperwork 

Reduction Act that does not display a 

current, valid OMB Control Number. 

The OMB Control Number is 3060– 

1319. The foregoing notification is 

required by the Paperwork Reduction 

Act of 1995, Public Law 104–13, 

October 1, 1995, and 44 U.S.C. 3507. 

The total annual reporting burdens 

and costs for the respondents are as 

follows: 

OMB Control Number: 3060–1319. 

OMB Approval Date: January 2, 2024. 

OMB Expiration Date: January 31, 

2027. 

Title: Enhanced A–CAM 

Cybersecurity and Supply Chain Risk 

Management Plan Requirements. 

Form Number: N/A. 

Type of Review: New collection. 

Respondents: Business or other forprofit entities, and State, Local or Tribal 

governments. 

Number of Respondents and 

Responses: 450 respondents; 900 

responses. 

Estimated Time per Response: 10–50 

hours. 

Frequency of Response: One-time and 

on occasion reporting requirements. 

Obligation to Respond: Required to 

obtain or retain benefits. Statutory 

authority for this information collection 

is contained in 47 U.S.C. 154(i), 214, 

218–220, 254, 303(r), and 403. 

Total Annual Burden: 27,000 hours. 

Total Annual Cost: No Cost. 

Needs and Uses: On July 24, 2023, the 

Commission released the Enhanced A– 

CAM Order (Order), 88 FR 55918, 

August 17, 2023, WC Docket No. 10–90 

et al., FCC 23–60, which adopted a 

voluntary path for supporting the 

widespread deployment of 100/20 Mbps 

broadband service throughout the rural 

areas served by carriers currently 

receiving Alternative Connect America 

Cost Model (A–CAM) support and in 

areas served by rate-of-return carriers 

eligible to receive legacy support by the 

end of 2028. The Commission extended 

by 10 years beyond the remaining five 

years, for a total of 15 years, the term of 

support for electing carriers and set a 

methodology for determining support 

amounts for locations without 100/20 

Mbps broadband service within a 

potential budget of no more than $1.27 


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