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

1515 

Vol. 83, No. 9 

Friday, January 12, 2018 

1Adjustment of Civil Penalties for Inflation, 73 

FR 54,671 (Sept. 23, 2008); Adjustment of Civil 

Penalties for Inflation, 69 FR 62,393 (Oct. 26, 2004); 

Adjustment of Civil Penalties for Inflation; 

Miscellaneous Administrative Changes, 65 FR 

59,270 (Oct. 4, 2000); Adjustment of Civil Monetary 

Penalties for Inflation, 61 FR 53,554 (Oct. 11, 1996). 

An adjustment was not performed in 2012 because 

the FCPIAA at the time required agencies to round 

their CMP amounts to the nearest multiple of 

$1,000 or $10,000, depending on the size of the 

CMP amount, and the 2012 adjustments based on 

the statutory formula were small enough that no 

adjustment resulted. 

NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION 

10 CFR Parts 2 and 13 

[NRC–2016–0166] 

RIN 3150–AJ83 

Adjustment of Civil Penalties for 

Inflation for Fiscal Year 2018 

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission (NRC) is amending its 

regulations to adjust the maximum Civil 

Monetary Penalties (CMPs) it can assess 

under statutes enforced by the agency. 

These changes are mandated by the 

Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

Adjustment Act of 1990 (FCPIAA), as 

amended by the Federal Civil Penalties 

Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements 

Act of 2015 (2015 Improvements Act). 

The NRC is amending its regulations to 

adjust the maximum CMP for a violation 

of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as 

amended (AEA), or any regulation or 

order issued under the AEA from 

$285,057 to $290,875 per violation, per 

day. Additionally, the NRC is amending 

provisions concerning program fraud 

civil penalties by adjusting the 

maximum CMP under the Program 

Fraud Civil Remedies Act from $10,957 

to $11,181 for each false claim or 

statement. 

DATES: This final rule is effective on 

January 15, 2018. 

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID 

NRC–2016–0166 when contacting the 

NRC about the availability of 

information for this action. You may 

obtain publicly-available information 

related to this action by any of the 

following methods: 

• Federal Rulemaking website: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov and search 

for Docket ID NRC–2016–0166. Address 

questions about NRC dockets to Carol 

Gallagher; telephone: 301–415–3463; 

email: Carol.Gallagher@nrc.gov. For 

technical questions, contact the 

individual listed in the FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT section of this 

document. 

• NRC’s Agencywide Documents 

Access and Management System 

(ADAMS): You may obtain publiclyavailable documents online in the 

ADAMS Public Documents collection at 

http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/ 

adams.html. To begin the search, select 

‘‘ADAMS Public Documents’’ and then 

select ‘‘Begin Web-based ADAMS 

Search.’’ For problems with ADAMS, 

please contact the NRC’s Public 

Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 

1–800–397–4209, 301–415–4737, or by 

email to pdr.resource@nrc.gov. The 

ADAMS accession number for each 

document referenced (if it is available in 

ADAMS) is provided the first time that 

it is mentioned in the SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION section. 

• NRC’s PDR: You may examine and 

purchase copies of public documents at 

the NRC’s PDR, Room O1–F21, One 

White Flint North, 11555 Rockville 

Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Eric 

Michel, Office of the General Counsel, 

telephone: 301–415–0932, email: 

Eric.Michel2@nrc.gov, U.S. Nuclear 

Regulatory Commission, Washington, 

DC 20555–0001. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Table of Contents 

I. Background 

II. Discussion 

III. Rulemaking Procedure 

IV. Section-by-Section Analysis 

V. Regulatory Analysis 

VI. Regulatory Flexibility Act 

VII. Backfitting and Issue Finality 

VIII. Plain Writing 

IX. National Environmental Policy Act 

X. Paperwork Reduction Act 

XI. Congressional Review Act 

I. Background 

Congress passed the FCPIAA in 1990 

to allow for regular adjustment for 

inflation of CMPs, maintain the 

deterrent effect of such penalties and 

promote compliance with the law, and 

improve the collection of CMPs by the 

Federal government (Pub L. 101–410, 

104 Stat. 890; 28 U.S.C. 2461 note). 

Pursuant to this authority, and as 

amended by the Debt Collection 

Improvement Act of 1996 (Pub. L. 104– 

34, 110 Stat. 1321–373), the NRC 

increased via rulemaking the CMP 

amounts for violations of the AEA 

(codified at § 2.205 of title 10 of the 

Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR)) 

and Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act 

(codified at § 13.3) on four occasions 

between 1996 and 2008.1

On November 2, 2015, Congress 

amended the FCPIAA through the 2015 

Improvements Act (Sec. 701, Pub. L. 

114–74, 129 Stat. 599). The 2015 

Improvements Act required that the 

head of each agency perform an initial 

‘‘catch-up’’ adjustment via rulemaking, 

adjusting the CMPs enforced by that 

agency according to the percentage 

change in the Consumer Price Index 

(CPI) between the month of October 

2015 and the month of October of the 

calendar year when the CMP amount 

was last established by Congress. The 

NRC performed this catch-up 

rulemaking on July 1, 2016 (81 FR 

43019). 

The 2015 Improvements Act also 

requires that the head of each agency 

continue to adjust CMP amounts, 

rounded to the nearest dollar, on an 

annual basis. Specifically, each CMP is 

to be adjusted based on the percentage 

change between the CPI for the previous 

month of October, and the CPI for the 

month of October in the year preceding 

that. The NRC most recently adjusted its 

civil penalties for inflation according to 

this statutory formula on January 24, 

2017 (82 FR 8133). This year’s 

adjustment is based on the percentage 

change between the CPI for October 

2017 and October 2016. 

II. Discussion 

Section 234 of the AEA limits civil 

penalties for violations of the AEA to 

$100,000 per day, per violation (42 

U.S.C. 2282). However, as discussed in 

Section I, ‘‘Background,’’ of this 

document, the NRC has increased this 

amount several times since 1996 per the 

FCPIAA, as amended. Using the formula 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with RULES
1516 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 9 / Friday, January 12, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 

in the 2015 Improvements Act, the 

$285,057 amount last established in 

January 2017 will increase by 2.041%, 

resulting in a new CMP amount of 

$290,875. This is based on the 

percentage change between the October 

2017 CPI (246.663) and the October 

2016 CPI (241.729). Therefore, the NRC 

is amending § 2.205 to reflect a new 

maximum CMP under the AEA in the 

amount of $290,875 per day, per 

violation. This represents an increase of 

$5,818. 

Monetary penalties under the Program 

Fraud Civil Remedies Act were 

established in 1986 at $5,000 per claim 

(Pub. L. 99–509, 100 Stat. 1938; 31 

U.S.C. 3802). The NRC has also adjusted 

this amount (currently set at $10,957) 

multiple times pursuant to the FCPIAA, 

as amended, since 1996. Using the 

formula in the 2015 Improvements Act, 

the $10,957 amount last established in 

January 2017 will also increase by 

2.041%, resulting in a new CMP amount 

of $11,181. Therefore, the NRC is 

amending § 13.3 to reflect a new 

maximum CMP amount of $11,181 per 

claim or statement. This represents an 

increase of $224. 

As permitted by the 2015 

Improvements Act, the NRC may apply 

these increased CMP amounts to any 

penalties assessed by the agency after 

the effective date of this rulemaking 

(January 15, 2018), regardless of 

whether the associated violation 

occurred before or after this date (Pub. 

L. 114–74, 129 Stat. 600; 28 U.S.C. 2461 

note). The NRC assesses civil penalty 

amounts for violations of the AEA based 

on the class of licensee and severity of 

the violation, in accordance with the 

NRC Enforcement Policy (ADAMS 

Accession No. ML16197A561). A 

corresponding update to the NRC 

Enforcement Policy to reflect the 

updated CMP amount in § 2.205 will be 

published in the near future. 

III. Rulemaking Procedure 

The 2015 Improvements Act expressly 

exempts this final rule from the notice 

and comment requirements of the 

Administrative Procedure Act, by 

directing agencies to adjust CMPs for 

inflation ‘‘notwithstanding section 553 

of title 5, United States Code’’ (Pub. L. 

114–74, 129 Stat. 599; 28 U.S.C. 2461 

note). As such, this final rule is being 

issued without prior public notice or 

opportunity for public comment, with 

an immediate effective date. 

IV. Section-by-Section Analysis 

Paragraph (j) in § 2.205 is revised by 

replacing ‘‘$285,057’’ with ‘‘$290,875’’. 

Paragraphs (a)(1)(iv) and (b)(1)(ii) in 

§ 13.3 are revised by replacing 

‘‘$10,957’’ with ‘‘$11,181’’. 

V. Regulatory Analysis 

This final rule adjusts for inflation the 

maximum CMPs the NRC may assess 

under the AEA and under the Program 

Fraud Civil Remedies Act of 1986. The 

formula for determining the amount of 

the adjustment is mandated by Congress 

in the FCPIAA, as amended by the 2015 

Improvements Act (codified at 28 U.S.C. 

2461 note). Congress passed this 

legislation on the basis of its findings 

that the power to impose monetary civil 

penalties is important to deterring 

violations of Federal law and furthering 

the policy goals of Federal laws and 

regulations. Congress has also found 

that inflation diminishes the impact of 

these penalties and their effect. The 

principal purposes of this legislation are 

to provide for adjustment of civil 

monetary penalties for inflation, 

maintain the deterrent effect of civil 

monetary penalties, and promote 

compliance with the law. Therefore, 

these are the anticipated impacts of this 

rulemaking. Direct monetary impacts 

fall only upon licensees or other persons 

subjected to NRC enforcement for 

violations of the AEA and regulations 

and orders issued under the AEA 

(§ 2.205), or those licensees or persons 

subjected to liability pursuant to the 

provisions of the Program Fraud Civil 

Remedies Act of 1986 (31 U.S.C. 3801– 

3812) and the NRC’s implementing 

regulations (10 CFR part 13). 

VI. Regulatory Flexibility Act 

The Regulatory Flexibility Act does 

not apply to regulations for which a 

Federal agency is not required by law, 

including the rulemaking provisions of 

the Administrative Procedure Act, 5 

U.S.C 553(b), to publish a general notice 

of proposed rulemaking (5 U.S.C. 604). 

As discussed in this notice under 

Section III., ‘‘Rulemaking Procedure,’’ 

the NRC has determined that this final 

rule is exempt from the requirements of 

5 U.S.C. 553(b) and notice and comment 

need not be provided. Accordingly, the 

NRC also determines that the 

requirements of the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act do not apply to this final 

rule. 

VII. Backfit and Issue Finality 

The NRC has not prepared a backfit 

analysis for this final rule. This final 

rule does not involve any provision that 

would impose a backfit, nor is it 

inconsistent with any issue finality 

provision, as those terms are defined in 

10 CFR chapter I. As mandated by 

Congress, this final rule increases CMP 

amounts for violations of alreadyexisting NRC regulations and 

requirements. This final rule does not 

modify any licensee systems, structures, 

components, designs, approvals, or 

procedures required for the construction 

or operation of any facility. 

VIII. Plain Writing 

The Plain Writing Act of 2010 (Pub. 

L. 111–274) requires Federal agencies to 

write documents in a clear, concise, and 

well-organized manner. The NRC has 

written this document to be consistent 

with the Plain Writing Act as well as the 

Presidential Memorandum, ‘‘Plain 

Language in Government Writing,’’ 

published June 10, 1998 (63 FR 31883). 

IX. National Environmental Policy Act 

The NRC has determined that this 

final rule is the type of action described 

as a categorical exclusion in 10 CFR 

51.22(c)(1). Therefore, neither an 

environmental impact statement nor an 

environmental assessment has been 

prepared for this final rule. 

X. Paperwork Reduction Act 

This final rule does not contain a 

collection of information as defined in 

the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

(44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) and, therefore, 

is not subject to the requirements of the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. 

XI. Congressional Review Act 

This final rule is a rule as defined in 

the Congressional Review Act (5 U.S.C. 

801–808). However, the Office of 

Management and Budget has not found 

it to be a major rule as defined in the 

Congressional Review Act. 

List of Subjects 

10 CFR Part 2 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Antitrust, Byproduct 

material, Classified information, 

Confidential business information; 

Freedom of information, Environmental 

protection, Hazardous waste, Nuclear 

energy, Nuclear materials, Nuclear 

power plants and reactors, Penalties, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Sex discrimination, 

Source material, Special nuclear 

material, Waste treatment and disposal. 

10 CFR Part 13 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Claims, Fraud, Organization 

and function (Government agencies), 

Penalties. 

For the reasons set out in the 

preamble and under the authority of the 

Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended; 

the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, 

as amended; 28 U.S.C. 2461 note; and 5 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 9 / Friday, January 12, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 1517 

1Public Law 101–410, Oct. 5, 1990, 104 Stat. 890, 

codified at 28 U.S.C. 2461 note. 

2Public Law 114–74, Title VII, section 701(b), 

Nov. 2, 2015, 129 Stat. 599, codified at 28 U.S.C. 

2461 note. 

3The 2015 Adjustment Act defined a ‘‘civil 

monetary penalty’’ to mean ‘‘any 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.’’ 28 U.S.C. 2461 note, section 

3(2). Thus, a penalty based on another measure, 

such as a percentage of total assets, need not be 

adjusted. 

4 82 FR 8584 (January 27, 2017). 

5See OMB Memorandum M–18–03, 

‘‘Implementation of the 2018 annual adjustment 

pursuant to the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015,’’ at 4, 

which permits agencies that have codified the 

formula to adjust CMPs for inflation to update the 

penalties through a notice rather than a regulation. 

6To the extent an agency has codified a CMP 

amount in its regulations, the agency would need 

to update that amount by regulation. However, if an 

agency has codified the formula for making the 

CMP adjustments, then subsequent adjustments can 

be made solely by notice. See OMB Memorandum 

M–18–03, ‘‘Implementation of the 2018 annual 

adjustment pursuant to the Federal Civil Penalties 

Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 

2015,’’ at 4. 

U.S.C. 552 and 553, the NRC is adopting 

the following amendments to 10 CFR 

parts 2 and 13: 

PART 2—AGENCY RULES OF 

PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 2 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: Atomic Energy Act of 1954, 

secs. 29, 53, 62, 63, 81, 102, 103, 104, 105, 

161, 181, 182, 183, 184, 186, 189, 191, 234 

(42 U.S.C. 2039, 2073, 2092, 2093, 2111, 

2132, 2133, 2134, 2135, 2201, 2231, 2232, 

2233, 2234, 2236, 2239, 2241, 2282); Energy 

Reorganization Act of 1974, secs. 201, 206 

(42 U.S.C. 5841, 5846); Nuclear Waste Policy 

Act of 1982, secs. 114(f), 134, 135, 141 (42 

U.S.C. 10134(f), 10154, 10155, 10161); 

Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 552, 

553, 554, 557, 558); National Environmental 

Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332); 44 U.S.C. 

3504 note. 

Section 2.205(j) also issued under 28 

U.S.C. 2461 note. 

■ 2. In § 2.205, revise paragraph (j) to 

read as follows: 

§ 2.205 Civil penalties. 

* * * * * 

(j) Amount. A civil monetary penalty 

imposed under Section 234 of the 

Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, 

or any other statute within the 

jurisdiction of the Commission that 

provides for the imposition of a civil 

penalty in an amount equal to the 

amount set forth in Section 234, may 

not exceed $290,875 for each violation. 

If any violation is a continuing one, 

each day of such violation shall 

constitute a separate violation for the 

purposes of computing the applicable 

civil penalty. 

PART 13—PROGRAM FRAUD CIVIL 

REMEDIES 

■ 3. The authority citation for part 13 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 31 U.S.C. 3801 through 3812; 

44 U.S.C. 3504 note. 

Section 13.3 also issued under 28 U.S.C. 

2461 note. Section 13.13 also issued under 31 

U.S.C. 3730. 

■ 4. In § 13.3, revise paragraphs 

(a)(1)(iv) and (b)(1)(ii) to read as follows: 

§ 13.3 Basis for civil penalties and 

assessments. 

(a) * * * 

(1) * * * 

(iv) Is for payment for the provision 

of property or services which the person 

has not provided as claimed, shall be 

subject, in addition to any other remedy 

that may be prescribed by law, to a civil 

penalty of not more than $11,181 for 

each such claim. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(1) * * * 

(ii) Contains or is accompanied by an 

express certification or affirmation of 

the truthfulness and accuracy of the 

contents of the statement, shall be 

subject, in addition to any other remedy 

that may be prescribed by law, to a civil 

penalty of not more than $11,181 for 

each such statement. 

* * * * * 

Dated in Rockville, Maryland, this 28th 

day of December, 2017. 

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 

Frederick D. Brown, 

Acting Executive Director for Operations. 

[FR Doc. 2018–00368 Filed 1–11–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY 

Office of the Comptroller of the 

Currency 

12 CFR Parts 19 and 109 

[Docket ID OCC–2018–0001] 

RIN 1557–AE14 

Rules of Practice and Procedure; 

Rules of Practice and Procedure in 

Adjudicatory Proceedings; Civil Money 

Penalty Inflation Adjustments 

AGENCY: Office of the Comptroller of the 

Currency, Treasury. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: The Office of the Comptroller 

of the Currency (OCC) is amending its 

rules of practice and procedure for 

national banks and its rules of practice 

and procedure in adjudicatory 

proceedings for Federal savings 

associations to remove the chart listing 

the maximum dollar amount of civil 

money penalties the OCC has authority 

to assess. 

DATES: This rule is effective on January 

12, 2018. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Kevin Korzeniewski, Counsel, 

Legislative and Regulatory Activities 

Division, (202) 649–5490, or, for persons 

who are deaf or hearing impaired, TTY, 

(202) 649–5597. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

The Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

Adjustment Act of 1990 (the 1990 

Adjustment Act),1 as amended by the 

Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 

2015 (the 2015 Adjustment Act),2

requires Federal agencies to adjust the 

amount of their civil money penalties 

(CMPs) 3 for inflation by January 15 of 

each year, and requires the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) to issue 

guidance to Federal agencies not later 

than December 15 of each year, on 

implementing the required inflation 

adjustments. 

On January 27, 2017, the OCC 

published a final rule amending its rules 

of practice and procedure for national 

banks and its rules of practice and 

procedure in adjudicatory proceedings 

for Federal savings associations to 

adjust the maximum amount of each 

CMP within its jurisdiction to 

administer for inflation.4 The final rule 

also changed the method for making 

subsequent inflation adjustments, 

consistent with the 2015 Adjustment 

Act and OMB guidance.5 Specifically, 

sections 19.240(a) and 109.103(c)(1) of 

the rule codified the formula for making 

inflation adjustments for national banks 

and Federal savings associations, 

respectively. Sections 19.240(b) and 

109.103(c)(2) of the rule provided a 

chart of penalties applicable during 

2017. Sections 19.240(c) and 

109.103(c)(3) also provided that notice 

of the maximum penalties which may 

be assessed for calendar years after 2017 

will be published as a notice in the 

Federal Register on an annual basis on 

or before January 15 of each calendar 

year.6


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with RULES