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FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION

“INTERIM” INFORMATION QUALITY 

GUIDELINES DETAIL

I. INTRODUCTION

The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC or Commission) is a small independent 

government agency responsible for regulating oceanborne transportation in the foreign 

commerce of the United States and ensuring the financial responsibility of certain 

passenger vessel operators (“PVOs”) for the benefit of U.S. exporters, importers, and 

the U.S. consumer.

The FMC's mission is to ensure a competitive and reliable international ocean 

transportation supply system that supports the U.S. economy and protects the public 

from unfair and deceptive practices. 

The principal statutes or statutory provisions administered by the Commission are the 

Shipping Act of 1984 (“Shipping Act”), the Foreign Shipping Practices Act of 1988 

(“FSPA”), section 19 of the Merchant Marine Act, 1920 (“1920 Act”), and Pub. L. No. 89-

777, as amended.

The Commission is authorized by the FSPA, section 19 of the 1920 Act, and section 

13(b)(6) of the Shipping Act to act to ensure that U.S. foreign commerce is not 

burdened by non-market barriers to ocean shipping. The Commission may take 

countervailing action to correct unfavorable shipping conditions in U.S. foreign 

commerce and may impose penalties to address actions by carriers or foreign 

governments that adversely affect shipping in the U.S. foreign oceanborne trades or 

that impair access of U.S.-flag vessels to ocean trade between foreign ports.

The Shipping Act applies to the operations of common carriers and other persons 

engaged in U.S. foreign ocean commerce. It exempts agreements between these 

entities that have become effective under the Shipping Act from the U.S. antitrust laws. 

The Commission reviews and evaluates these agreements to ensure that they do not 

exploit the grant of antitrust immunity, and to ensure that they do not otherwise violate 

the Shipping Act or result in an unreasonable increase in transportation cost or 

unreasonable reduction in service.

In addition to monitoring relationships among carriers, between carriers and marine 

terminal operators (“MTOs”), and among MTOs, the Commission is also responsible for 

ensuring that individual carriers and MTOs, as well as those permitted by agreement to 

act concertedly, treat shippers and other members of the shipping public fairly.
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Pub. L. No. 89-777 requires the operators of passenger vessels with 50 or more berths, 

who embark passengers at U.S. ports, to establish financial coverage to indemnify 

passengers in cases of death, injury, or nonperformance of transportation. The 

Commission certifies such operators upon the submission of satisfactory evidence of 

financial responsibility.

The Commission carries out its regulatory responsibilities by conducting informal and 

formal investigations and administering regulatory processes. It holds hearings, 

considers evidence and renders decisions, and issues appropriate orders and 

implementing regulations. The Commission also adjudicates disputes involving the 

regulated community, the general shipping public, and other affected individuals or 

interest groups. The Commission also offers alternative dispute resolution services to 

the entities it regulates, as well as to the members of the public who use entities subject 

to the Commission’s jurisdiction.

The Commission disseminates a variety of information about the agency’s jurisdiction, 

programs, and operations. The primary recipients of this information are representatives 

of ocean common carriers; non-vessel-operating common carrier and freight forwarder 

ocean transportation intermediaries; MTOs; PVOs; shippers; trade associations 

representing these interests; and the press. This information includes notices of agency 

actions published in the Federal Register; rules and regulations promulgated in the 

Code of Federal Regulations; adjudicatory decisions of agency Administrative Law 

Judges and the Commission; staff reports on the industry; press releases; and 

speeches by the agency’s Chairman, Commissioners or employees.

The information disseminated by the Commission primarily consists of adjudicatory 

decisions and press releases, but these types of documents, as well as certain other 

documents defined below, are excluded from coverage under the OMB guidelines. 

Other information is available to the public, primarily by means of the agency web site, 

but usually as a by-product of dissemination of that information to target audiences, 

transmittal of reports to Congress and other agencies, transmittal of a variety of rules, 

regulations and regulatory notices to the Federal Register, filing of pleadings in 

litigation, and Congressional testimony. Nevertheless, to the extent that the Commission 

disseminates covered information to the public, agency guidelines will be in place 

pursuant to Public Law 106-554 and OMB’s implementing guidelines. It should also be 

noted that most Commission regulatory issuances, such as rules, already afford 

opportunities for interested parties to comment pursuant to the Administrative 

Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. 551 et seq. (“APA”).

II. DEFINITIONS

For purposes of the Commission’s information quality guidelines, the following terms will 

have the meanings defined below, which follow or are derived from OMB’s guidelines. 

Consistent with OMB’s guidance, we have adapted OMB’s definitions in ways 

appropriate to the Commission’s particular practices and programs:
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(A) “Dissemination” means a Commission-initiated or sponsored distribution of 

information prepared for the public. Dissemination does not include distributions 

limited to: (i) government employees or agency contractors or grantees; (ii) intra- or 

inter-agency use or sharing of government information not disseminated to the 

public, including documents intended only for inter-agency and intra agency 

communications; (iii) responses to requests for agency records under the Freedom 

of Information Act, the Sunshine Act, the Privacy Act, the Federal Advisory 

Committee Act or other similar law; or (iv) correspondence with individuals or 

persons, press releases, archival records, public filings, subpoenas or adjudicative 

processes.

(B) “Information” means any communication or representation of knowledge, such as 

facts or data, in any medium or form, including textual, numerical, graphic, 

cartographic, narrative, or audiovisual forms. “Information” includes data posted on 

the Commission’s website but, does not include the provision of hyperlinks to 

information that others disseminate. “Information” also does not include opinions, 

where the Commission or the author makes clear that what is being offered is the 

author’s opinion rather than either fact or the Commission’s views.

(C) “Influential” is a specialized term that means certain scientific, financial or 

statistical information with a substantial impact on one or more critical issues in a 

“major rule,” as such term is defined in the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act of 1996, that will have or does have a clear and substantial impact on 

important public policies or important private sector decisions.

(D) “Integrity” refers to the security of the Commission’s information, i.e., protection of 

the information from unauthorized access or revision, to ensure that the information 

is not compromised through corruption or falsification.

(E) “Objectivity” refers both to: (i) presenting information in a proper context to set out 

that information in a clear, complete and unbiased manner; and (ii) ensuring that 

the substance of the information is accurate, reliable and unbiased.

(F) “Quality” is an encompassing term comprising utility, objectivity and integrity.

(G) “Reproducibility” means that “influential” information is capable of being 

substantially reproduced, subject to an acceptable degree of imprecision. With 

respect to analytic results, “capable of being substantially reproduced” means that 

independent analysis of the original or supporting data using identical methods 

would generate similar analytic results, subject to an acceptable degree of 

imprecision or error.

(H) “Utility” refers to the relative usefulness of the information to its intended users.
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III. POLICY

The Commission has always maintained high standards of quality in the production of 

information disseminated outside the agency. In this regard, it should be noted that 

although the pre-dissemination review procedures outlined below will formally apply to 

information first disseminated by the Commission on or after October 1, 2002, the public 

should be assured that all information disseminated by the Commission will continue to 

be held to the highest qualitative standards up to the date that the below predissemination review procedures become formally effective.

It is the Commission’s policy to ensure and maximize the quality, objectivity, utility, and 

integrity of the information that it disseminates to the public. The Commission will take 

appropriate steps to incorporate information quality criteria into its information 

dissemination practices and will ensure the quality of information the agency 

disseminates in accordance with the standards set forth in these Guidelines. The 

Commission is committed to integrating the principle of information quality into every 

step of its development of information, including creation, collection, maintenance, and 

dissemination. The Commission will comply with all then-existing legal and policy rules, 

regulations, directives, and guidance at every step of the process.

The Commission will demonstrate in its information collection clearance packages 

submitted to OMB that each such draft information collection will result in information 

that will be collected, maintained, and used in a way consistent with the OMB and 

agency information quality standards.

In accordance with OMB’s guidelines, the level of quality assurance appropriate for 

information will vary according to the information’s relative importance and the costs 

and benefits of requiring additional assurances for the particular information. The 

following guidelines describe the Commission’s quality standards and formalize a 

correction mechanism.

(A)Basic principles and commitments

(1) Quality

The Commission takes pride in the quality of its information and is committed to 

disseminating information that meets the Commission’s rigorous standards for 

objectivity, integrity and utility. Before the Commission disseminates any information to 

the public, all aspects are thoroughly reviewed by expert staff and appropriate levels of 

management. The Commission’s program managers are provided with specific 

guidance to determine whether types of information are “influential,” and ensure the 

appropriate pre-dissemination review. The FMC’s current internal review and approval 

policies and procedures ensure, to the Commission’s best ability, that the information 

and data disseminated by the Commission are accurate and timely, appropriate for 

external consumption, uncompromised and useful to the public.
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(2) Integrity

The Federal Information Security Modernization Act of 2002 (FISMA) and amended in 

2014, requires federal agencies to develop, document, and implement an information 

security and protection program to protect sensitive data. The Commission’s information 

security program sets requirements for security plans and procedures. These measures 

include providing, for each IT project: (i) the appropriate technical, personnel, physical, 

administrative, environmental and telecommunications safeguards; and (ii) continuity of 

operations through contingency or disaster recovery plans. The Commission’s 

protective measures cover the following information resources: data, applications, 

software, hardware, physical facilities and telecommunications. The Commission’s 

information security program assures that information and information system assets 

have a level of security that is commensurate with the risk and magnitude of the harm 

that could result from the loss, misuse, unauthorized disclosure or improper modification 

of the information contained in the system.

(3) Utility

The Commission is committed to maximizing the utility of the information it disseminates 

to the public. To this end, information and the appropriate form and vehicle for its 

dissemination are evaluated and reviewed by the relevant subject matter experts on a 

given project, along with appropriate levels of management within the Commission, 

before it is disseminated to ensure its usefulness to the intended audience. This 

includes ensuring that it is organized and written in a manner that facilitates its 

understanding and use by the intended audience. The information also is reviewed to 

ensure its timeliness and continuing relevance for the intended audience.

(4) Objectivity

The Commission is committed to disseminating information that is accurate, reliable, 

and unbiased both in its content and in its presentation. The relevant subject matter 

experts and appropriate levels of management review information before it is 

disseminated to, among other things, ensure that it is accurate, reliable and unbiased. 

As appropriate, this review includes an assessment of the collection, generation, and 

analysis of relevant information and data. The review also considers the information’s 

presentation to ensure that it is put in the proper context and presented in a clear, 

complete and unbiased manner. Where appropriate, in the context of regulatory studies 

for example, the Commission also identifies the sources of supporting data so that the 

public can assess for itself the objectivity of those sources. The Commission will provide 

relevant information and documentation about any dataset released so the users may 

determine fitness for the purpose for which it is used.

(5) Influential Information

Any information deemed to be “influential” as defined in these guidelines will be 

reviewed by subject matter experts within the Commission and appropriate levels of 
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management to ensure adequate disclosure about underlying data and methods of 

analysis to facilitate reproducibility of the information by qualified third parties.

(6) Privacy

The Commission is committed to ensure that all data disclosures are consistent with 

statutory, regulatory, and policy requirements for protection of privacy and 

confidentiality, proprietary data, and confidential business information.

(B)General Categories of Information Subject to the Guidelines

(1) Information Disseminated through the Regulatory Process — With Notice 

and Comment

Before the Commission disseminates a proposed or final rule, expert staff prepare 

drafts of the rule, which, where appropriate, are circulated to other staff members 

having direct or complementary subject matter expertise. The drafts are also generally 

reviewed by the Office of the General Counsel, and finally are reviewed and approved 

by the Commission. Proposed rulemakings generally include a public comment process 

pursuant to the APA. These procedural safeguards assure a response to comments on 

the quality of the proposed rule’s information and provide affected parties an opportunity 

to contest the final decision. The Commission will review any correction request about a 

pending rulemaking solely through the notice and comment process and not through the 

correction request procedures described below.

(2) Information Disseminated through the Regulatory Process — No notice and 

Comment

On occasion, the Commission disseminates information through its regulatory process 

that is not subject to APA’s notice and comment requirements, including Commission 

interpretations of its statutory authority, circular letters to the industry and policy 

statements. These types of issuances memorialize the Commission’s opinions on 

particular issues. They could also provide clarification of previous Commission 

issuances, or indicate a direction the Commission contemplates taking in the future with 

respect to various topics, including items that were the subject of prior rulemakings, 

once the Commission has had the opportunity to monitor a rule’s actual effect. In 

instances of Commission interpretations of authority or policy statements, supporting 

information is gathered and analyzed, and then the interpretative statements are 

drafted, reviewed and revised by relevant Commission staff experts. In addition, further 

review is provided by appropriate levels of management and by complementary subject

matter experts in other Commission bureaus or offices, as appropriate, and, finally, 

approval is required by the Commission before dissemination to the public.

(3) Statistical and Other Numerical Information Disseminated Outside the 

Regulatory Process 

From time to time, the Commission’s staff prepares information that displays or relies on 

statistics and other data gathered by the staff. Sometimes the Commission staff gathers 
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its own data and stores the data in databases that it controls and maintains. Data is also 

gathered by the staff from filings made with the Commission, some of which are 

confidential. The staff may also rely on data gathered from independent third parties 

and vendors who supply data that the staff, and when appropriate, the Commission, 

reviews, analyzes and disseminates. These data include maritime traffic and rate 

summaries; studies of maritime service contracts; information on carrier or marine 

terminal rates, charges and practices obtained from tariffs or schedules published by 

these entities, and various special studies and research reports pertinent to the matter 

under analysis. Both internally generated and externally obtained data are subjected to 

internal review and are reviewed by the appropriate levels of management in the 

Bureau responsible for preparing the reports. In addition, this information may be 

reviewed by other Commission bureaus and offices that may have complementary 

subject matter expertise. When appropriate, the data or the reports are also submitted 

to the Commission for review or approval. Whether using existing data sources from 

inside or outside the Commission we are committed to protecting the privacy and 

confidentiality of the data.

If there is an instance when the Commission would make information available to the 

public that we have collected from, or that was developed by, another Federal Agency, 

each agency is responsible for the quality of the information they contribute, and that 

responsibility will be clearly communicated to the public.

(4) Non-Statistical Information Disseminated Outside the Regulatory Process 

Some information disseminated by the Commission does not rely on statistical analyses 

and quantitative foundations. This information includes materials maintained on the 

Commission’s website. Each document is drafted by the responsible staff member(s), 

reviewed by appropriate supervisory levels and, when necessary or appropriate, 

reviewed and approved by the Commission before dissemination. Because of the varied 

nature of these materials, the Commission and its staff use that level of quality 

assurance commensurate with the information’s importance and the likelihood that it will 

be relied on by the public.

(5) Information Outside the Guidelines’ Scope

Based on OMB’s definitions of “dissemination” and “information,” several types of 

information disseminated by the Commission and its staff do not formally fall under 

these guidelines. However, it should be emphasized that the Commission and its staff 

apply rigorous standards to all information disseminated, whether or not it formally falls 

under these guidelines.

Excluded categories include:

(a) Distributions intended to be limited to Commission employees or contractors, such 

as internal operating procedures, training manuals and requests for proposals.
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(b) Government information such as the Commission’s Annual Report, the 

Commission’s annual budget and the Commission’s plans and reports pursuant to 

the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993.

(c) Opinions of individual Commissioners and staff members, where the author’s 

presentation states that the information is that person’s opinion rather than fact or 

the Commission’s views. These include articles, speeches, panel presentations, 

special studies and academic papers authored by staff members that state that the 

views expressed in their work are their own views and do not necessarily reflect the 

Commission’s views.

(d) Responses to requests for agency records under the Freedom of Information Act, 

the Sunshine Act, the Privacy Act, the Federal Advisory Committee Act or other 

similar law.

(e) Correspondence with individual entities or persons, including staff comment letters 

and staff interpretive letters.

(f) Commission and staff press releases, including litigation releases.

(g) Archival records maintained by the Commission docket activity room and library.

(h) Information from third parties, for which the Commission is merely a conduit, such as 

agreements filed by carriers and MTOs subject to the Commission’s jurisdiction, and 

the locations of tariffs and schedules published by carriers and MTOs subject to the 

Commission’s jurisdiction.

(i) Distributions intended to be limited to subpoenas or adjudicative processes, 

including Commission orders, opinions, amicus and other briefs. Adjudicative 

processes also include factual allegations by the staff during the investigative and 

litigation phases of cases brought by the Commission’s Bureau of Enforcement. 

Because there are well-established procedural safeguards and rights to address the 

quality of factual allegations and adjudicatory decisions, and to provide persons with 

an opportunity to contest decisions, these guidelines do not impose any additional 

requirements on the Commission during adjudicative proceedings and do not 

provide parties to such adjudicative proceedings any additional rights of challenge or 

appeal.

IV. REQUESTS FOR CORRECTION

The Commission has always stood ready to assist affected members of the public to 

obtain appropriate correction of information maintained and disseminated by the 

Commission. Accordingly, the Commission Information Quality Guidelines announced 

by this Notice formalize an administrative mechanism whereby affected members of the 

public may seek and obtain appropriate correction of information maintained and 

disseminated by the Commission if the information does not comply with OMB or 

agency guidelines.
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The correction process is designed to provide a mechanism for affected persons to 

seek correction of information disseminated by the Commission that does not comply 

with these guidelines. Information correction requests should be sent only after October 

1, 2002. However, the Commission is always concerned about the quality of the 

information it disseminates, and requests that any information that may appear to be 

erroneous be brought to its attention at the earliest practicable date, even if that 

precedes the formal effectiveness of this mechanism.

This process does not necessarily guarantee a correction in every instance. Rather, the 

decision of whether a correction is appropriate, and what degree of correction is 

appropriate, will be determined by the nature, completeness and timeliness of the 

information involved and such factors as the significance of the correction on the users 

of the information and the magnitude of the correction. Responses may be in the form of 

personal contacts by letter or telephone, form letters, press releases or mass mailings 

that correct widely disseminated errors or address a frequently raised request.

With respect to proposed rules, the thorough consideration required by the APA process 

provides an adequate complaint and appeal process. A separate complaint and appeal 

process for information that is already subject to such a public comment process would 

be duplicative, burdensome, disruptive to the orderly conduct of the action and unfair to 

other public commenters who submitted comments during the applicable comment 

period. Accordingly, the notice and comment process is the exclusive means by which 

an affected person may address the quality of information in a proposed rulemaking.(1)

In most instances, matters will be resolved at the appropriate bureau or office level 

within the Commission. Novel or highly complex matters may be sent to the 

Commission for review, at the staff’s discretion. If the matter is resolved at the staff 

level, the staff will use reasonable efforts to send its response to the requestor within 30 

days of filing. If the matter’s resolution is particularly complicated or would benefit from 

consultation with other Commission offices, bureaus or other agencies, the staff will use 

reasonable efforts to send a response to the requestor within 45 days of filing.

After it has completed its review of a request for correction, the Commission will 

determine whether a correction is warranted, and, if so, what corrective action it will 

take. Any corrective action will be determined by the nature and timeliness of the 

information involved and such factors as the significance of the error on the use of the 

information and the magnitude of the error. The Commission is not required to change, 

or in any way alter, the content or status of information simply based on the receipt of a 

request for correction. The Commission need not respond substantively to frivolous or 

repetitive requests for correction. Nor does the Commission have to respond 

substantively to requests that concern information not covered by the guidelines or from 

a person whom the information does not affect.

(A)Requests for Correction (RFC)

(1) Format
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To be treated as an information correction request under these guidelines, any affected 

person seeking correction of Commission-disseminated information should submit a 

request in writing (on paper or by email) including the following:

(a) a description of the facts or data the requestor seeks to have corrected;

(b) an explanation of how the requestor is an affected person with regard to those facts 

or data;

(c) the factual basis for believing the facts or data to be corrected are inconsistent with 

Commission or OMB guidelines;

(d) a proposed resolution, including the factual basis for believing the facts or data in the 

requestor’s proposed resolution are correct;

(e) the consequences of not implementing the proposed resolution; and

(f) the requestor’s contact information, including name, address, daytime telephone 

number and email address.

Requests should be marked “Information Correction Request” on the first line of the 

envelope directly above the mailing address and on the correspondence itself, in the 

case of letters, or in the “Subject” line, in the case of email correspondence. Emails 

should be sent to the following address: secretary@fmc.gov. Letters should be 

addressed to:

Federal Maritime Commission

Office of the Secretary

Attn: Information Correction

Washington, DC 20573-0001

(2) Processing Requests for Correction (RFC)

The Office of the Secretary will route the request to the head of the appropriate bureau 

or office within the Commission who will ensure that: (i) the RFC is reviewed; (ii) any 

appropriate corrective action is taken; and (iii) a response to the request is made.

The Commission will respond to the requester in writing. The agency response should 

contain a point-by-point response to any data quality arguments contained in the RFC 

and should refer to a peer review that directly considered the issue being raised, if 

available. 

If the request requires more than 30 calendar days to resolve, the Commission will 

inform the requester that more time is required and indicate the reason why and an 

estimated decision date, not to exceed 120 days without the consent of the requester.

(B)Requests for Staff Reconsideration
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(1) Format

If the requestor does not agree with the response, the requestor may request 

reconsideration (appeal) of the staff’s original response. Such a reconsideration request 

should be postmarked (or, in the case of email, date-stamped) within 30 days of the 

date of the initial response. The request for staff reconsideration should include a copy 

of the original request, a copy of the original response and the following:

(a) A statement describing why the response to the original complaint did not comply 

with the information quality guidelines or why the requestor disagrees with the 

original response; and

(b) The requestor’s contact information, including name, address, daytime telephone 

number and email address.

Requests for staff reconsideration should be marked “Request for Reconsideration of 

Information Correction” on the first line of the envelope directly above the mailing 

address and on the correspondence itself, in the case of letters, or in the “Subject” line, 

in the case of email correspondence. Emails should be sent to the following 

address: secretary@fmc.gov. Letters should be addressed to:

Federal Maritime Commission

Office of the Secretary

Attn: Information Correction

Washington, DC 20573-0001

(2) Processing Staff Reconsideration Requests

The Office of the Secretary will route the reconsideration request to the appropriate staff 

official. The designated official responding to the reconsideration request should not be 

an individual that was involved in the review and initial response to the RFC. This official 

may seek the advice and counsel of other appropriate officials in rendering the decision. 

The designated official will review the original response, determine if additional action is 

appropriate, and use reasonable efforts to send the staff’s response to the 

reconsideration request within 30 days of receipt of the filing of the request for 

reconsideration. If the request requires more than 30 calendar days to resolve, the 

Commission will inform the complainant that more time is required and indicate the 

reason why and an estimated decision date.

(3) Sharing Draft Responses with OMB Prior to Release 

The Commission will share draft responses to RFCs and appeals with OMB prior to 

release to the requester for assessment of compliance. 
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V. REPORTING PROCEDURES

The Commission will send an annual report to OMB describing the number and type of 

complaints received about its compliance with OMB guidelines, and how such 

complaints were resolved. 

VI. CONCLUSION

These agency guidelines are not intended to create any right or benefit, substantive or 

procedural, enforceable in any court by a party against the Commission, the federal 

government, or any individual, beyond any that may be established by Section 515 of 

Public Law 106-554 or by implementing OMB guidelines. In particular, these agency 

guidelines do not impose any additional requirements on the Commission during 

adjudicative, rulemaking or other proceedings initiated under the Commission’s 

statutory authority and conducted under the Commission’s Rules of Practice and 

Procedure, and do not provide parties to such proceedings any additional rights of 

challenge or appeal.

VII. PRIVACY ACT STATEMENT

The Commission is authorized to collect the information provided by a requester for 

information correction or for staff reconsideration under the Appropriations Act. The 

information is needed to process each request and to allow the Commission to reply 

appropriately. The requester is not required to furnish the information, but failure to do 

so may prevent the request from being processed. The principal use is to process and 

respond to the request, but the Commission may disclose information to a 

Congressional office in response to an inquiry made on the requestor’s behalf, to the 

Department of Justice, a court or other tribunal when the information is relevant and 

necessary to litigation, or to a contractor or another federal agency to help accomplish a 

function related to these guidelines.

ENDNOTES:

Should there be a concern that a factual premise or information otherwise supporting a 

proposed rule is erroneous or may otherwise inadvertently cause harm, the Commission

will consider a correction request from potentially affected parties if such a request is 

brought to its attention through a comment or petition filed under APA procedures set 

forth in the Commission’s rules.