NEWS Alert

Today, January 6, 2023, a final rule enumerating the revisions to Department of Transportation (DOT) civil penalty amounts for 2023 was published on the Federal Register. Federal agencies are required to adjust minimum and maximum civil penalty amounts annually according to a statutory formula under the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act. Departments must publish the annual adjustments by January 15. The purpose of the annual adjustment is to account for inflation and preserve the deterrent impact of penalties.

The penalty increases set forth in the final rule, which can be located at Regulations.gov, reflect those mandatory annual adjustments. The 2023 civil penalty amount for each violation covered by the final rule has increased by a multiplier of 1.07745.

Tables reflecting the increased penalty amounts for violations of specific rules of individual agencies of the Department of Transportation, including the Office of the Secretary of Transportation (OST), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), are set forth in 88 Fed. Reg 1114-1119.

Adjusted civil penalties for areas of interest to clients of The Wicks Group include but are not limited to those related to aviation economic regulations and statutes; hazardous materials transportation law; and federal aviation statutes, regulations, or terms and conditions of a license or permit.

For example, for 2023:

• The OST has set the current adjusted maximum penalty per violation of aviation economic regulations and statutes under 49 U.S.C. 46301(a)(1) at $40,272.
• The FAA and PHMSA have set the current adjusted maximum penalty per violation of hazardous materials transportation law at $96,624 (or $225,455 for violations which result in death, serious illness, severe injury, or substantial property destruction).
• The FAA and PHMSA have set the penalties for hazardous materials training violations from $582 (minimum) to $96,624 (maximum) per violation.
• The FAA has set the current adjusted maximum penalty per violation of 51 U.S.C. 50901-50923, a regulation issued under these statutes, or any term or condition of a license or permit issued or transferred under these statutes at $283,009.

The penalty adjustments made by this rule apply only to violations that take place after the effective date of January 6, 2023. The adjustments have no impact on previously assessed or enforced penalties that DOT has collected or is in the process of collecting.

Established in 1999 and based in Washington, DC, The Wicks Group has a lengthy record of providing technical assistance to civil aviation authorities (CAAs) worldwide, including but not limited to the CAAs of India, Panama, Cabo Verde, Azerbaijan, Ukraine, and Trinidad and Tobago. In all, ten FAA Category 1 ratings have been issued to TWG IASA technical assistance clients to date – a 100% track record. TWG also regularly assists foreign air carriers with obtaining the US government approvals needed for US air carrier operations and foreign repair stations with securing FAA certification required to maintain US-registered aircraft.

For more information about The Wicks Group, please contact Glenn Wicks at gpwicks@wicks-group.com.