Uniform Fine Assessment Version 4.0 Software; Calculating Amounts of Civil Penalties for Violations of Regulations

Summary: FMCSA announces that the Agency has begun using the Uniform Fine Assessment (UFA) Version 4.0 software to calculate the amounts of civil penalties for violations of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) and Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMRs). FMCSA is required to consider certain statutory factors when proposing civil penalties for violations of the FMCSRs and HMRs and since the mid- 1990's FMCSA has used its UFA software to consider those statutory factors. FMCSA has updated the UFA software to ensure that it adequately considers the statutory penalty factors for all statutes and regulations enforced by FMCSA; to implement the Agency's policy for consideration of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act; and, to ensure uniformity in proposed civil penalties. UFA 4.0 software also considers the factors set forth in 49 U.S.C. 521(b)(2)(D) for violations of regulations where no statutory factors are otherwise specified by statute. To enhance transparency of the civil penalty calculation, UFA 4.0 generates a report detailing the calculations used to propose civil penalties. While UFA 4.0 is used to calculate the majority of civil penalties proposed by FMCSA, the Agency may propose a civil penalty outside of UFA 4.0 when the proposed civil penalty calculated by UFA 4.0 would not promote enhanced commercial motor vehicle safety or induce prompt and sustained compliance. In such cases, the Agency will nevertheless consider the applicable statutory factors to assess a penalty. This Federal Register Notice supersedes the Federal Register Notice issued by FMCSA entitled, ``Civil Penalty Calculation Methodology. '' 76 FR 71431, November 17, 2011.