The fines for violations of federal safety regulations underwent a makeover this year during the adjustment for inflation process.
Some fines are higher than previous years, and some are lower, as the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration made the adjustments based on the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015. An interim final rule, published in the Federal Register on Monday, June 27, announced the changes to the fines. The new penalties will go into effect Aug. 1.
In previous years, adjustments were rounded to the nearest multiple of $1,000, but the 2015 Act removed the rounding rules, ensuring that penalties increase each year with inflation, according to FMCSA. The inflation calculations were reset this year as well, resulting in some of the penalty values decreasing.
The new fines for safety regulations violations are listed below:
