The Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (“PHMSA”) issued a General Policy Statement for civil penalties (“Penalty Framework”) on October 17, 2016.  The Penalty Framework allows a respondent in a PHMSA enforcement case to request a proposed civil penalty calculation related to its case, and provides a penalty range with corresponding factors used in calculating the penalty amount.  Prior to publishing the Penalty Framework, the PHMSA only provided its civil penalty framework upon request.

In imposing a civil penalty, the PHMSA must consider five factors:

(1) The nature, circumstances and gravity of the violation, including adverse impact on the environment;

(2) The degree of the respondent’s culpability;

(3) The respondent’s history of prior offenses;

(4) Any good faith by the respondent in attempting to achieve compliance; and

(5) The effect on the respondent’s ability to continue in business.

49 U.S.C. § 60122.Continue Reading In Effort to Increase Both Transparency and Safety, PHMSA Releases Civil Penalty Framework