HSE & Sustainability

BOEM Adjusts Monetary Penalties for Oil and Gas Companies

The increase comes as federal agencies change fines to reflect inflation.

Offshore oil platform at sunset
Source: Nielubieklonu/Getty Images

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) published a Final Rule on 14 February that implements the 2023 inflation adjustments for the maximum daily civil monetary penalties contained in BOEM regulations in accordance with federal law.

The Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act (FCPIAA) Improvements Act of 2015 requires federal agencies to adjust the level of civil monetary penalties for inflation annually. These adjustments are intended to maintain the deterrent effect of civil penalties and to further the policy goals of the underlying statutes.

Under the FCPIAA Improvements Act of 2015, this rule adjusts the maximum civil monetary penalties per day per violation to $52,646 for violations under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act and to $55,808 for violations under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990.

Find the rule here (PDF).