Tick Tick: DOJ Increases FCA Penalties to Account for Inflation
Last week, a final rule was adopted adjusting per claim FCA penalties up to account for inflation. For penalties assessed after February 12, 2024 with respect to violations occurring after November 2, 2015, the revised minimum penalty is $13,946, which is up from $13,508. The revised maximum penalty for that period is $27,894, up from $27,018.
| Old Penalties | New Penalties (for violations occurring after Nov. 2, 2015 that are assessed after Feb. 12, 2024) |
|
| Minimum Penalty | $13,508 | $13,946 |
| Maximum Penalty | $27,018 | $27,894 |
DOJ reached the revised penalty by referring to a December 2023 OMB Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies. The purpose of that OMB Memorandum is to assist agencies in making mandatory annual adjustments for inflation and instructs that, based on the Consumer Price Index for October 2023, the cost-of-living adjustment multiplier for 2024 is 1.03241. DOJ calculated the new penalties by applying that 1.03241 multiplier to the old penalty amounts.
Similar to last year, DOJ was about one month late in publishing its annual increases. Federal agencies are required to publish civil penalty adjustments every year by January 15.
Our readers can always refer to our Qui Notes Glossary to quickly reference the current penalty amounts as well as other key FCA information such as Knowledge/Scienter and Government Motions to Dismiss, to name a few.
© Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP 2024 All Rights Reserved. This blog post is intended to be a general summary of the law and does not constitute legal advice. You should consult with counsel to determine applicable legal requirements in a specific fact situation.
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