- (a) For an alleged violation that does not have a direct or substantial impact on safety, the Associate Administrator may issue a ticket.
(b) The Associate Administrator issues a ticket by mailing it by certified or registered mail to the person alleged to have committed the violation. The ticket includes:
- (1) A statement of the facts on which the Associate Administrator bases the conclusion that the person has committed the alleged violation;
- (2) The maximum penalty provided for by statute, the proposed full penalty determined according to PHMSA's civil penalty guidelines and the statutory criteria for penalty assessment, and the ticket penalty amount; and
- (3) A statement that within 45 days of receipt of the ticket, the person must pay the penalty in accordance with paragraph (d) of this section, make an informal response under § 107.317, or request a formal administrative hearing under § 107.319.
- (c) If the person makes an informal response or requests a formal administrative hearing, the Associate Administrator forwards the inspection report, ticket and response to the Office of the Chief Counsel for processing under §§ 107.307-107.339, except that the Office of the Chief Counsel will not issue a Notice of Probable Violation under § 107.311. The Office of the Chief Counsel may impose a civil penalty that does not exceed the proposed full penalty set forth in the ticket.
- (d) Payment of the ticket penalty amount must be made in accordance with the instructions on the ticket.
- (e) If within 45 days of receiving the ticket the person does not pay the ticket amount, make an informal response, or request a formal administrative hearing, the person has waived the right to make an informal response or request a hearing, has admitted the violation and owes the ticket penalty amount to PHMSA.
[Amdt. 107-36, 61 FR 7183, Feb. 26, 1996, as amended at 66 FR 45377, Aug. 28, 2001]