§ 360.5 Updating user fees.

(a) Update. Each fee established in this part may be updated in accordance with this section as deemed necessary by the FHWA.

(b) Publication and effective dates. Updated fees shall be published in the Federal Register and shall become effective 30 days after publication.

(c) Payment of fees. Any person submitting a filing for which a fee is established shall pay the fee in effect at the time of the filing.

(d) Method of updating fees. Each fee shall be updated by updating the cost components comprising the fee. Cost components shall be updated as follows:

(1) Direct labor costs shall be updated by multiplying base level direct labor costs by percentage changes in average wages and salaries of FHWA employees. Base level direct labor costs are direct labor costs determined by the cost study in Regulations Governing Fees For Service, 1 I.C.C. 2d 60 (1984), or subsequent cost studies. The base period for measuring changes shall be April 1984 or the year of the last cost study.

(2) Operations overhead shall be developed each year on the basis of current relationships existing on a weighted basis, for indirect labor applicable to the first supervisory work centers directly associated with user fee activity. Actual updating of operations overhead will be accomplished by applying the current percentage factor to updated direct labor, including current governmental overhead costs.

(3)(i) Office general and administrative costs shall be developed each year on the basis of current levels costs, i.e., dividing actual office general and administrative costs for the current fiscal year by total office costs for the office directly associated with user fee activity. Actual updating of office general and administrative costs will be accomplished by applying the current percentage factor to updated direct labor, including current governmental overhead and current operations overhead costs.

(ii) FHWA general and administrative costs shall be developed each year on the basis of current level costs; i.e., dividing actual FHWA general and administrative costs for the current fiscal year by total agency expenses for the current fiscal year. Actual updating of FHWA general and administrative costs will be accomplished by applying the current percentage factor to updated direct labor, including current governmental overhead, operations overhead and office general and administrative costs.

(4) Publication costs shall be adjusted on the basis of known changes in the costs applicable to publication of material in the Federal Register or FHWA-OMC Register.

(This rounding procedures excludes copying, printing and search fees.)

(e) Rounding of updated fees. Updated fees shall be rounded in the following manner:

(1) Fees between $1 and $30 will be rounded to the nearest $1;

(2) Fees between $30 and $100 will be rounded to the nearest $10;

(3) Fees between $100 and $999 will be rounded to the nearest $50; and

(4) Fees above $1,000 will be rounded to the nearest $100.