The General Plan

Build

HUD Skips 2026 Inflation Adjustment for Civil Monetary Penalties, Citing Missing BLS Data

A government shutdown prevented the Bureau of Labor Statistics from producing the October 2025 CPI-U data required by law to calculate annual penalty adjustments, leaving all HUD civil money penalties at 2025 levels.

2 min read Synthesized & fact-checked by The General Plan

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) published a notice on September 24, 2026, informing the public that statutory annual inflation adjustments to civil monetary penalty (CMP) amounts will not be made for 2026, and that all HUD civil money penalties will remain at their 2025 levels.

Background and Legal Basis

The Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015 (Pub. L. 114-74, Sec. 701) — which further amended the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 101-410) — requires agencies to make annual adjustments to civil monetary penalty amounts for inflation. According to the notice, the annual adjustment is calculated based on the percent change between the U.S. Department of Labor's Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for the month of October preceding the date of the adjustment and the CPI-U for October of the prior year, as provided under 28 U.S.C. 2461 note, section (5)(b)(1). The 2015 Act further directs that adjustments be rounded to the nearest dollar.

Why No Adjustment Was Made

On April 17, 2026, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) informed the heads of executive departments and agencies of the situation through OMB Memorandum M-26-11: Cancellation of Penalty Inflation Adjustments for 2026. According to the notice, OMB stated that "due to the government shutdown, [the Bureau of Labor Statistics] was unable to produce the October 2025 data." Because the October 2025 CPI-U data is required to calculate adjustments under the 2015 Act, OMB concluded there would be "no updated cost-of-living adjustment multiplier for 2026," directing agencies to continue using 2025 civil monetary penalty levels as applicable.

Effect on HUD Penalties

As a direct consequence of the missing data and OMB's directive, HUD's notice confirms that all HUD civil money penalties are maintained at their 2025 level. The notice was signed by David Woll, General Counsel, and published in the Federal Register on September 24, 2026.

What to Watch

No new deadline or adjustment cycle is specified in the notice. Stakeholders subject to HUD civil monetary penalties should note that 2025 penalty levels remain in force until further action is taken pursuant to the 2015 Act's annual adjustment framework.

Related

Sources

10 cited

Every hard fact above is grounded in and cited to a primary source record.

  1. HUD published a notice on September 24, 2026, informing the public that statutory annual inflation adjustments to civil monetary penalty amounts will not be made for 2026.

    federalregister.gov

  2. All HUD civil money penalties will remain at their 2025 levels.

    federalregister.gov

  3. The Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015 (Pub. L. 114-74, Sec. 701) further amended the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 101-410) and requires agencies to make annual adjustments to civil monetary penalty amounts for inflation.

    federalregister.gov

  4. The 2015 Act requires that adjustments be rounded to the nearest dollar.

    federalregister.gov

  5. On April 17, 2026, the Office of Management and Budget informed the heads of executive departments and agencies through OMB Memorandum M-26-11: Cancellation of Penalty Inflation Adjustments for 2026.

    federalregister.gov

  6. OMB stated that due to the government shutdown, the Bureau of Labor Statistics was unable to produce the October 2025 data.

    federalregister.gov

  7. Because October 2025 CPI-U data is needed to make adjustments under the 2015 Act, OMB concluded there would be no updated cost-of-living adjustment multiplier for 2026.

    federalregister.gov

  8. OMB directed agencies to continue using 2025 civil monetary penalty levels as applicable.

    federalregister.gov

  9. The HUD notice was signed by David Woll, General Counsel.

    federalregister.gov

  10. The annual adjustment is based on the percent change between the U.S. Department of Labor's Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for the month of October preceding the date of the adjustment and the CPI-U for October of the prior year, as provided under 28 U.S.C. 2461 note, section (5)(b)(1).

    federalregister.gov

More from Build