[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 227 (Friday, November 26, 1999)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 66447-66449]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-30740]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

49 CFR Parts 567 and 568

[Docket No. NHTSA-99-5673]
RIN 2127-AE27


Vehicles Built in Two or More Stages

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of establishment of a negotiated rulemaking advisory 
committee and notice of the first meeting.

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SUMMARY: NHTSA announces the establishment of a Negotiated Rulemaking 
Committee to develop recommended amendments to the existing NHTSA 
regulations (49 CFR parts 567 and 568) governing the certification of 
vehicles built in two or more stages to the Federal motor vehicle 
safety standards (49 CFR part 571). The purpose of the amendments would 
be to assign certification responsibilities more equitably among the 
various participants in the multi-stage vehicle manufacturing process. 
The Committee will develop its recommendations through a negotiation 
process. The Committee will consist of persons who represent the 
interests that would be affected by the proposed rule, such as first-
stage, intermediate and final-stage manufacturers of motor vehicles, 
equipment manufacturers, vehicle converters, testing facilities, trade 
associations that represent various manufacturing groups, and 
consumers. This notice also announces the time and place of the first 
advisory committee meeting. The public is invited to attend; an 
opportunity for members of the public to make oral presentations will 
be provided if time permits.

DATES: The first meeting of the advisory committee will be from 10 a.m. 
to 5 p.m. on Tuesday, December 14, 1999, and will continue from 9 a.m. 
to 3 p.m. on Wednesday, December 15, 1999.

ADDRESSES: The first meeting of the advisory committee will take place 
at the Hotel Washington, 515 15th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20004.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

For non-legal issues, you may call Charles Hott, Office of 
Crashworthiness Standards, at 202-366-4920.
For legal issues, you may call Rebecca MacPherson, Office of the Chief 
Counsel, at 202-366-2992.
You may send mail to both of these officials at the National Highway 
Traffic Safety Administration, 400 Seventh St., SW, Washington, DC 
20590.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    On May 20, 1999, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 
(NHTSA) published a notice of intent to establish an advisory committee 
(Committee) for a negotiated rulemaking to develop recommendations for 
regulations governing the certification of vehicles built in two or 
more stages. The notice requested comment on membership, the interests 
affected by the rulemaking, the issues that the Committee should 
address, and the procedures that it should follow. The reader is 
referred to that notice (64 FR 27499) for further information on these 
issues.
    NHTSA received 17 comments on the notice of intent. All commenters 
endorsed the concept of using the

[[Page 66448]]

negotiated rulemaking process for this subject. Commenters generally 
supported the proposed list of issues without specific comment.
    Based on this response, and for the reasons stated in the notice of 
intent, we have determined that establishing an advisory committee on 
this subject is appropriate and in the public interest. In accordance 
with the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA; 5 U.S.C. App. I sec. 
9(c)), we prepared a Charter for the Establishment of a Negotiated 
Rulemaking Advisory Committee. We intend to file the charter within 
fifteen (15) days from the date of this publication.

II. Membership

    A total of 20 individuals were nominated or applied for membership 
to the Committee, either through written comments or through follow-up 
telephone calls.
    In considering requests for representation on the Committee, we had 
to first determine whether the requesters represent interests 
significantly affected by the proposed rulemaking. As identified in the 
notice of intent, in addition to the Department of Transportation 
(DOT), these interests are: manufacturers of various stages of motor 
vehicles, equipment manufacturers, vehicle converters, testing 
facilities, trade associations that represent various manufacturing 
groups, and consumers of the affected vehicles.
    Following is the list of Committee members, identified by interest. 
Members are encouraged to designate alternates who can serve in place 
of the member if necessary. As noted in the notice of intent, the 
Committee will make its decisions through a process of negotiation 
leading to consensus. ``Consensus'' means the unanimous concurrence 
among the interests represented on the Committee, unless the Committee 
explicitly adopts a different definition.
    The meetings of the Committee will be facilitated by Phillip Harter 
and Alan Strasser of the Mediation Institute. The organizations and 
interests that will participate in the negotiated rulemaking are:
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration:
    1. Rebecca MacPherson, Department of Transportation, NHTSA;
Incomplete Vehicle Manufacturers:
    2. Timothy Blubaugh, Freightliner Corporation;
    3. Lindsay Harding, Ford Motor Company;
    4. Paul Murphy, Motor Coach Industries, International;
    5. David Stensland, Navistar International Transportation 
Corporation;
    6. Glenn Zuchniewicz, General Motors Corporation;
Component Manufacturers:
    7. Jerome Loftus, Atwood Mobile Products;
    8. Paul Wagner, Bornemann Products, Inc.
Final Stage Manufacturers:
    9. Andy Callaway, Mark III Industries;
    10. Phillip Headley, Environmental Industries Association;
    11. David Humphreys, Recreational Vehicle Industry Association 
(RVIA);
    12. Michael Kastner, National Truck Equipment Association (NTEA);
    13. Mark Sidman, Ambulance Manufacturers Division, Manufacturers 
Council of Small School Buses, and Mid-Size Bus Manufacturers 
Association;
    14. Thomas Turner, Blue Bird Body Company;
    15. Becky Plank, National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association 
(NMEDA);
Dealers:
    16. Douglas Greenhaus, National Automobile Dealers Association 
(NADA);
Testing Facilities:
    17. John Phillips, Transportation Research Center (TRC);
Consumer Representatives:
    18. Christopher Amos, National Association of Fleet Manufacturers;
    19. Mark Edwards, AAA;
    20. Clarence Ditlow, Center for Auto Safety;
    21. Bob Herman, Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA).

III. Participation by Non-Members

    Meetings of the Committee will be open to the public so that 
individuals who are not part of the Committee may attend and observe. 
Any person attending the Committee meetings may address the Committee, 
if time permits, or file statements with the Committee.

IV. Key Issues for Negotiation

    In its notice of intent, NHTSA tentatively identified major issues 
that should be considered in this negotiated rulemaking and asked for 
comment concerning the appropriateness of these issues for 
consideration and whether other issues should be added. These issues 
were:
     Equitable and effective allocation of certification 
responsibility;
     Enforcement issues relevant to each stage of 
manufacturing;
     Costs to regulated parties of testing or certification;
     Effects on safety;
     Effects on small businesses;
     Enforceability against later-stage manufacturers of 
standards that include dynamic testing;
     Feasibility and cost effectiveness of alternate methods 
(e.g., testing, computer modeling, or other as-yet-unspecified methods) 
to ensure compliance of completed vehicles with requirements of 
applicable FMVSSs;
     Mechanisms for incorporating alternate methods of ensuring 
compliance into these regulations;
     Mechanisms for sharing costs of testing;
     Requirements tailored to the capabilities and 
circumstances of each class of vehicles;
     Extended leadtime for implementation of FMVSSs for final-
stage manufacturers;
     Recall and warranty responsibilities of manufacturers;
     Pass-through certification as a compliance option;
     Relative administrative/compliance burdens of 
certification on first-stage and later-stage manufacturers; and
     Scope of compliance ``envelopes'' prescribed by first-
stage manufacturers and ability of intermediate- and final-stage 
manufacturers to stay within those envelopes.
    Commenters neither objected to these issues nor suggested that 
additional issues be addressed. Accordingly, they will be the issues 
considered by the Committee.

V. Procedures and Schedule

    Staff support for the Committee will be provided by NHTSA and the 
facilitator, and meetings will take place in Washington, DC, unless 
agreed otherwise by the Committee.
    Consistent with FACA requirements, the facilitator will prepare 
summaries of each Committee meeting. These summaries and all documents 
submitted to the Committee will be placed in the public docket for this 
rulemaking.
    As stated in the notice of intent, the Committee's objective is to 
prepare a report containing an outline of its recommendations for a 
notice of proposed rulemaking with suggestions for specific preamble 
and regulatory language based on the Committee's recommendations, as 
well as information relevant to a regulatory evaluation and an 
evaluation of the impacts of the proposal on small businesses.
    The negotiation process will proceed according to a schedule of 
specific dates that the Committee devises at its first meeting on 
December 14-15, 1999. NHTSA will publish notices of future meetings in 
the Federal Register. We

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anticipate that the Committee will meet for up to five two-day sessions 
beginning in December 1999. If the Committee establishes working groups 
to support its work, additional meetings for the working groups may be 
necessary.
    NHTSA intends to accept the Committee recommendations, keeping in 
mind its statutory authority and other legal requirements. In the event 
that the agency rejects any of the recommendations, the preamble to a 
NPRM addressing the issues that were the subject of the negotiations 
will explain the reasons for the rejection.

VI. Meeting Agenda

    The first meeting of the negotiated rulemaking committee will begin 
at 10 a.m. on December 14, 1999, with consideration of Committee ground 
rules, procedures, and calendar.1 The Committee will then 
address the specific issues that should be included in the negotiation 
and how data to support its deliberations will be developed. In 
addition, the Committee will consider whether to establish working 
groups to provide technical support and recommendations for specific 
aspects of the negotiations. The first meeting will conclude no later 
than 3 p.m. on December 15.
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    \1\ NHTSA will publish a single notice of the schedule of all 
future meetings in the Federal Register, but will amend the notice 
through subsequent Federal Register notices if it becomes necessary 
to do so.
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VII. Authority

    5 U.S.C. 561 et seq., delegation of authority at 49 CFR 1.50.

    Issued on: November 19, 1999.
Stephen R. Kratzke,
Acting Associate Administrator for Safety Performance Standards.
[FR Doc. 99-30740 Filed 11-24-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P