[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 8 (Thursday, January 11, 2001)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 2767-2779]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-764]



  Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 8 / Thursday, January 11, 2001 / 
Proposed Rules  

[[Page 2767]]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

49 CFR Parts 385, 390, and 398

[Docket No. FMCSA-2000-7017]
RIN 2126-AA52


Safety Requirements for Operators of Small Passenger-Carrying 
Commercial Motor Vehicles Used In Interstate Commerce

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM); request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The FMCSA is proposing to amend the Federal Motor Carrier 
Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) to require that motor carriers operating 
commercial motor vehicles (CMVs), designed or used to transport between 
9 and 15 passengers (including the driver), in interstate commerce 
comply with the safety regulations when they are directly compensated 
for such services, and the transportation of any passenger covers a 
distance greater than 75 air miles (86.3 statute miles or 138.9 
kilometers). Motor carriers, drivers, and the vehicles operated by them 
would be subject to the same safety requirements imposed upon 
motorcoach operations, with the exception of the commercial driver's 
license, controlled substances and alcohol testing regulations. The 
agency is proposing that any requirements implemented be made 
applicable to these motor carriers 90 days after the effective date of 
the final rule. This action is in response to section 212 of the Motor 
Carrier Safety Improvement Act of 1999 (MCSIA).

DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 11, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Mail or hand deliver comments to the U.S. Department of 
Transportation, Dockets Management Facility, Room PL-401, 400 Seventh 
Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590, or submit electronically at http://dmses.dot.gov/submit. All comments should include the docket number 
that appears in the heading of this document. All comments received 
will be available for examination and copying at the above address from 
9 a.m. to 5 p.m., e.t., Monday through Friday, except Federal Holidays. 
Those desiring notification of receipt of comments must include a self-
addressed, stamped postcard or you may print the acknowledgment page 
that appears after submitting comments electronically.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Larry W. Minor, Office of Bus and 
Truck Standards and Operations, (202) 366-1790, Federal Motor Carrier 
Safety Administration, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, D.C. 20590-
0001; or Mr. Michael Falk, Office of the Chief Counsel, HCC-20, (202) 
366-1384, Federal Highway Administration, 400 Seventh Street, SW., 
Washington, D.C. 20590-0001. Office hours are from 7:45 a.m. to 4:15 
p.m., e.t., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Electronic Access and Filing

    You may submit or retrieve comments online through the Document 
Management System (DMS) at: http://dmses.dot.gov/submit. Acceptable 
formats include: MS Word (versions 95 to 97), MS Word for Mac (versions 
6 to 8), Rich Text File (RTF), American Standard Code Information 
Interchange (ASCII) (TXT), Portable Document Format (PDF), and 
WordPerfect (versions 7 to 8). The DMS is available 24 hours each day, 
365 days each year. Electronic submission and retrieval help and 
guidelines are available under the help section of the web site.
    An electronic copy of this document may also be downloaded by using 
a computer, modem and suitable communications software from the 
Government Printing Office's Electronic Bulletin Board Service at (202) 
512-1661. Internet users may also reach the Office of the Federal 
Register's home page at: http://www.nara.gov/fedreg and the Government 
Printing Office's web page at: http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara.

Background

Congressional Mandate to Regulate Small Passenger-Carrying CMVs

    On December 9, 1999, the President signed the Motor Carrier Safety 
Improvement Act of 1999 (Pub. L. 106-159, 113 Stat. 1748). Section 212 
of the MCSIA requires that the FMCSA make its safety regulations 
applicable to: (1) Commercial vans referred to as ``camionetas,'' and 
(2) those commercial vans operating in interstate commerce outside of 
commercial zones that have been determined to pose serious safety 
risks. The rulemaking to implement section 212 must be completed by 
December 9, 2000.
    Prior to the enactment of the MCSIA, section 4008(a)(2) of the 
Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) (Pub. L. 105-
178, 112 Stat. 107, June 9, 1998) amended the passenger-vehicle 
component of the CMV definition in 49 U.S.C. 31132(1). Commercial motor 
vehicle is now defined statutorily to mean a self-propelled or towed 
vehicle used on the highways in interstate commerce to transport 
passengers or property, if the vehicle--
    (A) Has a gross vehicle weight rating or gross vehicle weight of at 
least 10,001 pounds, whichever is greater;
    (B) Is designed or used to transport more than 8 passengers 
(including the driver) for compensation;
    (C) Is designed or used to transport more than 15 passengers, 
including the driver, and is not used to transport passengers for 
compensation; or
    (D) Is used in transporting material found by the Secretary of 
Transportation to be hazardous under section 5103 of this title and 
transported in a quantity requiring placarding under regulations 
prescribed by the Secretary under section 5103.
    Under section 4008(b) of the TEA-21, operators of the CMVs defined 
by section 31132(1)(B) would automatically become subject to the FMCSRs 
one year after the date of enactment of the TEA-21, if they were not 
already covered, ``except to the extent that the Secretary (of 
Transportation) determines, through a rulemaking, that it is 
appropriate to exempt such operators of commercial motor vehicles from 
the application of those regulations.'' Section 4008(b) of the TEA-21 
is a mandate either to impose the FMCSRs on previously unregulated 
smaller capacity passenger vehicles, or to exempt through notice and 
comment rulemaking some or all of the operators of such vehicles.
    On September 3, 1999, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) 
published an interim final rule to adopt the new statutory definition 
of a CMV (64 FR 48510).\1\ The agency revised its regulatory definition 
of CMV to be consistent with the statute, but exempted the operation of 
these small passenger-carrying vehicles from all of the FMCSRs for six 
months to allow time for the completion of a separate rulemaking in 
which the agency proposed requiring operators of such vehicles to file 
a motor carrier identification report, mark their CMVs with a USDOT 
identification number and certain other information, and maintain an 
accident register. This notice of proposed rulemaking was also

[[Page 2768]]

published on September 3, 1999, at 64 FR 48518.
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    \1\ The MCSIA established the FMCSA in the Department of 
Transportation. On January 4, 2000, the Office of the Secretary 
published a final rule rescinding the authority previously delegated 
to the former Office of Motor Carrier Safety (OMCS) (65 FR 220). 
This authority is now delegated to the FMCSA. Rulemaking, 
enforcement, and other activities of the Office of Motor Carrier 
Safety while part of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), and 
while operating independently of the FHWA, will be continued by the 
FMCSA.
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    Elsewhere in today's Federal Register, the FMCSA published a final 
rule that amends Sec. 390.5 by adopting the statutory definition of 
``commercial motor vehicle'' published in the interim final rule on 
September 3, 1999. The agency's final rule also revised 
Sec. 390.3(f)(6) to require that all operators of CMVs designed or used 
to transport between 9 and 15 passengers for compensation complete a 
motor carrier identification report (Form MCS-150) (49 CFR 390.19), 
comply with certain provisions of the CMV marking regulation (49 CFR 
390.21), and maintain an accident register (49 CFR 390.15). These 
actions will enable the agency to monitor the operational safety of all 
motor carriers operating small passenger vehicles for compensation. In 
addition, the three requirements will help the agency compile 
information on the number of motor carriers operating small passenger-
carrying vehicles for compensation, the location of their principal 
place of business, the number of vehicles operated, and the number of 
drivers employed.
    With the enactment of the MCSIA, the agency is now required to make 
the safety-related operational FMCSRs (e.g., driver qualifications, 
hours of service, inspection, repair and maintenance, etc.) applicable 
to certain operations of small passenger-carrying vehicles designed or 
used to transport between 9 and 15 passengers (including the driver) 
for compensation in interstate commerce. Namely, the small passenger-
carrying CMV operations that must be regulated under section 212 of the 
MCSIA include what the Congress referred to as ``camionetas'' and those 
operations outside of commercial zones that have been determined to 
pose serious safety risks.
    In this NPRM, the FMCSA is proposing to make the FMCSRs applicable 
to all motor carriers operating CMVs, designed or used to transport 
between 9 and 15 passengers (including the driver), in interstate 
commerce for ``direct compensation'' when the transportation covers a 
distance greater than 75 air miles (86.3 statute miles or 138.9 
kilometers). This preliminary decision is based on: (1) The FMCSA's 
understanding of the Congress' and the commercial passenger carrier 
industry's usage of the term ``camioneta,'' (2) the agency's analysis 
of comments submitted in response to the FHWA's August 5, 1998 (63 FR 
41766) advance notice of proposed rulemaking concerning the definition 
of CMV, (3) the agency's analysis of comments submitted in response to 
the September 3, 1999, interim final rule and notice of proposed 
rulemaking, and (4) an analysis of accident data concerning large vans. 
The agency believes that this approach would be more effective than 
other alternatives for responding to congressional and public safety 
concerns about what is commonly referred to as ``long-haul'' for-hire 
van operations throughout the United States, including vans operated 
for compensation by foreign-based motor carriers into and out of the 
United States.
    The FMCSA considered several alternatives or options to implement 
section 212 of the MCSIA. The other alternatives included making the 
safety-related operational FMCSRs applicable to: (1) All motor carriers 
operating small passenger-carrying CMVs in interstate commerce for 
compensation (direct and indirect); (2) all motor carriers operating 
small passenger-carrying CMVs in interstate commerce that are directly 
compensated, irrespective of the distance traveled; and (3) only those 
motor carriers operating small passenger-carrying CMVs across the U.S.-
Mexico border for compensation. The FMCSA believes the proposed 
alternative would avoid making the FMCSRs applicable to interstate for-
hire van operations that are local in nature and do not appear to pose 
the same level of safety risks to their customers and the traveling 
public.

Passenger-Carrying Operations Covered by this Rulemaking

For-Hire Transportation--Direct versus Indirect Compensation

    Although the Congress did not define ``for compensation,'' the 
FMCSA believes this rulemaking should focus first and foremost on motor 
carriers of passengers that offer their services to the general public 
in exchange for compensation. Generally, the primary business of these 
companies is providing interstate passenger transportation services. 
Although the FMCSA has applied identification marking and accident 
recording requirements on all interstate motor carriers transporting 
passengers for compensation, the agency does not believe the Congress 
intended to impose safety-related operational regulations on business 
entities providing interstate passenger transportation services that 
are incidental to their primary, non-transportation related business. 
While both types of operations are conducted for compensation, the 
FMCSA believes that it is important to distinguish between businesses 
with a primary objective of providing transportation, and others. The 
former group is directly compensated for their transportation services, 
while the latter is compensated indirectly in a total package charge or 
some other assessment or concession is given for the transportation 
performed.
    In the comments submitted in response to the September 3, 1999, 
interim final rule and the notice of proposed rulemaking published on 
the same day, the American Bus Association (ABA), the American Car 
Rental Association, Greyhound, the National Automobile Dealers 
Association, and the National Funeral Directors Association expressed 
concerns about how the agency should interpret the phrase ``for 
compensation.'' These commenters believe the phrase should, for the 
purpose of implementing section 4008 of the TEA-21, be interpreted to 
be applicable to only those entities that are directly compensated 
(i.e., entities that are primarily engaged in the for-hire 
transportation of passengers). This issue is also discussed in the 
preamble of the final rule concerning requirements for operators of 
small passenger-carrying CMVs, published elsewhere in today's Federal 
Register. Interested parties may view the comments by reading the 
submissions to FMCSA Docket Nos. FMCSA-97-2858 and FMCSA-99-5710.
    The FMCSA agrees with commenters to the previous rulemaking notices 
in their belief that only small passenger-carrying CMV operators that 
are directly compensated for their services should be required to 
comply with safety-related operational rules. These are the small 
passenger-carrying CMV operations that commenters identified as having 
significant deficiencies in their safety management controls for their 
drivers and vehicles. In implementing section 212 of the MCSIA, the 
FMCSA believes that this group should be considered as posing a serious 
safety risk to the motoring public.
    The FMCSA has considered the accident information presented by the 
ABA, the Amalgamated Transit Union, Casa de Proyecto Libertad, and 
Greyhound and believes the information is an indicator that there may 
be problems with the safety management controls of these CMV operators. 
This data is discussed in the preamble of the final rule concerning 
requirements for operators of small passenger-carrying CMVs published 
elsewhere in today's issue of the Federal Register. While the data has 
limitations, it is alarming and suggests the need for action to improve 
the operational safety of this group of motor carriers.

[[Page 2769]]

    Although all of the comments discussed above were submitted prior 
to the passage of the MCSIA, the implementation of section 4008 of the 
TEA-21 and section 212 of the MCSIA are so closely related that the 
comments are relevant to this rulemaking proposal. Section 212 of the 
MCSIA gives the agency explicit direction on how to implement the 
statutory change in the CMV definition provided at section 4008 of the 
TEA-21.
    As indicated in the preamble of the final rule concerning 
requirements for operators of small passenger-carrying CMVs, published 
elsewhere in today's Federal Register, the agency stands by the FHWA's 
previously stated position that the phrase ``for compensation'' is 
synonymous with ``for hire'' and its April 4, 1997 (62 FR 16370, 
16407), interpretation of ``for-hire motor carrier.'' The 
interpretation states:

    The FHWA has determined that any business entity that assesses a 
fee, monetary or otherwise, directly or indirectly for the 
transportation of passengers is operating as a for-hire carrier. 
Thus, the transportation for compensation in interstate commerce of 
passengers by motor vehicles (except in six-passenger taxicabs 
operating on fixed routes) \2\ in the following operations would 
typically be subject to all parts of the FMCSRs, including part 387: 
Whitewater river rafters; hotel/motel shuttle transporters; rental 
car shuttle services, etc. These are examples of for-hire carriage 
because some fee is charged, usually indirectly in a total package 
charge or other assessment for transportation performed.
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    \2\ The reference to six-passenger taxicabs operating on fixed 
routes was included in the guidance due to a CMV definition set 
forth in the ICC Termination Act of 1995 (ICCTA) Pub. L. 104-88, 109 
Stat. 803, 919). The ICCTA amended the statutory definition of a 
CMV, by adding the words ``designed or used to transport passengers 
for compensation, but exclude(s) vehicles providing taxicab service 
and having a capacity of not more than 6 passengers and not operated 
on a regular route or between specified places.'' The TEA-21 
definition removed this clause from the definition of CMV.

    The interpretation noted above simply lays out the agency's view of 
its statutory authority, and the current applicability of the safety 
regulations to certain for-hire motor carriers.
    Although the FMCSA's interpretation of ``for compensation'' remains 
unchanged, the agency is proposing that this rulemaking be applicable 
only to a subset of the for-hire motor carriers of passengers covered 
by the final rule concerning requirements for all operators of small 
passenger-carrying CMVs, published elsewhere in this issue of the 
Federal Register. The agency is proposing that this rulemaking be 
applicable only to entities that assess a fee, monetary or otherwise, 
directly for the transportation of passengers. Therefore, the use of 
small passenger-carrying CMVs for compensation by operators, such as 
hotel/motel shuttle transporters, rental car shuttle services, 
whitewater river rafters, etc., would not be subject to the safety-
related operational regulations, irrespective of the distance traveled. 
Since these businesses do not hold themselves out to the public as 
providers of transportation services, the FMCSA does not intend to 
impose the safety-related operational regulations on them at this time. 
The agency requests comments on this issue.

Coverage of Camioneta Operations

    Section 212 of the MCSIA requires the FMCSA to make the safety 
regulations applicable to camioneta operations. The statute did not 
include a definition of the term camioneta, but the Congress issued an 
explanatory statement (see 145 Cong. Rec. H12868, at H12873 (November 
18, 1999)) that suggests that camioneta operations are those that 
involve transporting passengers from Mexico to the United States and 
vice versa.
    The FMCSA does not have information concerning the number of motor 
carriers with CMV operations that fit the congressional description of 
camioneta. In its comments to the September 3, 1999, interim final rule 
and the NPRM published on the same day, the Texas Department of Public 
Safety described camionetas operations as those transporting passengers 
``between major cities in Texas and the other southern states to and 
from our borders with Mexico.'' The FMCSA has analyzed detailed 
accident data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's 
(NHTSA) Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) and believes the 
accident data suggests that if there are fatal accidents involving 
these operators, the vast majority of the vehicles appear to be 
registered in the United States. While they may travel between points 
in Mexico and the United States, the vehicles are not necessarily based 
in Mexico.
    Rather than drafting a rule that specifically targets, in part, 
vehicles that actually cross the border, the FMCSA believes section 212 
should be implemented by focusing on the distance traveled. A distance-
based approach would capture CMV operators that transport passengers 
from the U.S.-Mexico border to major cities in Texas and other States. 
Carriers that actually cross the border would also be covered, but only 
in those instances where the transportation of any of the passengers 
exceeds a certain distance. The distance the passengers were 
transported would be determined by looking at the point of origin and 
the destination, irrespective of which side of the U.S.-Mexico border 
the trip begins or ends. The FMCSA requests comments from State and 
local enforcement agencies on whether a distance-based approach would 
ensure coverage of the vast majority of camioneta operations as 
described by the Congress.

Coverage of Van Operations Determined To Pose Serious Safety Risks

    In addition to requiring the FMCSA to make the safety-related 
operational regulations applicable to camioneta operations, the 
Congress required that the safety regulations apply to other types of 
small passenger-carrying CMV operations beyond commercial zones 
believed to pose safety concerns. The FMCSA believes that the Congress 
intended to extend the reach of the FMCSRs to interstate van operations 
where the distance traveled is comparable to that covered by intercity 
motor coach operations. Commenters to the previous rulemaking documents 
discussed above were concerned about trips between major cities in the 
U.S. Many of these small passenger-carrying operations appear to be the 
ones the Congress referred to as ``* * * vans operating in interstate 
commerce outside of commercial zones that have been determined to pose 
serious safety risks.'' With this in mind, the FMCSA believes section 
212 of the MCSIA would be implemented most effectively by making the 
FMCSRs applicable to interstate for-hire (direct compensation only) van 
operations where the distance traveled exceeds a certain distance. This 
would result in a rule that is applicable to small passenger-carrying 
CMVs used to transport passengers as follows: (1) From Mexico to the 
U.S. and vice versa, (2) from Canada to the U.S. and vice versa, and 
(3) between various points in the U.S. If the distance covered meets a 
certain threshold, then the CMV operation would be covered. Based on 
the FMCSA's analysis of the accident data currently available, the 
agency believes the threshold should be 75 air miles (86.3 statute 
miles or 138.9 kilometers). A discussion of the accident data analysis 
is presented below.
    The FMCSA believes the distance-based approach is an appropriate 
response to the congressional mandate that the rules be made applicable 
to: (1) Commercial vans commonly referred to as ``camionetas,'' and (2) 
small passenger-carrying CMVs operating outside of commercial zones 
that have been determined to pose serious safety

[[Page 2770]]

risks. The agency believes the accident data supports this approach in 
that the proposed rule would cover camionetas, as described by the 
Congress, and other CMV operations that have been determined to pose 
serious safety risks.

Analysis of Accident Data Concerning Large Vans

    The FMCSA has reviewed accident data from the NHTSA's FARS and 
General Estimates System (GES) to determine the prevalence of crashes 
involving large vans. Generally, these databases do not enable the 
agency to identify accidents involving passenger-carrying vehicles 
designed or used to transport between 9 and 15 passengers for 
compensation in interstate commerce. However, the databases do provide 
information that could be used to generate estimates of the incidence 
of accidents involving large vans in general, and more specifically, 
fatal accidents involving large vans transporting 9 or more passengers 
(including the driver) at the time of the accident.

GES Data

    In 1998, there were approximately 145,000 accidents involving large 
vans. These accidents resulted in 1,714 fatalities and approximately 
244,000 injuries. This accident data includes all large vans (those 
designed to transport passengers, as well as those used for other 
purposes such as parcel delivery) and is not limited to vans being 
operated for compensation in interstate commerce. Nonetheless, the data 
are alarming in terms of the number of accidents, injuries, and 
fatalities associated with the operation of large vans.

FARS Data

    As part of its effort to locate more detailed data concerning 
accident involvement of vans designed or used to transport between 9 
and 15 passengers, the agency reviewed the 1998 FARS data. In 1998, 
there were 1,464 fatal accidents involving large vans. These accidents 
resulted in 1,714 fatalities. The fatal accident number includes all 
large vans and is not limited to vans being operated for compensation 
in interstate commerce. The reason for this is that the accident 
information is not coded in a manner that would enable the FMCSA to 
determine which accidents involved the operation of large vans in 
commerce, or more specifically, vans being operated for compensation in 
interstate commerce.
    To better estimate the fatal accident involvement of vans most 
likely to have been used to transport passengers for compensation, the 
agency attempted to separate fatal accidents involving commuter 
vanpools transporting individuals to and from work from accidents 
likely to involve motor carriers. This was done because the agency does 
not consider most vanpools to be for-hire passenger carrier operations. 
For the purpose of this analysis, the agency assumed that vanpools 
usually operate in the morning and afternoon rush hours--the agency 
used 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. as the morning rush hour, and 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. as 
the evening rush hour. The use of these time frames as the morning and 
afternoon rush hours is consistent with the FHWA's ``Summary of Travel 
Trends 1995 Nationwide Personal Transportation Survey,'' FHWA-PL-00-
006, December 1999. The FHWA conducts this survey to obtain information 
on personal travel of U.S. households with respect to why, how, when, 
where from, where to, how frequently, how long, and with whom.
    Looking at the accidents by time of day, there were 537 fatal 
accidents involving large vans between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. 
and 496 accidents involving these vehicles between the hours of 7 p.m. 
and 6 a.m. In addition, there were 102 fatal accidents during the 
weekends, resulting in a total of 1,135 fatal accidents not likely to 
involve vanpools.
    When the data is examined with a focus on large vans actually 
transporting 9 or more people at the time of the accident, there were 
58 fatal accidents in which the large van was transporting 9 or more 
people at the time of the accident resulting in 101 fatalities. Thirty-
six of these accidents occurred during non-rush hours (20 fatal 
accidents between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. and 16 fatal accidents between 7 
p.m. and 6 a.m.).
    Given the current coding of accident data, the FMCSA believes the 
only crashes for which there is certainty that the large van was 
designed or used to transport between 9 and 15 passengers would be 
those cases in which the number of occupants in the van at the time of 
the crash was equal to 9 or more. The agency acknowledges that there 
may have been a number of fatal accidents in which large vans were 
transporting less than 9 passengers. However, the agency does not 
currently have data about the number of crashes involving vehicles that 
were designed to transport between 9 and 15 passengers, but were being 
used to transport less than 9 passengers at the time of the crash. 
Therefore, the agency believes that in 1998 there may have been as few 
as 36 fatal accidents involving the operation of large van for 
compensation based on the number of crashes in which the vehicle was 
transporting 9 or more passengers at the time of the crash. The agency 
estimates that there may have been as many as 1,099 \3\ other crashes 
with vehicles designed to transport between 9 and 15 passengers, but 
transporting less than 9 passengers for compensation at the time of the 
crash.
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    \3\ This number is the result of taking the 1,135 non-rush hour 
fatal crashes involving large vans and subtracting the 36 non-rush 
hour fatal crashes in which there were 9 or more passengers onboard 
at the time of the crash.
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Additional FARS Analysis Using Accident Location Codes, Driver and 
Vehicle Information

    The FMCSA reviewed the data fields in FARS to determine whether it 
would be possible to estimate the distance a large van may have 
traveled prior to being involved in the fatal accident, and if there 
was any way to identify those accidents most likely to have involved 
interstate transportation. The agency determined that FARS could 
provide potentially useful information to help identify the accidents 
most likely to have involved interstate transportation based on a 
comparison of data fields for the State in which the vehicle crashed, 
the State in which the vehicle was registered, and the State of the 
driver's license.
    The agency estimated the approximate distance between the 
geographic area of the driver's residential zip code and the county and 
State in which the crash took place. The distances were computed for 
almost all fatal accidents involving a large van transporting 9 or more 
people at the time of the accident for calendar years 1996, 1997, and 
1998. The agency operated under the assumption that the most likely 
trips to be considered interstate in nature are ones in which the State 
of registration of the vehicle and State of issuance for the driver's 
license differ from the State where the vehicle crashed.
    There were 161 fatal accidents between 1996 and 1998 (49 crashes in 
1996, 54 crashes in 1997, and 58 crashes in 1998) in which the vehicle 
was transporting 9 or more passengers at the time of the crash. The 
FARS information for seven of the accidents lacked one or more of the 
data items needed for the analysis. Two of the accidents involved U.S. 
Government vehicles and were excluded from the analysis since they 
would not be covered by the proposed rulemaking--the FMCSRs include an 
exception for transportation performed by the Federal government, a 
State, or

[[Page 2771]]

any political subdivision of a State (49 CFR 390.3(f)). Five of the 
accidents involved Mexico-licensed drivers operating vehicles 
registered in the U.S. and one involved a Mexico-licensed driver 
operating a vehicle for which the database did not include registration 
information. It was not possible to complete the distance analysis for 
those accidents.
    Of the remaining 146 fatal accidents in which the large van was 
transporting 9 or more people at the time of the crash, 45 of them 
(approximately 31 percent) appear to have been interstate trips with 
the crash taking place in a State other than the State where the driver 
was licensed, and at a distance greater than 100 statute miles from the 
driver's residence. The shortest distance among the likely interstate 
trips was just over 100 statute miles, while the longest was more than 
2,100 statute miles (a trip involving a driver licensed in California, 
a large van registered in Oregon, and a fatal crash in Louisiana).
    Forty-seven of the 146 fatal accidents (approximately 32 percent) 
appear to have been intrastate trips with the fatal accident taking 
place in the State where the driver was licensed and where the vehicle 
was registered, and at a distance greater than 100 statute miles from 
the driver's residence. The shortest distance among the likely 
intrastate trips was just over 100 statute miles, while the longest was 
more than 550 statute miles (a trip involving a driver licensed in 
California, a large van registered in California, and a fatal crash in 
California).
    Fifty-four of the accidents (37 percent) occurred within 100 
statute miles of the driver's residence with only a small percentage 
(seven out of 54 crashes, approximately 13 percent) involving what 
appears to be an interstate trip.
    Overall, approximately 63 percent of the fatal accidents involving 
large vans occurred between 100 and 2,200 statute miles from the 
driver's residence with the longest distances linked typically to the 
trips that were most likely interstate in nature.
    It is not possible to determine the distance the driver may have 
traveled to get to the work-reporting location, or to determine whether 
the van was operated by an individual working from home. However, the 
FMCSA has factored into the analysis a maximum distance of 25 statute 
miles between the driver's residence and a possible work-reporting 
location. The FHWA's ``Summary of Travel Trends 1995 Nationwide 
Personal Transportation Survey,'' cited above, indicates that the 
average commute to work among the individuals participating in the 
survey was 11.63 miles. To decrease the likelihood of underestimating 
the average of commuting distances of drivers of small passenger-
carrying CMVs, the FMCSA is using an estimate of 25 miles, a little 
more than twice the average in the nationwide survey. When the 
estimated 25 statute miles for commuting to work is deducted from the 
estimates of the distance between the driver's residence and the crash 
location, the result is an estimate of 75 statute miles as the distance 
that the driver may have traveled from the work reporting location to 
the crash site.
    For simplicity, the agency would use 75 air miles which is 
equivalent to 86.3 statute miles because the motor carrier industry and 
enforcement community have experience using air miles, inasmuch as the 
current hours-of-service rules include an exemption from the records of 
duty status requirement for drivers operating within a 100 air-mile 
radius of their work-reporting location.
    Based on the preceding analysis, the FMCSA believes a mileage 
threshold of 75 air miles (86.3 statute miles or 138.9 kilometers) 
should be used for determining the applicability of the safety 
regulations to for-hire operations of small passenger-carrying vehicles 
operating in interstate commerce. The analysis indicates that 
approximately 63 percent of 146 fatal accidents in which a large van 
was actually transporting 9 or more occupants at the time of the crash 
involved drivers that may have traveled more than 75 statute miles from 
their work-reporting location. Although the agency does not have data 
to determine which vans were being used in commerce (either interstate 
or intrastate), or the actual distances from drivers' work reporting 
locations to the site of the fatal crash, the agency believes the data 
are compelling and suggest the need for action to improve the safety of 
operation of these vehicles. The agency requests comments on the 
methodology used to determine the distance and/or mileage threshold and 
whether air miles or statute miles should be used.

Discussion of the Estimated Population of For-Hire Van Operations

    The FMCSA is proposing that the FMCSRs be made applicable to small 
passenger-carrying CMV operations that are directly compensated for 
long-haul interstate transportation. Generally, these same operations 
are already subject to the agency's licensing (i.e., operating 
authority) and insurance requirements. To get an estimate of the number 
of motor carriers of passengers that are likely to be affected by this 
rulemaking the FMCSA reviewed its database of for-hire motor carriers 
of passengers that have interstate operating authority. As of February 
2000, there were 1,648 for-hire motor carriers of passengers with 
active authority to operate CMVs with a seating capacity of 15 
passengers or less. Each of these motor carriers has on file with the 
FMCSA proof of financial responsibility at the minimum level required 
for the operation of vehicles designed to transport less than 16 
passengers. This number does not include motor carriers that may have 
pending applications for operating authority, passenger carriers shown 
as inactive because their authority was revoked for failure to maintain 
evidence of the required minimum levels of financial responsibility, or 
private motor carriers of passengers. This number may also overstate 
the affected population since some of the licensed carriers may be 
exclusively operating equipment carrying less than 9 passengers (e.g., 
luxury sedans or limousines designed to transport less than 9 
passengers). Therefore, using the information from the FMCSA's database 
of motor carriers of passengers, the agency believes a reasonable 
estimate of the population of motor carriers that could be subject to 
this rulemaking is approximately 1,648. The agency requests comments on 
this issue.

Discussion of Proposal

    The FMCSA is proposing to revise the FMCSRs to require that motor 
carriers operating CMVs that are designed or used to transport between 
9 and 15 passengers (including the driver) for direct compensation in 
interstate commerce (including transportation between points in Canada 
and Mexico, and points in the U.S.) comply with the regulations 
contained in 49 CFR parts 390, 391, 392, 393, 395 and 396, when the 
transportation of any passenger covers a distance greater than 75 air 
miles (86.3 statute miles or 138.9 kilometers). This means that these 
motor carriers would be required to ensure that each of their drivers 
meet all of the minimum qualifications for interstate CMV drivers, 
including physical qualifications, prescribed in part 391, and maintain 
records to document compliance. In addition, the driver 
disqualification provisions of 49 CFR 391.15 would also be applicable. 
The driving rules of part 392 would be applicable and the vehicles 
would be required to meet all applicable rules concerning parts and 
accessories necessary for safe operation covered under part 393.
    Each motor carrier would be required to have a systematic 
inspection, repair,

[[Page 2772]]

and maintenance program for the CMVs it operates, and to ensure that 
vehicles are in safe and proper operating condition at all times. They 
would also be required to maintain records to document compliance with 
these rules.
    Motor carriers would be required to ensure that each vehicle is 
inspected at least once every 12 months by a qualified inspector/
mechanic and that any motor carrier employee that is responsible for 
the adequacy of any brake-related inspection, repair, or maintenance 
work meets certain minimum qualifications. They would also be required 
to maintain records to document compliance with these rules.
    In addition to the above, motor carriers must ensure that their 
drivers comply with the hours-of-service requirements. Drivers would 
not be allowed to drive more than 10 hours after eight consecutive 
hours off duty or operate CMVs after being on duty more than 15 hours, 
following eight consecutive hours off duty. Furthermore, drivers would 
not be allowed to drive after being on duty 60 hours in any seven 
consecutive days if the motor carrier does not operate CMVs every day 
of the week (60-hour rule), or after being on duty 70 hours in any 
eight consecutive days if the motor carrier operates CMVs every day of 
the week (70-hour rule). For drivers that operate beyond a 100 air-mile 
radius of the normal work-reporting location, a record of duty status 
(log book) would be required to document the number of hours on duty 
and the number of hours driving.
    The FMCSA is not (emphasis added) proposing to make the commercial 
driver's license and controlled substances and alcohol testing 
requirements applicable to operators of small passenger-carrying CMVs, 
because neither section 4008 of the TEA-21 nor section 212 of the MCSIA 
amend the statutory definition of CMV used for those programs (49 
U.S.C. 31301). Consequently, the passenger-carrying threshold for CDL 
and controlled substances and alcohol testing requirements remains at 
16 (including the driver).
    The FMCSA acknowledges that most of the rules that would be made 
applicable to operators of small passenger-carrying CMVs were developed 
to ensure safety in the motor coach and trucking industries. However, 
given the type of passenger-carrying operation that the agency proposes 
to regulate, the FMCSA believes these requirements are appropriate. The 
van operations that would be regulated have similar operational 
characteristics as intercity motor coach businesses and should be 
required to meet similar standards of safety. The agency requests 
comments on this issue.

Implementation Schedule

    The FMCSA is proposing that motor carriers be required to comply 
with the safety requirements 90 days after the effective date of the 
final rule. This means that motor carriers would have approximately 120 
days after the date of publication of the final rule to comply with the 
rules. The agency believes this is sufficient time for the motor 
carriers that would be affected to establish and implement safety 
management controls to achieve compliance with the FMCSRs. Furthermore, 
the agency believes that the FARS and GES data suggest that it is in 
the public interest to require compliance with the FMCSRs as soon as 
practicable. The FMCSA requests comments on this issue.

Relationship Between Proposed Rules and 49 CFR Part 398, 
Transportation of Migrant Workers

    The FMCSA has reviewed the proposed requirements and determined 
that some of the motor carriers that would be covered by this 
rulemaking may currently be subject to the agency's rules for 
transporters of migrant workers. Currently, in 49 CFR part 398 of the 
FMCSRs, the agency prescribes certain requirements for motor carriers 
transporting migrant workers for a total distance of more than 75 miles 
in interstate or foreign commerce. Section 398.1 defines a migrant 
worker as any individual proceeding to or returning from employment in 
agriculture as defined in section 3(f) of the Fair Labor Standards Act 
of 1938, as amended (29 U.S.C. 203(f)) or section 3121(g) of the 
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 3121(g)). The term ``carrier 
of migrant workers by motor vehicle'' means any person, with certain 
limited exceptions, who transports in interstate or foreign commerce at 
any one time three or more migrant workers to or from their employment 
by any motor vehicle other than a passenger automobile or station 
wagon.
    Carriers of migrant workers that are directly compensated for their 
transportation services and that use vehicles designed or used to 
transport between 9 and 15 passengers would be covered by the proposed 
rules which are generally more stringent than the requirements of part 
398. One example where this is not the case is Sec. 398.6, which 
prohibits motor carriers from permitting or requiring drivers to 
operate vehicles for more than 10 hours in any 24-hour period, unless 
the driver is given eight hours rest immediately following the 10 hours 
driving time. This daily limit is more restrictive than the comparable 
provision for drivers of larger CMVs (Sec. 395.3(a)(1)), which 
currently allows a driver to drive up to 16 hours out of 24 in certain 
circumstances.
    Although compliance with part 395 would result in a less 
restrictive requirement in this instance, the FMCSA does not believe 
this deviation is significant in terms of highway safety. The 
restriction in part 398 is based only on the amount of time the driver 
operates the vehicle for the transporter of migrant workers and does 
not take into account other activities that may affect the driver's 
fitness for duty and level of alertness. Part 395 includes rules to 
prohibit driving after being on-duty (both driving time and time spent 
performing other tasks) for more than 15 hours following at least eight 
consecutive hours off-duty. Part 395 also takes into account any 
compensated work, irrespective of whether the work was performed for 
the motor carrier. For example, if the driver has a part-time job, the 
time spent on the part-time job must be factored into the calculations 
to determine the available driving time. The FMCSA believes that 
overall, part 395 is more stringent than part 398 and that compliance 
with all of the requirements of part 395 would improve safety.
    The FMCSA believes that it is appropriate to impose tougher 
standards on carriers of migrant workers if their operations are 
conducted in a manner similar to intercity motorcoach businesses. The 
agency would amend Sec. 398.2, Applicability, of the transporters of 
migrant worker rules to make it clear to the affected motor carriers 
when they must comply with the same FMCSRs as intercity motor coach 
operations. The agency requests comments on this issue.

Applicability of Safety Fitness Procedures to Operators of Small 
Passenger-Carrying CMVs

    Part 385 of the FMCSRs establishes procedures to determine the 
safety fitness of motor carriers, to assign safety ratings, to take 
remedial action when required, and to prohibit motor carriers receiving 
a safety rating of ``unsatisfactory'' from operating a CMV. If the 
proposed requirements are adopted, motor carriers operating small 
passenger-carrying CMVs would be covered by the same safety fitness 
procedures and standards used to evaluate other interstate motor 
carriers. This means that motor carriers affected by this rulemaking 
would be subject to compliance reviews and receive safety

[[Page 2773]]

ratings. For those that receive an ``unsatisfactory'' safety rating, 
they would be prohibited from operating CMVs to transport passengers in 
interstate commerce. In addition, these motor carriers would be 
ineligible to contract or subcontract with any Federal agency for 
transportation of passengers in interstate commerce. The agency would 
amend Sec. 385.1, Purpose and scope, to reflect the new passenger-
carrying threshold for the applicability of the FMCSRs and the safety 
fitness procedures. The agency believes the current safety fitness 
procedures should be used and requests comments on this issue.

Effect of Proposed Rule on the Motor Carrier Safety Assistance 
Program (MCSAP)

    The MCSAP is a Federal grant program that provides financial 
assistance to States to reduce the number and severity of accidents and 
hazardous materials incidents involving CMVs. The goal of the MCSAP is 
to reduce CMV-involved accidents, fatalities, and injuries through 
consistent, uniform, and effective CMV safety programs. The MCSAP sets 
forth the conditions for participation by States and local 
jurisdictions and promotes the adoption and uniform enforcement of 
safety rules, regulations, and standards compatible with the FMCSRs and 
Federal Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMRs) for both interstate and 
intrastate motor carriers and drivers. The MCSAP rules are codified in 
49 CFR parts 350 and 355.
    On March 21, 2000 (65 FR 15092), the FMCSA published a final rule 
revising the MCSAP to comply with the provisions of the TEA-21. This 
action broadened the scope of the MCSAP beyond enforcement activities 
and programs by requiring participating States to assume greater 
responsibility for improving motor carrier safety. These rules now 
require States to develop performance-based plans reflecting national 
priorities and performance goals, revise the MCSAP funding distribution 
formula, and create a new incentive funding program.
    Section 350.201 establishes the conditions States must meet to 
qualify for basic program funds. Those conditions include assuming 
responsibility for improving motor carrier safety and adopting and 
enforcing State safety laws and regulations that are compatible with 
the FMCSRs (49 CFR parts 390-397) and the HMRs, except as may be 
determined by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administrator to be 
inapplicable to a State enforcement program.
    Section 350.341 establishes the variances from the FMCSRs allowed 
in State laws and regulations. These variances apply only to motor 
carriers, CMV drivers, and CMVs engaged in intrastate commerce and not 
subject to Federal jurisdiction. Under the current variances, a State 
may exempt a CMV from all or part of its laws or regulations applicable 
to intrastate commerce, provided that neither the gross vehicle weight, 
gross vehicle weight rating, gross combination weight, nor gross 
combination weight rating of the vehicle equals or exceeds 11,801 
kilograms (26,001 pounds). However, a State may not exempt a CMV from 
such laws or regulations if the vehicle: (1) transports hazardous 
materials requiring a placard; or (2) is designed or used to transport 
16 or more people, including the driver.
    As a condition of participation in the MCSAP, States would be 
required to adopt and enforce compatible regulations concerning the 
interstate operation of small passenger-carrying CMVs if the FMCSA 
adopts the proposed rules. The agency does not intend to amend the 
variances under Sec. 350.341, which means that the States would not be 
required to adopt and enforce regulations concerning the intrastate 
operation of small passenger-carrying CMVs. The FMCSA would encourage 
the States to adopt and enforce intrastate laws and regulations 
concerning the operation of these CMVs if the accident data warrants 
such action.
    Based on the agency's analysis of the FARS data for 1996, 1997, and 
1998 approximately 32 percent (51 out of 161) of all fatal crashes 
involving large vans transporting 9 or more passengers at the time of 
the accident during the past three years occurred in just three States 
(California (24 fatal accidents), Texas (15 fatal accidents), and 
Florida (12 fatal accidents)). This suggests that it is not necessary 
for each State to adopt and enforce intrastate regulations concerning 
small passenger-carrying CMVs. However, States such as California, 
Texas, and Florida should give strong consideration to adopting and 
enforcing intrastate regulations given the FARS data.
    The FMCSA requests public comment on the feasibility of making the 
adoption and enforcement of compatible safety regulations applicable to 
small passenger-carrying CMVs operated in interstate commerce a 
condition of receiving MCSAP funds. The agency also requests comments 
on whether the variances should be amended to require the adoption and 
enforcement of intrastate regulations applicable to the intrastate 
operation of these types of vehicles.

Itemization of the Estimated Costs of Imposing Safety-Related 
Requirements

    The FMCSA has attempted to evaluate the potential costs of the 
proposed rule. The agency has considered currently available data 
concerning the number of affected motor carriers, CMVs, and drivers. As 
indicated earlier, the agency estimates that this rulemaking could 
affect up to 1,648 for-hire motor carriers of passengers with active 
authority to operate CMVs with a seating capacity of 15 passengers or 
less. Each of these motor carriers has on file with the FMCSA proof of 
financial responsibility at the minimum level required for the 
operation of vehicles designed to transport less than 16 passengers. 
This number does not include the following: (1) Motor carriers that may 
have pending applications for operating authority; (2) passenger 
carriers shown as inactive because their authority was revoked for 
failure to maintain evidence of the required minimum levels of 
financial responsibility; (3) private motor carriers of passengers; or 
(4) carriers which also operate larger vehicles, as well as smaller 
vehicles. This number may also overstate the population of affected 
carriers since some of the licensed carriers may be exclusively 
operating equipment carrying less than 9 passengers.
    With regard to the number of drivers and vehicles that would be 
covered by the safety regulations, the FMCSA does not have a definitive 
source for this information at this time because for-hire small 
passenger motor carriers are not required to complete the Form MCS-150, 
Motor Carrier Identification Report, which is used to gather 
information about motor carriers subject to the FMCSRs. As a result of 
the final rule concerning requirements for operators of small 
passenger-carrying CMVs published elsewhere in today's Federal 
Register, the agency will begin to gather data to better estimate the 
number of affected carriers, drivers, and vehicles.
    In the absence of other sources of information, the agency believes 
certain estimates provided by the International Taxicab and Livery 
Association (ITLA) may be useful in helping to estimate the number of 
drivers and vehicles that would be covered by this proposal. In 
comments submitted in response to the FHWA's August 5, 1998, advance 
notice of proposed rulemaking (63 FR 41766) on the subject of safety 
requirements for the operators of small passenger-carrying CMVs, the 
ITLA estimated that there are 74,000 vans nationwide being operated for 
compensation. The ITLA

[[Page 2774]]

estimated that van fleets average less than 10 vans. In addition, the 
ITLA estimated that if the agency made the FMCSRs applicable to the 
operation of small passenger-carrying vehicles, approximately 14,000 
companies, 125,000 vehicles, and 165,000 drivers would be covered.
    The FMCSA believes most of the estimates provided by the ITLA 
appear to be representative of businesses that would not be covered by 
this proposal in that this rulemaking would be applicable to long-haul 
van operations and not for-hire operations that are local in nature. 
However, the agency will use the ITLA's estimate of the number of 
vehicles per fleet (10 vans) as a baseline estimate for the number of 
vehicles that would be covered. This means that approximately 16,500 
small passenger-carrying vehicles (10 vans per fleet  x  1,648 for-hire 
operations) would be covered under the FMCSRs.
    The agency estimates that the number of drivers would be a fraction 
of the 165,000 drivers in the ITLA's estimate since the proposal is 
targeted at drivers in the long-haul segment of the small passenger 
carrier industry. The agency believes the total number of drivers would 
be approximately 18,300 (165,000 divided by nine) since the number of 
motor carriers currently operating as for-hire motor carriers of 
passengers with small passenger-carrying vehicles is approximately one-
ninth of the ITLA's estimate of all for-hire motor carriers.

Earnings of Commercial Van Drivers, Mechanics, and Supervisors

    In order to evaluate accurately the cost implications of the 
proposed rule, the FMCSA reviewed earnings information from the U.S. 
Department of Labor. The FMCSA used information from the ``Occupational 
Outlook Handbook,'' 2000-01 Edition, Bulletin 2520. The earnings 
information is being used to determine the costs of requiring motor 
carrier employees and individuals who perform services for motor 
carriers to complete certain records that would not be completed in the 
normal course of business and to perform certain tasks associated with 
complying with the proposed requirements.
    The agency has decided preliminarily to use the earnings figures 
for chauffeurs because the drivers in question generally do not meet 
the qualifications requirements for intercity bus drivers. The median 
hourly earnings of taxi drivers and chauffeurs, excluding tips, were 
$7.48 in 1998. The middle 50 percent earned between $6.02 and $9.79 an 
hour. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $5.55 and the highest 10 
percent earned more than $12.44 an hour. For the purpose of preparing 
cost estimates for imposing safety-related operational rules, the 
agency will use $12.44 an hour to decrease the likelihood of 
underestimating the impact of this rulemaking.
    The ``Occupational Outlook Handbook'' shows the estimated median 
hourly earnings for automotive mechanics and service technicians, 
including commission, were $13.16 in 1998. The middle 50 percent earned 
between $10.02 and $17.14 an hour. The lowest 10 percent earned less 
than $7.44 and the highest 10 percent earned more than $21.25 an hour. 
For the purpose of preparing cost estimates for this rulemaking the 
agency is using $21.25 an hour.
    The FMCSA is using $22 an hour as the estimated earnings for 
supervisors and managers of transportation. The ``Occupational Outlook 
Handbook'' did not include a specific category for transportation 
supervisors so the agency is operating under the assumption that these 
supervisors are paid more than the individuals they supervise. The 
agency made an estimate that the supervisors are paid $ 0.75 an hour 
more than the service technicians, or $22. The agency requests comments 
on this estimate.

Medical Examination and Certification

    Drivers subject to the proposed rule would be required to obtain a 
medical examiner's certificate. The FMCSA estimates that the average 
cost of a comprehensive medical examination is approximately $300. This 
cost includes an estimate of the driver's out-of-pocket expenses or co-
payment and an estimate of the amount the driver's health insurance 
company would pay the medical examiner. Since a medical examiner's 
certificate is usually valid for 24 months, the FMCSA estimates the 
prorated annual cost of CMV driver medical certifications to be 
approximately $2,745,000 (($300 per exam per driver)  x  (18,300 
drivers) = $5,490,000 every two years) based on an estimated 18,300 
drivers who would be subject to the proposed rule.
    Generally, it takes a medical examiner (i.e., a physician, doctor 
of osteopathy, physician assistant, advance practice nurse, or doctor 
of chiropractic) about eight minutes to complete a medical examination 
form and one minute to fill out the medical certificate. Based on the 
$132,000 median annual earning of a general/family practice physician 
listed in the Department of Labor's ``Occupational Outlook Handbook'' 
and an estimated 2,080 hours of work per year, the earnings are equal 
to approximately $63 an hour. The estimated costs to the industry for 
having medical examiners complete the required paperwork would be 
$172,935 ($63 an hour  x  (9 minutes  x  1 hour per 60 minutes)  x  
18,300 medical exams performed for drivers). This is the cost every two 
years. The cost each year would be $86,467.50.
    Therefore, the total annual costs for the physical exam would be 
approximately $2,831,467. Comments on this estimate are welcomed.

Driver Qualification Files

    The FMCSA estimates that the operators of small passenger-carrying 
CMVs would have to create 18,300 driver qualifications files during the 
first year and create approximately 2,379 new files (13 percent of 
18,300) each year thereafter as a result of driver turnover, 
retirement, etc. The estimate of driver turnover is the same used for 
previous information collection burden estimates for driver 
qualifications files. This means that motor carriers would be 
responsible for maintaining approximately 15,921 existing files every 
year after the first year this rule is in effect and creating 2,379 new 
files.
    The creation of a single, complete driver qualification file 
involves an annual expenditure of approximately 24 minutes, which is 
the sum of 20 minutes of paperwork by a safety director, driver 
supervisor, or equivalent position, and 4 minutes of paperwork by a 
driver. For the first year, the cost would be $148,793 ((0.33 hours per 
driver employed  x  18,300 drivers  x  $22 an hour per supervisor) plus 
(0.07 hours per driver employed  x  18,300 driver  x  $12.44 an hour 
per driver)), or $132,858 for the time supervisors spend on this task 
and $15,935 for drivers' time. For subsequent years the cost for 
creating new driver qualification files would be $19,342 ((0.33 hours 
per driver employed  x  2,379 drivers  x  $22 an hour per supervisor) 
plus (0.07 hours per driver employed  x  2,379 driver  x  $12.44 an 
hour per driver)), or $17,271 for the time supervisors spend on this 
task and $2,071 for drivers' time.
    Each driver is required to furnish his/her employing motor carrier 
with a list of traffic violations. The FMCSA estimates that it takes a 
driver approximately two minutes to complete the list. Motor carriers 
are required to conduct an annual review of their drivers' records. The 
agency estimates that it takes approximately five minutes per driver to 
complete this task. The cost of complying with the list of traffic 
violations is $5,941 (15,921 drivers  x  (0.03 hours per driver)  x  
($12.44 an hour

[[Page 2775]]

for a driver)). The cost of complying with the annual review is $28,021 
((15,921 drivers)  x  (0.08 hours per driver)  x  ($22 an hour for a 
supervisor)). The total cost per year for the annual list of violations 
and the review of the driving record is $33,962.
    Therefore, the estimated cost for driver qualification files is 
$148,793 for the first year carriers would be required to comply with 
the safety-related operational provisions of the FMCSRs, and $59,245 
for each subsequent year ($19,342 for creating new qualification files, 
$5,941 for the list of traffic violations, and $33,962 for the driving 
record review). The agency requests comments on these estimates.

Records of Duty Status

    As indicated above the FMCSA believes the proposed rule would be 
applicable to 18,300 drivers. It is estimated that each driver would 
spend approximately 2.5 minutes per workday to complete a record of 
duty status and work an average of five workdays per week and 50 weeks 
per year. The information collection burden for completing the record 
of duty status would be approximately 190,624 hours (18,300 drivers  x  
(2.5 minutes per day  x  1 hours per 60 minutes)  x  (5 days per week 
x  50 weeks per year). The estimated total cost burden related to the 
record of duty status is approximately $2,371,374 based on an estimated 
time burden of 190,624 hours at $12.44 an hour for drivers. This time 
and cost burden estimate takes into consideration two weeks of sick/
vacation leave for these drivers.
    The FMCSA estimates that each motor carrier that is affected by 
this rule would have a supervisor responsible for reviewing its 
drivers' records of duty status and that the supervisor would spend 
approximately one hour per week reviewing these records to ensure 
compliance with the hours-of-service rules. Based on an estimate of 
1,648 motor carriers operating small passenger-carrying CMVs, and one 
supervisor per motor carrier, the agency estimates a time burden of 
1,648 hours per week for 50 weeks, for a total of 82,400 hours. Using 
the earnings estimate presented above, the annual cost would be 
$1,812,800.
    Therefore, the total costs for requiring motor carriers to comply 
with part 395 would be $4,184,174. We invite comments on this issue.

Vehicle Inspection, Repair, and Maintenance

    The FMCSA estimates the various recordkeeping requirements related 
to vehicle inspection, repair, and maintenance would involve an 
estimated total annual expenditure of 12 hours and 57 minutes per CMV 
(48 minutes for systematic inspection, repair, and maintenance; 724 
minutes for driver vehicle inspection reports; and 5 minutes for 
periodic inspection). Evidence of an individual's qualifications to 
perform periodic vehicle inspections must be retained by the motor 
carrier. Evidence of an individual's qualifications to be a brake 
inspector must be retained also. The creation of these two types of 
qualification evidence involves an estimated one-time, non-recurring 
expenditure of 5 minutes by a safety director, driver supervisor, or 
equivalent position for each type of qualification.
    The systematic inspection, repair, and maintenance records would be 
completed by a mechanic. The periodic inspection records would also be 
prepared by a mechanic. The estimated hourly earnings for a mechanic is 
$21.25 as indicated above. If the mechanic must spend approximately 53 
minutes per year per vehicle, the cost per year per vehicle for 
recordkeeping would be approximately $18.77. If there are 16,500 
vehicles that would be covered by the proposed rule, the total cost for 
systematic inspection, repair, and maintenance, and periodic inspection 
records would be $309,718.
    Drivers would prepare vehicle inspection reports at the end of each 
workday. It is estimated that each driver would spend 724 minutes per 
year, or 12.06 hours per year completing the paperwork. Using the 
earnings estimate of $12.44 an hour, the cost for having drivers 
prepare vehicle inspection reports would be $150 per driver per year. 
Based on an estimate of 18,300 drivers, the cost per year for the 
industry would be $2,747,000.
    Finally, looking at the cost for inspector qualifications, the 
FMCSA believes the paperwork would be completed by a supervisor. Using 
the earnings estimate of $22 an hour, and an information collection 
burden of 10 minutes (five minutes for each certification of 
qualifications), the cost per carrier would be $3.66. The total non-
recurring cost would be approximately $6,050.
    Therefore, the estimated total cost burden related to the vehicle 
inspection, repair, and maintenance recordkeeping is approximately 
$3,057,000 per year.

Total Costs and Qualitative Estimate of Benefits

Costs

    The sum of all estimated costs of requiring operators of small 
passenger-carrying CMVs to comply with parts 391, 395, and 396 is 
approximately $10,221,000 for the first year and $10,073,000 per year 
thereafter. A summary of the first-year costs is presented below.

Summary of First-year Costs To Comply With the FMCSRs

$2,831,467 for medical exams
$148,793 for driver qualifications files ($59,245 subsequent years)
$4,184,174 for hours of service recordkeeping
$3,057,000 for inspection, repair, and maintenance
    Total: $10,221,000

Benefits

    The FMCSA is not able to quantify the benefits at this time because 
the agency does not have detailed accident causation data. However, the 
agency believes that operational safety could be improved through 
compliance with the FMCSRs. The agency believes the benefits of this 
rulemaking would outweigh the estimated costs. The benefit of 
preventing as little as one-half percent (about six accidents) of the 
1,135 non-rush hour fatal accidents involving large vans during 1998 
would outweigh the estimated costs. This is especially the case when 
consideration is given to the injury and property-damage only accidents 
that occur annually.
    The FMCSA has considered the accident information presented by the 
American Bus Association, the Amalgamated Transit Union, Casa de 
Proyecto Libertad, and Greyhound Lines, Inc. to FMCSA Docket Nos. 
FMCSA-97-2858 and 99-5710 (formerly FHWA Docket Nos. FHWA-97-2858 and 
99-5710), the rulemaking regarding operators of small passenger-
carrying CMVs within the U.S. The agency has also considered data from 
the GES and the FARS. The data suggests that there may be serious 
safety management control problems with some commercial van operations 
that transport passengers for compensation in interstate commerce. The 
application of the FMCSRs to these operations should help to reduce the 
incidence of crashes involving large vans thereby reducing to some 
extent the number of fatalities and injuries.

FMCSA Safety-Performance Study of Camionetas

    The FMCSA is nearing completion of a safety-performance and 
industry characteristics study of motor carriers operating small 
passenger-carrying CMVs for compensation across the U.S.-Mexico border. 
This action was taken to

[[Page 2776]]

learn more about a segment of the motor carrier industry that has never 
been subject to safety regulatory oversight by the FMCSA. The study 
will enable the agency to: Better understand the operational 
characteristics of camionetas; estimate the number of carriers engaged 
in these operations; assess the condition of some of the vehicles 
typically used by these carriers; assess the nature and extent of their 
operational safety problems; and learn more about the reasons customers 
select camioneta operations for their transportation needs as opposed 
to motorcoach operations. The information and data generated by the 
study will be used to help the agency make adjustments, if necessary, 
to the regulatory program that would be imposed through this 
rulemaking. The information and data may also help to validate the 
economic impact analysis of the regulations on camionetas, develop an 
outreach campaign to make them aware of the new regulatory 
responsibilities, and develop enforcement strategies by Federal and 
State authorities.

Rulemaking Analysis and Notices

    All comments received before the close of business on the comment 
closing date indicated above will be considered and will be available 
in the docket at the above address. Comments received after the comment 
closing date will be filed in the docket and will be considered to the 
extent practicable. In addition to late comments, the FMCSA will also 
continue to file relevant information in the docket after it becomes 
available after the comment period closing date. Interested persons 
should continue to examine the docket for new material.

Executive Order 12866 (Regulatory Planning and Review) and DOT 
Regulatory Policies and Procedures

    The FMCSA has determined that this rulemaking action is a 
significant regulatory action within the meaning of Executive Order 
12866 and significant within the meaning of Department of 
Transportation regulatory policies and procedures because of the 
substantial public interest concerning the possible extension of the 
applicability of the FMCSRs to a larger population of for-hire motor 
carriers of passengers. This proposed rule would require that operators 
of vehicles designed or used to carry between 9 and 15 passengers 
(including the driver) for direct compensation, in interstate commerce 
comply with the following rules when the transportation of any 
passenger covers a distance greater than 75 air miles (86.3 statute 
miles or 138.9 kilometers): 49 CFR part 391, Qualifications of drivers; 
49 CFR part 392, Driving of commercial motor vehicles; 49 CFR part 393, 
Parts and accessories necessary for safe operation; 49 CFR part 395, 
Hours of service of drivers; and 49 CFR part 396, Inspection, repair, 
and maintenance.
    Executive Order 12866 requires that regulatory agencies assess both 
the costs and benefits of intended regulations and proposed regulations 
on the basis that the benefits justify the costs. Based upon the 
information above, the agency anticipates that the economic impact 
associated with this rulemaking action would be $10,221,000 for the 
first year, and $10,073,000 for each subsequent year. The benefit of 
preventing as few as one-half percent (about six accidents) of the 
1,135 non-rush hour fatal accidents involving large vans during 1998 
would outweigh the estimated costs. The agency estimates that each 
fatality prevented would be equivalent to a benefit of $2.7 million. 
Preventing six single-fatality accidents per year would result in at 
least $16.2 million in benefits per year. Additional benefits would be 
achieved through reductions in injuries and property-damage only 
accidents involving small passenger-carrying CMVs.
    For purposes of Executive Order 12866, this rulemaking does not 
impose an economic burden greater than $100 million on these motor 
carriers. Therefore, a full regulatory evaluation is not necessary.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    In compliance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601-
612), the FMCSA has considered the effects of this regulatory action on 
small entities and determined that this proposed rule would not affect 
a substantial number of small entities, but would have a significant 
impact on them.
    The FMCSA is proposing that motor carriers operating CMVs, designed 
or used to transport between 9 and 15 passengers, in interstate 
commerce be made subject to the safety-related operational FMCSRs when 
they are directly compensated for such services, and the transportation 
of any of the passengers covers a distance greater than 75 air miles 
(86.3 statute miles or 138.9 kilometers). These motor carriers would be 
required to comply with 49 CFR parts 390, 391, 392, 393, 395, and 396. 
If most or all of these businesses are classified as small businesses 
by the Small Business Administration (SBA), the rule could affect 
approximately 1,648 small entities. However, some of these small 
entities may be foreign-based motor carriers that the agency is not 
required to include in the Regulatory Flexibility Act analysis. To 
avoid underestimating the potential impact on small entities, the FMCSA 
is using an estimate of 1,648.
    This estimate is based on the current number of for-hire motor 
carriers of passengers with active authority to operate CMVs with a 
seating capacity of 15 passengers or less. Each of these motor carriers 
has on file with the FMCSA proof of financial responsibility at the 
minimum level required for the operation of vehicles designed to 
transport less than 16 passengers. This number does not include the 
following: (1) Motor carriers that may have pending applications for 
operating authority; (2) passenger carriers shown as inactive because 
their authority was revoked for failure to maintain evidence of the 
required minimum levels of financial responsibility; (3) private motor 
carriers of passengers; or (4) carriers which also operate larger 
vehicles, as well as smaller vehicles. This number may also overstate 
the population of affected carriers since some of the licensed carriers 
may be exclusively operating equipment carrying less than 9 passengers. 
Therefore, using the information from the FMCSA's database of motor 
carriers of passengers, the agency believes a reasonable estimate of 
the population of motor carriers that could be subject to this 
rulemaking is approximately 1,648.
    As indicated earlier, the FMCSA estimates that the sum of all 
estimated costs of requiring operators of small passenger-carrying CMVs 
to comply with 49 CFR parts 391, 395, and 396 is approximately 
$10,221,000 for the first year and $10,073,000 per year thereafter. If 
the costs of the rulemaking are distributed evenly among these 1,648 
motor carriers, the costs per carrier would be approximately $6,200 for 
the first year the requirements are in effect, and a little more than 
$6,100 per year thereafter. A summary of the estimated first-year costs 
per motor carrier is presented below.

Summary of First-year Costs Per Motor Carrier To Comply With the 
FMCSRs

$1,718 for medical exams
$90 for driver qualifications files ($36 subsequent years)
$2,539 for hours-of-service recordkeeping
$1,855 for inspection, repair, and maintenance
    Total: $6,202

    The actual costs that each individual fleet would experience 
depends on the number of drivers employed and the number of small 
passenger-carrying

[[Page 2777]]

CMVs operated. The above estimates are intended to serve as a baseline 
of 10 CMVs per fleet and about 11 drivers per business. Driver-related 
costs (i.e., driver qualifications, hours-of-service) for each business 
would decrease or increase as the number of drivers employed decreases 
below the baseline or increases above the baseline. The same holds true 
for vehicle-related costs.
    The FMCSA has reviewed data from the SBA to determine the typical 
revenues for a motor carrier in the intercity and rural bus 
transportation segment of the industry. This category description 
appeared to be similar to the types of motor carrier operations that 
would be covered by this rulemaking. The SBA's 1997 ``Employer Firms, 
Employment and Estimated Receipts by Employment Size of Firm'' tables 
separated the firms into three groups: those with less than 20 
employees, those with less than 500 employees, and those with 500 or 
more employees. The FMCSA focused on the group with less than 20 
employees to be consistent with the agency's estimate of the number of 
drivers employed by each of the 1,648 motor carriers likely to be 
affected by this rule. The SBA data indicated there are 145 firms in 
this category with combined revenues of $41,793,000. For the purpose of 
this analysis, the revenues for the businesses in this group were 
divided by the number of firms resulting in an estimate of $288,227 in 
revenues per year for each carrier [($41,793,000/145 firms) = 
$288,227]. The agency requests comments on the annual revenues of 
operators of small passenger-carrying CMVs.
    The agency notes that if the revenue estimate is considered 
accurate, then a comparison of that estimate with the employee earnings 
figures presented earlier, and the estimate of 11 drivers per business, 
suggests that the drivers are more likely to receive $9.79 an hour, 
rather than $12.44 an hour.
    The costs per carrier associated with this rule would, on average, 
be approximately 2.2 percent of their revenues [(($6,200 costs per 
carrier)/($288,227 revenues per carrier))  x  100 = 2.2 percent]. For 
motor carriers with a profit margin greater than 2.2 percent, the rule 
would decrease their profits but the businesses would maintain some 
level of profit. For motor carriers with profit margins of 2.2 percent 
or less, the rule could result in the failure of the business.
    The FMCSA does not have data on the profit margins of the 1,648 
motor carriers likely to be impacted by the rule or more precise 
information about their revenues. Also, the agency does not have 
sufficient data about these motor carriers to determine the 
distribution of drivers and vehicles (e.g., the number of carriers with 
1 to 5 vehicles, the number of carriers with 6 to 10 vehicles, the 
number of carriers with 11 to 20 vehicles, etc., and similar data for 
the number of drivers) to make more precise its estimates concerning 
revenues. However, the agency believes it is appropriate to consider 
all 1,648 motor carriers of passengers likely to be affected by this 
rulemaking to be small entities to avoid underestimating the impact 
this rule will have on them. The agency believes the estimates 
presented above are reasonable given the limited information available 
about this segment of the motor carrier industry. Therefore, the agency 
has made a preliminary determination that this rule would not affect a 
substantial number of small entities. However, it would have a 
significant impact on some of these 1,648 small entities, especially in 
those cases where the profit margins are approximately 2.2 percent or 
less.
    The FMCSA has considered the comments to the previous rulemaking 
documents concerning the regulation of small passenger-carrying CMVs 
and believes this group of motor carriers appears to provide an 
important service to its clients. These motor carriers provide services 
to individuals for whom motor coach services are not available, those 
who may not be able to afford to use motor coach operators, or 
individuals who choose, for whatever reason, not to use motor coach 
operators for their intercity travel. The agency believes the industry 
is very important to those who rely on them. There is a possibility for 
failure of some small passenger-carrying CMV operations, especially 
those with profit margins of 2.2 percent or less. However, the number 
of failures among the estimated 1,648 motor carriers operating small 
passenger-carrying CMVs is expected to be small. Therefore, the agency 
believes there could be a small degree of disruption in the services 
provided by small passenger-carrying CMV operations that are not 
capable of putting into place the safety management controls necessary 
to achieve compliance with 49 CFR parts 390, 391, 392, 393, 395, and 
396.
    The FMCSA has considered other regulatory alternatives as described 
earlier and made a preliminary determination that this action is 
necessary to fulfill section 212 of the MCSIA and respond to the safety 
problem indicated by the GES and the FARS data. It is unlikely that a 
proposal for less stringent requirements would have the same potential 
for improving the safety of operations of these CMVs.
    Accordingly, the FMCSA has considered the economic impacts of the 
requirements on small entities and certifies that this rule would not 
have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities.

Executive Order 12372 (Intergovernmental Review)

    Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Program Number 20.217, Motor 
Carrier Safety. The regulations implementing Executive Order 12372 
regarding intergovernmental consultation on Federal programs and 
activities do not apply to this program.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501-
3520), Federal agencies must obtain approval from the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) for each collection of information they 
conduct, sponsor, or require through regulations. The FMCSA has 
determined that this proposal contains collection of information 
requirements for the purposes of the PRA. These requirements, when made 
final, could impact four currently-approved information collections. 
The FMCSA is proposing that motor carriers operating CMVs designed or 
used to transport 9 to 15 passengers be required to meet the 
recordkeeping requirements of 49 CFR parts 391, 395, and 396.
    Drivers of such CMVs would be required to meet the medical 
examination and certification requirements at 49 CFR part 391, subpart 
E. The information collection requirements related to that subpart have 
been approved by the OMB under provisions of the PRA and assigned the 
control number of 2126-0006 which is currently due to expire on October 
31, 2003. The FMCSA estimates it takes a medical examiner approximately 
eight minutes to complete the physical examination form and one minute 
to complete the medical examiner's certificate. The FMCSA estimates 
that approximately 18,300 drivers would be subject to the proposed 
rule. Since a medical examiner's certificate is usually made valid for 
24 months, the prorated annual time burden would be approximately 1,375 
hours per year [(0.15 hours per driver)  x  18,300 drivers = 2,750 
hours every two years  x  \1/2\]. The FMCSA will submit the amended, 
proposed medical qualification information collection to the OMB for 
review and approval. Accordingly, the FMCSA seeks public comment on 
this

[[Page 2778]]

proposed information collection requirement.
    Motor carriers that employ such CMV drivers would be required to 
maintain a complete driver qualification file for each driver in 
accordance with 49 CFR 391.51. The information collection requirements 
related to driver qualification files have been approved by the OMB 
under the provisions of the PRA and assigned the control number of 
2126-0004 which is currently due to expire on January 31, 2001. The 
FMCSA estimates the creation of a single, complete driver qualification 
file involves an annual expenditure of approximately 24 minutes per 
year per driver employed (or 0.4 hours per year per driver employed) 
which is the sum of 20 minutes of paperwork by a safety director, 
driver supervisor, or equivalent position, and 4 minutes of paperwork 
by a driver. The 24 minutes does not include the time necessary to 
complete routine and customary tasks that are involved in hiring an 
employee. Based on the estimate of 18,300 drivers who would be subject 
to the proposed rule, the FMCSA estimates the total time burden to be 
7,320 hours [(0.4 hours per year per driver employed)  x  (18,300 
driver employed) = 7,320 hours per year]. The FMCSA will submit the 
amended, proposed medical qualification information collection to the 
OMB for review and approval. Accordingly, the FMCSA seeks public 
comment on this proposed information collection requirement.
    Drivers of such CMVs would be required to record their duty status 
in accordance with 49 CFR 395.8. The information collection 
requirements related to records of duty status have been approved by 
the OMB under the provisions of the PRA and assigned the control number 
of 2126-0001 which expires October 31, 2001. The FMCSA estimates that 
it takes a CMV driver approximately two minutes for each workday to 
complete a record of duty status. Based on the estimate of 18,300 
drivers who would be subject to the proposed rule and an average of 
five workdays per week for these drivers, the FMCSA estimates the total 
time burden to be 137,250 hours ((2 minutes per driver/day)  x  (1 
hour/60 minutes) = 0.03 hours per day per driver; (0.03 hours per day 
per driver)  x  (5 days per week per driver)  x  (50 workweeks per year 
per driver) = 7.5 hours per driver; (7.5 hours per driver)  x  18,300 
drivers = 137,250 hours per year). The FMCSA will submit the amended, 
proposed driver qualification file information collection to the OMB 
for review and approval. Accordingly, the FMCSA seeks public comment on 
this proposed information collection requirement.
    Motor carriers operating CMVs designed or used to transport between 
9 and 15 passengers for direct compensation would be required to 
maintain records of inspection, repair, and maintenance for their CMVs 
in accordance with 49 CFR part 396. The information collection 
requirements related to inspection, repair, and maintenance have been 
approved by the OMB under the provisions of the PRA and assigned the 
control number of 2126-0003 which expired on January 31, 2001, and is 
in the process of being renewed. The FMCSA estimates that it would take 
a total annual expenditure of 12 hours and 57 minutes per year per CMV 
to complete the required recordkeeping related to vehicular inspection, 
repair, and maintenance (48 minutes per year per vehicle for systematic 
inspection, repair, and maintenance; 12 hours and 4 minutes per year 
per vehicle for driver vehicle inspection reports; and 5 minutes per 
year per vehicle for periodic inspection).
    Evidence of an individual's qualifications to perform periodic 
vehicle inspections must be retained by the motor carrier. Evidence of 
an individual's qualifications to be a brake inspector must be retained 
also. The creation of these two types of qualification evidence 
involves an estimated one-time, non-recurring expenditure of 5 minutes 
by a safety director, driver supervisor, or equivalent position for 
each type of inspector. Based on an estimate of 1,650 motor carriers 
that would be subject to the proposed rule and on the assumption that 
each motor carrier has at least one employee who is a qualified 
periodic vehicle inspector and one employee who is a qualified brake 
inspector, the estimated total time burden related to the inspector 
qualifications rules is approximately 275 hours ((5 minutes for each 
periodic vehicle inspector certification  x  1,650 motor carriers) + (5 
minutes for each brake inspector certification  x  1,650 motor 
carriers) = 16,500 minutes = 275 hours).
    The FMCSA estimates that the total inspection, repair, and 
maintenance recordkeeping burden is approximately 213,675 hours per 
year ((16,500 CMVs)  x  (12.95 hours per year per CMV)) with an 
additional 275 hours in the first year for inspector qualifications. 
The FMCSA will submit the amended, proposed inspection, repair, and 
maintenance information collection to the OMB for review and approval.
    The FMCSA seeks public comment on these proposed information 
collection requirements. Interested parties are invited to send 
comments regarding any aspect of these information collection 
requirements, including, but not limited to: (1) Whether the collection 
of information is necessary for the performance of the functions of the 
FMCSA, including whether the information has practical utility; (2) the 
accuracy of the estimated burdens; (3) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility, and clarity of the collection of information; and (4) ways to 
minimize the collection burden without reducing the quality of the 
information collected.

National Environmental Policy Act

    The agency has analyzed this rulemaking for the purpose of the 
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and 
has determined that this action does not have any effect on the quality 
of the environment.

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995

    This proposed rule does not impose an unfunded Federal mandate, as 
defined by the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1532 et 
seq.), that will result in the expenditure by State, local, and tribal 
governments, in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of $100 
million or more in any one year.

Executive Order 12988 (Civil Justice Reform)

    This action meets applicable standards in sections 3(a) and 3(b)(2) 
of Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice Reform, to minimize litigation, 
eliminate ambiguity, and reduce burden.

Executive Order 13045 (Protection of Children)

    The FMCSA has analyzed this action under Executive Order 13045, 
Protection of Children from Environmental Health Risks and Safety 
Risks. This proposed rule is not an economically significant rule and 
does not concern an environmental risk to health or safety that may 
disproportionately affect children.

Executive Order 12630 (Taking of Private Property)

    This proposed rule will not effect a taking of private property or 
otherwise have taking implications under Executive Order 12630, 
Governmental Actions and Interference with Constitutionally Protected 
Property Rights.

[[Page 2779]]

Executive Order 13132 (Federalism Assessment)

    This action has been analyzed in accordance with the principles and 
criteria contained in Executive Order 13132, dated August 4, 1999, and 
it has been determined that this rulemaking does not have a substantial 
direct effect or sufficient federalism implications on States that 
would limit the policymaking discretion of the States. Nothing in this 
document directly preempts any State law or regulation. This proposed 
rule does not impose additional costs or burdens on the States.

Regulation Identification Number

    A regulatory identification number (RIN) is assigned to each 
regulatory action listed in the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulations. 
The Regulatory Information Service Center publishes the Unified Agenda 
in April and October of each year. The RINs contained in the heading of 
this document can be used to cross reference this action with the 
Unified Agenda.

List of Subjects

49 CFR Part 385

    Highway safety, Motor carriers.

49 CFR Part 390

    Highway safety, Motor carriers, Motor vehicle identification and 
marking, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

49 CFR Part 398

    Highway safety, Migrant labor, Motor carriers, Motor vehicle 
safety, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Issued on: January 4, 2001.
Clyde J. Hart, Jr.,
Acting Deputy Administrator.

    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, the FMCSA proposes to 
amend title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, parts 385, 390, and 398 as 
follows:

PART 385--[AMENDED]

    1. The authority citation for part 385 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 49 U.S.C. 113, 504, 521(b)(5)(A) and (b)(8), 5113, 
31136, 31144, 31502; and 49 CFR 1.73.


Sec. 385.1  [Amended]

    2. Amend Sec. 385.1 by revising paragraph (b) to read as follows:
* * * * *
    (b) The provisions of this part apply to all motor carriers subject 
to the requirements of this subchapter, except non-business private 
motor carriers of passengers.

PART 390--[AMENDED]

    3. Revise the authority citation for part 390 to read as follows:

    Authority: 49 U.S.C. 13301, 13902, 31132, 31133, 31136, 31502, 
and 31504; sec. 204, Pub. L. 104-88, 109 Stat. 803, 941 (49 U.S.C. 
701 note); sec. 212, Pub. L. 106-159, 113 Stat. 1748, 1766; and 49 
CFR 1.73.

    4. Amend Sec. 390.3 by revising paragraph (f)(6) to read as 
follows:


Sec. 390.3  General applicability.

* * * * *
    (f)(6)(i) The operation of commercial motor vehicles designed or 
used to transport between 9 and 15 passengers (including the driver) 
not for direct compensation, except that motor carriers operating such 
vehicles are required to comply with Secs. 390.15, 390.19, and 
390.21(a) and (b)(2).
    (ii) The operation of commercial motor vehicles designed or used to 
transport between 9 and 15 passengers (including the driver) for direct 
compensation provided none of the passengers is being transported a 
distance greater than 75 air miles (86.3 statute miles or 138.9 
kilometers), except that motor carriers operating such vehicles are 
required to comply with Secs. 390.15, 390.19, and 390.21(a) and (b)(2).
* * * * *
    5. Amend Sec. 390.5 by adding a definition for ``direct 
compensation'' in alphabetical order to read as follows:


Sec. 390.5  Definitions.

* * * * *
    Direct compensation means payment made to the motor carrier by the 
passengers or individual acting on behalf of the passengers for the 
transportation services provided, and not included in a total package 
charge or other assessment for highway transportation services.
* * * * *

PART 398--[AMENDED]

    6. The authority citation for part 398 is revised to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 49 U.S.C. 13301, 13902, 31132, 31133, 31136, 31502, 
and 31504; sec. 204, Pub. L. 104-88, 109 Stat. 803, 941 (49 U.S.C. 
701 note); sec. 212, Pub. L. 106-159, 113 Stat. 1748, 1766; and 49 
CFR 1.73.

    7. Revise Sec. 398.2 to read as follows:


Sec. 398.2  Applicability.

    (a) General. The regulations prescribed in this part are applicable 
to carriers of migrant workers by motor vehicle, as defined in 
Sec. 398.1(b), but only in the case of transportation of any migrant 
worker for a total distance of more than 75 miles (120.7 kilometers) in 
interstate commerce, as defined in 49 CFR 390.5.
    (b) Exception. (1) The regulations prescribed in this part are not 
applicable to carriers of migrant workers by motor vehicle, as defined 
in Sec. 398.1(b), when:
    (i) The motor vehicle is designed or used to transport between 9 
and 15 passengers (including the driver);
    (ii) The motor carrier is directly compensated for the 
transportation service; and
    (iii) Any migrant worker is transported a total distance of more 
than 75 air miles (86.3 statute miles or 138.9 kilometers).
    (2) Carriers of migrant workers by motor vehicle operating 
vehicles, designed or used to transport between 9 and 15 passengers 
(including the driver), for direct compensation in interstate commerce 
must comply with the applicable requirements of 49 CFR parts 390, 391, 
392, 393, 395, and 396 when a migrant worker is transported a total 
distance of more than 75 air miles (86.3 statute miles or 138.9 
kilometers).

[FR Doc. 01-764 Filed 1-10-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P