[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 97 (Wednesday, May 19, 2004)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 28846]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-11306]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

49 CFR Part 380 and 391

[Docket FMCSA-97-2176]
RIN 2126-AA08


Minimum Training Requirements for Longer Combination Vehicle 
(LCV) Operators and LCV Driver-Instructor Requirements; Correction

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

ACTION: Final rule; correction.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration published in 
the Federal Register of March 30, 2004, a final rule concerning 
requirements for operators of LCVs and the instructors who train them. 
The requirements codified at Sec.  391.53 should have been designated 
Sec.  391.55. In addition, the authority citation for the rule failed 
to include the authorities listed in another FMCSA rule amending part 
391 that was published the same day. This document corrects these 
errors. Also, under the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section, we discuss 
an error in the preamble of the March 30 rule which does not require a 
correction to the regulatory text.

DATES: Effective on June 1, 2004.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Robert Redmond, Office of Safety 
Programs, (202) 366-9579, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, 
U.S. Department of Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, 
DC 20590. Office hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., e.s.t., Monday 
through Friday, except Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FMCSA published two documents in the 
Federal Register of March 30, 2004, both of which mistakenly added a 
new Sec.  391.53 with different section headings and contents. The 
Safety Performance History of New Drivers final rule (69 FR 16684) 
added Sec.  391.53 Driver Investigation History File. The final rule on 
Minimum Training Requirements for Longer Combination Vehicle (LCV) 
Operators and LCV Driver-Instructor Requirements (69 FR 16722) added 
Sec.  391.53 LCV Driver-Instructor qualification files. This correction 
changes the designation of the ``LCV Driver-Instructor qualification 
files'' from Sec.  391.53 to Sec.  391.55. This amendment is being 
adopted to avoid codifying two different provisions under the same 
section number. FMCSA also revises the authority citation to reflect 
the statutory authority for changes to 49 CFR part 391 resulting from 
the Safety Performance History of New Drivers final rule. Because the 
content of the re-designated section is unchanged, and the authority 
citation has no effect on the public, FMCSA has determined pursuant to 
5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) and (d)(3) that prior notice and opportunity for 
comment on these amendments are unnecessary and that good cause exists 
to make the amendments effective upon publication in the Federal 
Register.
    The discussion of CDL endorsements under Sec.  383.93(b), which 
occurs in the preamble of the March 30 final rule, includes obsolete 
information about the hazardous materials endorsement and omits the 
school bus endorsement. The agency revised Sec.  383.93(b) in an 
interim final rule titled Limitations on the Issuance of a Commercial 
Driver's Licenses with a Hazardous Materials Endorsement (68 FR 23844, 
May 5, 2003). Formerly, only a driver who operated a vehicle hauling a 
placardable amount of hazardous materials must obtain a hazardous 
materials endorsement. The May 5 final rule additionally requires 
drivers that transport select agents and toxins to obtain a hazardous 
materials endorsement and made a conforming amendment to Sec.  
393.93(b)(4) to cross-reference the broadened hazardous materials 
definition. In the March 30 document, on page 16723, in the first 
column, the first full paragraph reads:

    In accordance with the CMVSA, all drivers of commercial motor 
vehicles must possess a valid CDL in order to be properly qualified 
to operate the vehicle(s) they drive. In addition to passing the CDL 
knowledge and skills tests required for the basic vehicle group, all 
persons who operate or expect to operate any of the following 
vehicles, which have special handling characteristics, must obtain 
endorsements under 49 CFR 383.93(b):
    (a) Double/triple trailers;
    (b) Passenger vehicles;
    (c) Tank vehicles;
    (d) Vehicles required to be placarded for hazardous materials.

The correct information is as follows:

    In accordance with the CMVSA, all drivers of commercial motor 
vehicles must possess a valid CDL in order to be properly qualified 
to operate the vehicle(s) they drive. In addition to passing the CDL 
knowledge and skills tests required for the basic vehicle group, 49 
CFR 383.93(b) requires an operator to obtain State-issued 
endorsements to his/her CDL to operate commercial motor vehicles 
which are:
    (1) Double/triple trailers;
    (2) Passenger vehicles;
    (3) Tank vehicles;
    (4) Used to transport hazardous materials as defined in Sec.  
383.5, or
    (5) School buses.

    The information on those endorsements for which a driver must pass 
a skills test excludes the school bus endorsement. On page 16723, in 
the first column, in paragraph 2, in the second full paragraph, the 
second sentence reads:

    To obtain a passenger endorsement, the driver also must pass a 
skills test.

    It should read:

    To obtain a passenger or school bus endorsement, the driver also 
must pass a skills test.

    These preamble errors do not require a correction to the regulatory 
text.

Correction

    In rule FR Doc. 04-6794 published on March 30, 2004, (69 FR 16722) 
make the following corrections:
    1. On page 16727, in the third column, in paragraph 3, in the 
seventh line, ``391.53'' is corrected to read ``391.55''.

PART 391--[CORRECTED]

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2. On page 16738, in the third column, in paragraph 1, the authority 
citation for part 391 is corrected to read:

    ``Authority: 49 U.S.C. 322, 504, 508, 31133, 31136 and 31502; 
Sec. 4007(b) of Pub. L. 102-240 (105 Stat. 2152); Sec. 114, Pub. L. 
103-311 (108 Stat. 1673, 1677); and 49 CFR 1.73''.

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3. On page 16738, in the third column, in amendatory instruction 3, in 
the third line, ``Sec.  391.53'' is corrected to read ``Sec.  391.55''.


Sec.  391.53  [Corrected]

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4. On page 16738, in the third column, in the section heading, ``Sec.  
391.53'' is corrected to read ``Sec.  391.55''.

    Dated: May 13, 2004.
Annette M. Sandberg,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 04-11306 Filed 5-18-04; 8:45 am]
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