[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 38 (Monday, February 27, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9857-9858]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-2680]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

[Docket No. FMCSA-2006-23669]


Notice of Request for Clearance of a New Information Collection: 
Commercial Driver's License Policies and Practices Among the 51 
Jurisdictions

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

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this 
notice announces FMCSA's plan to submit the Information Collection 
Request (ICR) abstracted below to the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) for approval and comment. The ICR is related to Commercial 
Driver's License (CDL) policies and practices among the 50 States and 
the District of Columbia (referred to as the 51

[[Page 9858]]

jurisdictions). On October 26, 2005, the agency published a Federal 
Register notice with a 60-day comment period to solicit the public's 
views on the information collection pertaining to this subject. Ten 
comments were received.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before March 29, 2006. A 
comment to OMB is most effective if OMB receives it within 30 days of 
this publication.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to the Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, 725 Seventeenth Street, NW., 
Washington, DC 20503, Attention: DOT/FMCSA Desk Officer.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Glenda Davis, FMCSA, 400 Seventh 
Street, SW., Rm. 8304, Washington, DC 20590; phone: 202-366-5209; fax: 
202-366-7298; e-mail: [email protected] or Lorena F. Truett, 
National Transportation Research Center, 2360 Cherahala Boulevard, Room 
I-32, Knoxville, TN 37932; phone: 865-946-1306; fax: 865-946-1314; e-
mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This package contains the following 
supplementary information:
    Title: Commercial Driver's License Policies and Practices Among the 
51 Jurisdictions.
    OMB Control Number: 2126-XXXX.
    Type of Request: New information collection.
    Background: The Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act (CMVSA), (Pub. 
L. 99-570, Title XII, 100 Stat. 3207-170, October 27, 1998), was passed 
in an effort to improve highway safety as it related to commercial 
motor vehicle (CMV) drivers. The Commercial Driver's License Program 
was created as a result of the CMVSA. The Motor Carrier Safety 
Improvement Act of 1999 (MCSIA), (Pub. L. 106-159, 113 Stat. 1748, 
December 9, 1999), further strengthened the CDL Program through more 
vehicle and driver inspections and carrier compliance reviews, stronger 
enforcement, expedited completion of rules, and effective CDL testing, 
record keeping, and sanctions. The goal of both the CMVSA and MCSIA was 
to improve highway safety by ensuring that drivers of commercial motor 
vehicles were qualified to operate those vehicles and to remove unsafe 
and unqualified drivers from the highways.
    FMCSA conducts Compliance Reviews (CRs) of the 50 States plus 
Washington, DC, to ensure that the States are complying with the 
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations. Additional objectives of the 
State CRs include the following: Identifying technical, operational, 
and administrative deficiencies in State CDL programs; establishing a 
mechanism for identifying and correcting serious program deficiencies; 
and identifying opportunities for CDL fraud.
    Based on the results of the State CRs, which were completed in 
every State, some States had fewer compliance issues than others. It 
appears, however, that each State was in non-compliance to some degree 
at the time the CR was conducted in the State. FMCSA believes it is 
necessary to understand why the States are in non-compliance. While 
there is anecdotal evidence to suggest that fault may lie with the 
various processes used within the States, or the Agency's failure to 
provide adequate guidance, or even with the States' inability to 
understand the Federal regulations, there has been no systematic effort 
to determine the cause of non-compliance. For FMCSA to find a solution 
which brings the States into compliance with the CDL Federal 
requirements and thereby increase commercial-vehicle safety, FMCSA must 
obtain input from the States. No other survey of this type is being 
conducted.
    The primary means for obtaining information from the State 
officials through this survey will be via a password-protected Web 
site. In the introduction (``welcome screen'') to the questionnaire, 
the respondent will be provided alternatives for taking the survey via 
a paper copy or over a phone call with a contractor hired by FMCSA. If 
the respondent indicates a preference for the paper copy or phone 
survey, arrangements will be made for administering the survey in the 
desired format. In addition, any respondents who prefer to be 
interviewed via a phone call will also be provided an e-mail address so 
they may submit additional comments if desired.
    Respondents: The total number of respondents is 51. Each of the 51 
jurisdictions (50 States plus the District of Columbia) will be 
contacted.
    Average Burden per Response: Each response is expected to take 
about 1 hour to complete.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden: The estimated total annual burden is 
51 hours (51 responses x 1 hour per response = 51 hours).
    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
FMCSA, including whether the information will have practical utility; 
(b) the accuracy of the estimated burden; (c) ways to enhance the 
quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and 
(d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
respondents, without reducing the quality of the collected information. 
All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the 
request for OMB approval.

    Issued on: February 17, 2006.
Annette M. Sandberg,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. E6-2680 Filed 2-24-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P