[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 146 (Monday, July 31, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43278-43279]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-12163]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

[Docket No. FMCSA-2005-22937]


Hours of Service of Drivers: Application for Exemption; Summit 
Helicopters, Inc.

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

ACTION: Notice of application for exemption; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: FMCSA announces that it has received an application from 
Summit Helicopters, Inc. (Summit) for an exemption from the commercial 
motor vehicle drivers' hours-of-service (HOS) requirements for their 
drivers who transport materials to and from job sites to assist in the 
company's aerial application of herbicides. The exemption, if granted, 
would enable Summit's drivers to conduct these operations, including 
transportation to and from the herbicides application sites, without 
having to comply with the HOS regulations. Summit believes that relief 
from the HOS regulations would permit their drivers to work longer 
periods of time and at the same time maintain a high level of safety. 
FMCSA requests public comment on the Summit Helicopters, Inc. 
application for exemption.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before August 30, 2006.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by DOT DMS Docket Number 
FMCSA-2005-22937 by any of the following methods:
     Web site: http://dmses.dot.gov/submit/. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments on the DOT electronic docket site.
     Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
     Mail: Docket Management Facility; U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Nassif Building, Room PL-401, 
Washington, DC 20590-0001.
     Hand Delivery: Room PL-401 on the plaza level of the 
Nassif Building, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC, between 9 
a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments.
    Instructions: All submissions must include the Agency name and 
docket number for this notice. Note that all comments received will be 
posted without change to http://dms.dot.gov including any personal 
information

[[Page 43279]]

provided. Please see the Privacy Act heading for further information.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to http://dms.dot.gov at any time or Room PL-401 
on the plaza level of the Nassif Building, 400 Seventh Street, SW., 
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays. The DMS is available 24 hours each day, 365 
days each year. If you want us to notify you that we received your 
comments, please include a self-addressed, stamped envelope or postcard 
or print the acknowledgement page that appears after submitting 
comments on-line.
    Privacy Act: Anyone may search the electronic form of all comments 
received into any of DOT's dockets by the name of the individual 
submitting the comment (or of the person signing the comment, if 
submitted on behalf of an association, business, labor union, or other 
entity). You may review DOT's complete Privacy Act Statement in the 
Federal Register published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477, Apr. 11, 
2000). This statement is also available at http://dms.dot.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Thomas Yager, Chief, Driver and 
Carrier Operations Division, Office of Bus and Truck Standards and 
Operations, MC-PSD, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, 400 
Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590-0001. Telephone: 202-366-
4009. E-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Section 4007 of the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century 
[Pub. L. 105-178, 112 Stat. 107, June 9, 1998, 49 U.S.C. 31315 and 
31136(e)] provided authority to grant exemptions from the motor carrier 
safety regulations. On December 8, 1998, FMCSA's predecessor published 
an interim final rule implementing sec. 4007 (63 FR 67600). On August 
20, 2004, FMCSA published a final rule (69 FR 51589), which requires 
FMCSA to publish a notice of each exemption request in the Federal 
Register (49 CFR 381.315(a)). The Agency must provide the public an 
opportunity to inspect the information relevant to the application, 
including any safety analyses that have been conducted. The Agency must 
also provide an opportunity for public comment on the request.
    The Agency reviews the safety analyses and the public comments, and 
determines whether granting the exemption would likely achieve a level 
of safety equivalent to, or greater than, the level that would be 
achieved by the current regulation (49 CFR 381.305). The Agency's 
decision must be published in the Federal Register (49 CFR 381.315(b)). 
If the Agency denies the request, it must state the reason for doing 
so. If the Agency grants the exemption, the notice must specify the 
person or class of persons receiving the exemption, and the regulatory 
provision or provisions from which exemption is being granted. The 
notice must also specify the effective period of the exemption (up to 2 
years), and explain the terms and conditions of the exemption. The 
exemption may also be renewed (49 CFR 381.300(b)).

Request for Exemption

    Under 49 CFR part 395, the Federal hours of service (HOS) 
regulations for commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers generally apply 
to motor carriers and drivers operating CMVs in interstate commerce, as 
defined under 49 CFR 390.5.
    In relation to the HOS regulations, Summit Helicopters, Inc. 
(Summit) states that its situation is unique in that its drivers 
operate in remote areas during the early morning and late evening 
hours. Due to this extended schedule, there are occasions when Summit's 
drivers cannot maintain their desired schedule and comply with the HOS 
requirements. To clarify this scenario, Summit provided an outline of a 
typical day's schedule, and identified when the problem with HOS 
compliance arises.
    Summit is a private motor carrier comprised of approximately 25 
drivers responsible for operating 21 tank trucks. All of their trucks 
are based in Cloverdale, Virginia. Their trucks are dispatched to 
various jobsites in the states of Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, 
South Carolina, and Arkansas. These tank trucks will arrive at 
jobsites, and go to a ``water source'' to be loaded with water. They 
will subsequently add a herbicide from a box-truck to the water to 
create the mixture to be dispensed from a helicopter. The tank trucks, 
once at the jobsites, will normally travel no more than 20 miles 
between the tracts of land where the chemicals are dispersed. Once the 
morning jobs are complete, the drivers will drive a pick-up truck to a 
motel, where they will have an off-duty period of around 6 hours 
(usually from around 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.). The drivers will then repeat 
the same work process during a night shift.
    The HOS compliance problem arises during the night shift. The 
drivers have already worked a day shift consisting of several hours of 
driving and on-duty time, followed by approximately 6 hours spent in 
the motel. All of this time is counted towards their ``running 14-hour 
clock'' (49 CFR 395.3(a)(2)), and therefore the driver would not have 
the necessary available driving hours during the night shift.
    Summit indicates that their drivers would operate only under the 
requested exemption while they are conducting the aerial operations. 
They believe that there would be no adverse affects on safety while 
their drivers are operating under the requested exemption for the 
following reasons: (1) They do the majority of their traveling on 
logging roads; (2) their drivers are allowed to sleep in the motel 
rooms during their time off-duty; (3) they will require their drivers 
to fill out a daily log book, even while operating under the exemption; 
and (4) during their 25 years of operation, they have never had an 
accident that could be related to fatigue.
    Summit believes that an exemption will provide them the flexibility 
they need to complete their extended workday under safe operating 
conditions.
    A copy of Summit's exemption application is available for review in 
the docket for this notice.

Request for Comments

    In accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31315(b)(4) and 31136(e), FMCSA 
requests public comment on Summit Helicopters, Inc.'s application for 
exemption from the 49 CFR part 395 HOS requirements. The Agency will 
consider all comments received by close of business on August 30, 2006. 
Comments will be available for examination in the docket at the 
location listed under the Addresses section of this notice. The Agency 
will file comments received after the comment closing date in the 
public docket, and will consider them to the extent practicable. In 
addition to late comments, FMCSA will also continue to file, in the 
public docket, relevant information that becomes available after the 
comment closing date. Interested persons should monitor the public 
docket for new material.

    Issued on: July 21, 2006.
David H. Hugel,
Acting Administrator.
 [FR Doc. E6-12163 Filed 7-28-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P