[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 152 (Wednesday, August 8, 2007)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 44466-44469]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 07-3864]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Office of the Secretary

49 CFR Part 71

[OST Docket No. 2007-28746]
RIN 2105-AD71


Standard Time Zone Boundary in Southwest Indiana

AGENCY: Department of Transportation (DOT), Office of the Secretary 
(OST).

ACTION: Supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: DOT is providing notice of a petition from the Board of 
Commissioners in Perry County, IN, to change the time zone boundary for 
the County from the Central Time Zone to the Eastern Time Zone, and 
DOT's request for additional information from Perry County to aid in 
its determination of whether this change would serve the convenience of 
commerce, the statutory standard for a time zone change. Other persons 
supporting or opposing the change to Perry County's time zone boundary 
are also requested to provide comment. The final rule will be based on 
all of the information received during the entire rulemaking proceeding 
and whether the statutory standard has been met.

DATES: Comments should be received by August 31, 2007, to be assured of 
consideration. Comments received after that date will be considered to 
the extent practicable. If the time zone boundary is changed as a 
result of this rulemaking, the effective date would be November 4, 
2007.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
     Web site: http://dms.dot.gov. 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, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Room W12-140, Washington, 
DC 20590-001.
     Hand Delivery: Room W12-140 on the plaza level of the U.S. 
Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., 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.
    General Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name 
and docket number (OST Docket Number 2007-28746) or Regulatory 
Identification Number (RIN 2105-AD71) for this rulemaking. Note that 
all comments received will be posted without change (including any 
personal information provided) to http://dms.dot.gov. Please refer to 
the Privacy Act heading under Regulatory Notices.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to http://dms.dot.gov at any time or to Room W12-
140 on the plaza level of the U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 
New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., 
Monday through Friday, except Federal Holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Judith S. Kaleta, Office of the 
General Counsel, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey 
Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590, [email protected], (202) 493-0992.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Knox, Daviess, Martin, Pike, and Dubois 
Counties (the Petitioning Counties) and Perry County were six of eight 
counties that moved from the Eastern Time Zone to the Central Time Zone 
under DOT's January 2006 final rule to establish a standard time zone 
boundary in Indiana (71 FR 3228). On July 19, 2007, DOT published a 
notice of proposed rulemaking in the Federal Register (72 FR 39593) 
finding that, based on a Joint Petition filed by the Petitioning 
Counties and three Supplemental Responses, the Petitioning Counties 
provided enough information to justify proposing to change their 
boundary from the Central Time Zone to the Eastern Time Zone.
    Under our normal procedures, we do not take action unless a county 
makes a clear showing that the proposed change of time zone would meet 
the statutory standard. However, as we noted in our previous rulemaking 
on time zone boundary changes in Indiana, this has been an unusual case 
because of the number of counties involved, their relationship to each 
other and to other neighboring counties, and the circumstances leading 
up to the petitions. Perry County is located in southwest Indiana, is 
contiguous to the Petitioning Counties, and had its time zone changed 
at the same time as the Petitioning Counties. Therefore, DOT asked for 
comments with regard to Perry County in the Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking concerning standard time zone boundary in Southwest Indiana 
published in the Federal Register on July 19, 2007. DOT stated, ``We 
also understand that this proposal may have an impact on surrounding 
Counties, particularly Perry County which

[[Page 44467]]

changed time zone boundaries at the same time as the Petitioning 
Counties * * *. Our decision in the final rule will be made on the 
basis of information and comments developed during the entire 
rulemaking proceeding.'' DOT specifically requested comment on whether 
the proposed change would serve the convenience of commerce, the 
statutory standard for a time zone change, and whether the time zone 
boundary should be changed for other contiguous counties in 
southwestern Indiana.
    At the time of the NPRM, DOT was unaware that, on June 1, 2007, 
Perry County submitted a Petition (2007 Perry County Petition) (OST 
2007-28746-654) for a time zone boundary change back to the Eastern 
Time Zone. DOT has now reviewed the 2007 Perry County Petition and the 
exhibits attached to it. As set forth below, the 2007 Perry County 
Petition addresses all of the factors that we consider in these 
proceedings. However, on July 31, 2007, DOT wrote to Perry County 
requesting additional information to justify that changing back Perry 
County to the Eastern Time Zone would serve the convenience of 
commerce. DOT has summarized below the petition Perry County filed in 
support of its request to change to the Central Time Zone (the 2005 
Perry County Petition), the 2007 Perry County Petition, and DOT's 
questions on the information submitted by Perry County. DOT seeks 
comments on the justification provided by Perry County and responsive 
information to its questions.

2005 and 2007 Perry County Petitions and DOT's Questions

Community Imports and Exports

    The 2005 Perry County Petition to move from the Eastern Time Zone 
to the Central Time Zone stated that the primary employers in the 
county supply products to customers located throughout North America 
although most of the customer base is located in the Midwest or the 
South. In addition, it noted that Perry County's newer employers are 
considered ``just-in-time'' suppliers to the automotive industry which 
require a location less than a day's distance from their respective 
customers.
    In lieu of answering the question on community imports and exports 
with an overview or analysis of the matter, the 2007 Perry County 
Petition summarizes and attaches 16 letters from businesses, schools, a 
hospital, and individuals. According to the 2007 Perry County Petition, 
the letters express ``a desire to change to the Eastern Time Zone'' 
because business conducted on Eastern time and difference in time zones 
``causes operating challenges on a daily basis.'' The 2007 Perry County 
Petition notes that ``businesses in Perry County have in effect lost 
four hours of each day that they can deal with customers and suppliers 
from the Eastern Time Zone: One hour in the morning, two hours at 
lunch, and one hour at the end of the day.'' In further support of the 
Eastern Time Zone request, the 2007 Perry County Petition specifically 
references three diverse businesses: The Southern Indiana Rural 
Electric Cooperatives, which would be the only Hoosier Energy Power 
Network out of 17 that would be in the Central Time Zone and claims 
metering and billing problems; Kleeman Masonary, Inc, which usually 
travels east in its construction business; and Perry County Memorial 
Hospital, which has difficulties dealing with insurance companies in 
the Eastern Time Zone.
    While the 2007 Perry County Petition claims the 16 letters attached 
to it are from businesses and schools, DOT notes that two of the 
letters were written on business letterhead but merely provide a 
preference for a time zone without any justification. Another letter 
states that it is ``more cumbersome'' to be on a different time zone, 
but provides no explanation. Similarly, the 2007 Perry County Petition 
states that the Perry County Chamber of Commerce has informed the Perry 
County Commissioners that ``there are 386 total employers located in 
Perry County'' and that 41% of businesses have expressed a preference 
for the Central Time Zone. The 2007 Perry County Petition does not 
provide the reasons for the ``preference.''
    In order to assess the impact of a time zone change on businesses, 
DOT requests comments on the time zone impact on businesses in the 
County and the reasons for the time zone preferences expressed by Perry 
County businesses.

Television and Radio Broadcasts

    With regard to television broadcasts, the 2005 Perry County 
Petition stated that the County was ``located within the Area of 
Dominant Influence for the Evansville, Indiana television market.'' The 
2005 Perry County Petition also stated that Perry County ``receives 
cable and over-the-air broadcasts from the Louisville, Kentucky market 
as well.'' The 2007 Perry County Petition makes the same statements 
concerning television broadcasts.
    With regard to radio broadcasts, the 2005 Perry County Petition 
stated that the ``majority of the stations serving Perry County are 
located either in the Central Daylight Saving or Eastern Standard time 
zones.'' The 2007 Perry County Petition elaborates on its earlier 
submission by providing a list of AM and FM radio signals for five 
cities within the County based on information from radio-locator.com. 
As the 2007 Perry County Petition notes, residents in the northern part 
of the County receive radio signals from the Eastern Time Zone while 
residents in the southern part of the County receive radio signals from 
the Central Time Zone. While the Perry County Petition provides radio 
signal information for five cities, it does not provide any information 
about the population of those cities.
    In order to assess the impact of a time zone change on television 
and radio broadcasts, DOT seeks comments on this issue generally and 
particularly requests population data for Bristow, Cannelton, Leopold, 
St. Croix, and Tell City, in Perry County.

Newspapers

    The 2005 Perry County Petition stated, ``The primary daily 
newspaper that serves Perry County is the Evansville Courier & Press'' 
in the Central Time Zone and that the local county newspaper, which 
publishes editions twice per week, also operates a printing plant that 
prints weekly newspapers for two Central Time Zone communities. On the 
other hand, the 2005 Perry County Petition also noted that the 
Louisville Courier & Journal, from the Eastern Time Zone, maintains 
drop boxes for the Sunday edition at several area convenience stores. 
Daily service, however, is unavailable.
    The 2007 Perry County Petition provides more detailed information 
on newspaper use within the County. First, the 2007 Perry County 
Petition now asserts that Perry County residents ``primarily'' receive 
their news from the local newspaper, The Perry County News, which is 
published twice a week. Second, it includes circulation numbers for the 
Evansville Courier & Press. According to the 2007 Perry County 
Petition, there are 1,901 weekday subscriptions and 2,271 Sunday 
subscriptions. While this is consistent with Perry County's original 
request for the Central Time Zone, the 2007 Perry County Petition 
claims that the subscriptions support the Eastern Time Zone because the 
population base is in excess of 18,000. Third, it notes that the 
Indianapolis Star has a very small circulation in the County.
    With regard to newspaper publishing, DOT seeks comment on this 
issue generally and is also interested in the number of subscriptions 
of The Perry

[[Page 44468]]

County News and the Indianapolis Star; the total number of households 
in Perry County; whether the residents of Perry County receive any 
newspapers from Daviess, Dubois, Knox, Martin, or Pike Counties and; if 
residents do receive newspaper from these counties, the circulation 
numbers of those newspapers within Perry County.

Bus and Passenger Rail Service

    The 2005 Perry County Petition states that there are no bus or 
passenger rail services in the community. The 2007 Perry County 
Petition explains bus service in more detail, contrasting bus service 
provided in Evansville and Louisville, and freight rail services. The 
2007 Perry County Petition notes that Evansville is approximately 50 
miles away and offers services to western and southern routes. In 
contrast, Louisville is approximately 75 miles away and offers service 
to the north, northeast, and south. As for rail service, although DOT 
requested information on passenger rail service, the 2007 Perry County 
Petition refers only to freight rail service that carries goods through 
several southern Indiana counties.
    DOT seeks comment on the bus information submitted by Perry County, 
but has no specific request for additional data on this issue.

Airports/Airline Services

    The 2005 Perry County Petition states that the nearest airport is 
in Evansville, located in the Central Time Zone, approximately 55 miles 
from Perry County. The 2005 Perry County Petition also notes that that 
there is an airport in Louisville, in the Eastern Time Zone, 75 miles 
from Perry County. The 2007 Perry County Petition reiterates the same 
information with regard to airport location and supplements it by 
referring to the number of departures and destinations and the impact 
of early morning flights on travelers. According to the 2007 Perry 
County Petition, Evansville Regional Airport has approximately only 35 
daily departures in contrast to Louisville International Airport which 
offers daily departures to ``around 140 domestic destinations plus 53 
international destinations.'' The 2007 Perry County Petition also notes 
that because Louisville International Airport is in the Eastern Time 
Zone, it is ``extremely difficult'' to take early morning flights 
unless travelers spend the night at or near the airport.
    DOT seeks comment on the airport/airline services information 
submitted by Perry County, but has no specific request for additional 
data on this issue.

Worker Commuting Patterns

    The 2005 Perry County Petition states that 3,267 persons, or 26% of 
its total workforce, reside in Perry County but work outside of the 
County. Of the top five areas to which Perry County residents commute 
for work, four were in the Central Time Zone and, the fifth, Dubois 
County, was at that time requesting to be located in the Central Time 
Zone. (Dubois County is now requesting to be moved back to the Eastern 
Time Zone.) A STATS Indiana Annual Commuting Trends Profile based on 
Indiana IT-40 Returns for Tax Year 2003 was attached to the Petition.
    The 2007 Perry County Petition also refers to the Perry County 
workforce. The actual numbers provided differ from the earlier 
submission and are now based on STATS Indiana Annual Commuting Trends 
Profile based on Indiana IT-40 Returns for Tax Year 2005. Nevertheless, 
the percentage of the workforce that leaves the County did not change; 
it remains 26%.
    DOT seeks comment on the worker commuting patterns information 
submitted by Perry County, but has no specific request for additional 
data on this issue.

The Community's Economy/Economic Development

    The 2005 Perry County Petition discussed the major elements of the 
community's economy, the improvement in the County's economy, and 
efforts to ensure that the local economy continues to improve. The 
Perry County Petition noted ``a dramatic shift from traditional 
woodworking industries to a significant transportation cluster.'' It 
stated that the ``primary employers manufacture products for the 
automotive, heavy truck, and aerospace industries.'' The 2005 Perry 
County Petition also noted the planning and infrastructure the County 
has put in place to support future economic growth and its partnerships 
to enhance growth.
    The 2007 Perry County Petition answer to the question on the 
community's economy is nearly the same as the 2005 Perry County 
Petition. There is only one change. The 2007 Perry County Petition 
eliminates, in this response, reference to ``a regional rural hospital 
which serves counties in Southern Indiana and Western Kentucky, located 
in the Central time zone.'' However, it includes that reference to the 
hospital in response to the question concerning health care.
    In order to assess the impact of a time zone change on the 
community's economy, DOT requests comment on the community's economy 
and information on whether Perry County has entered into economic 
partnerships with Daviess, Dubois, Knox, Martin, or Pike Counties or 
other Counties in southern Indiana and, if yes, the nature of these 
partnerships and how a time zone change would affect these 
partnerships.

Schools, Recreation, Health Care, or Religious Worship

    With regard to schools, the 2005 Perry County Petition emphasized 
post-secondary education. While the 2005 Perry County Petition 
recognized that Perry County residents attend post-secondary schools in 
the Eastern and Central Time Zones, it noted that more Perry County 
residents go to the University of Southern Indiana in the Central Time 
Zone than any other school.
    The 2007 Perry County Petition shifts the focus from post-secondary 
education to the high school level. It notes that there are no school 
districts in Perry County that are in more than one time zone, but 
indicates that the schools cross time zones to participate in sporting 
events. Exhibits 10 through 14 to the 2007 Perry County Petition 
provide information on the athletic conferences in southern Indiana, 
and the schedules for basketball, volleyball, football, cross country, 
baseball, and softball. The 2007 Perry County Petition asserts that 
playing games in different time zones ``causes extreme complications 
with scheduling and arrival and departure times for the schools.''
    DOT seeks comment on the information submitted by Perry County with 
regard to schooling, but has no specific request for additional data.
    The 2005 Perry County Petition did not address recreation or 
whether County residents left the County to pursue recreational 
interests. The 2007 Perry County Petition, however, states ``Perry 
County prides itself on its outdoor recreational activities including 
the vast amounts of Hoosier National Forest and ready access to the 
Ohio River for recreation such as boating, fishing and hunting.'' The 
2007 Perry County Petition also refers to recreational softball, 
baseball, and soccer leagues that could play later into the evening if 
the County were located in the Eastern Time Zone.
    In order to assess the impact of a time zone change on recreation, 
DOT requests information on whether residents leave Perry County for 
recreation and the standard of time observed in the places where they 
go for this purpose.

[[Page 44469]]

    With regard to health care, the 2005 Perry County Petition noted 
that Perry County is ``home to a regional rural hospital.'' It also 
noted that residents also ``primarily travel to Evansville and Jasper, 
Indiana'' to purchase health services. The 2007 Perry County Petition 
also notes the regional hospital and refers to a letter from Perry 
County Memorial Hospital that is ``in favor of the Eastern Time Zone 
for the reasons set forth in the letter.'' The letter states that the 
hospital conducts ``a lot of business with our State Capitol in 
Indianapolis'' and that ``the large insurance companies'' that it does 
business with are also located there. While the letter provides 
business reasons for an Eastern Time Zone preference, it does not 
address the impact of the current time zone on Perry County residents 
and whether they are referred to health care providers in other time 
zones.
    In order to assess the impact of a time zone change on health care, 
DOT requests comments on this issue and information on the number of 
patients referred from Perry County to health care providers in 
Evansville, Jasper, Indianapolis, and Louisville.
    Neither the 2005 Perry County Petition nor the 2007 Perry County 
Petition addressed religious worship and DOT has no additional 
questions concerning this issue.

Regional Connections

    In the original rulemaking proceeding to change time zone 
boundaries from the Eastern Time Zone to the Central Time Zone, 
petitioning counties and commenters advocated for a move by referring 
to their ties to other Indiana counties currently in the Central Time 
Zone. DOT carefully reviewed this data and utilized it in reaching its 
decision. DOT recognizes the importance of regional connections and the 
benefits of similar time zones and regional ties among counties. As 
described in DOT's January 2006 Final Rule's summary of the hearings 
and comments to the docket, the Southwestern Counties have strong 
regional ties to each other and Central Time Zone Counties. DOT stated, 
``While Daviess, Dubois, Knox, Martin, and Perry border other Indiana 
counties in the Eastern Time Zone, their ties to those counties are not 
as strong as they are to each other and to other counties to their 
south, which are currently in the Central Time Zone. Along with Pike, 
these counties are located in the same workforce, commerce, 
transportation, and education regions designated by Indiana. Remaining 
in the same time zone and maintaining their regional ties better 
position counties to realize advantages in economic, cultural, social, 
and civic activities, thereby serving the convenience of commerce.''
    The 2007 Perry County Petition addresses regional connections by 
noting that at DOT's hearing on time zones in November 2005, ``Perry 
County representatives stated that one of the reasons for the requested 
change was the fact that Dubois County was also petitioning to be 
placed in the Central Time Zone.'' It also notes that five other 
counties in the area petitioned for a time zone change.
    DOT seeks comment on the regional connectivity of Perry County with 
other counties in southern Indiana, including those that have and have 
not petitioned for a time zone change and how a time zone change would 
affect regional connections.

Request for Comments

    To aid us in our consideration of whether a time zone change would 
be for the convenience of commerce, we ask for comments on the impact 
on commerce of a change in the time zone and whether a new time zone 
would improve the convenience of commerce. The comments should address 
the impact on such things as economic, cultural, social, and civic 
activities and how time zone changes affect businesses, communication, 
transportation, and education. The comments should be as detailed as 
possible, providing the basis of the information including factual data 
or surveys.

Comment Period

    It is important to resolve this rulemaking expeditiously so that we 
can provide ample notice if a change to the Petitioning Counties' and 
Perry County's time zone boundaries is adopted. Nevertheless, we are 
extending the time for public comments to August 31, 2007. We expect 
that the comment period is adequate time to submit the necessary data, 
which is based on currently available information.

    Issued in Washington, DC on August 3, 2007.
D.J. Gribbin,
General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 07-3864 Filed 8-3-07; 2:56 pm]
BILLING CODE 4910-9X-P