[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 184 (Monday, September 24, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54315-54317]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 07-4709]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Office of the Secretary


DOT's Migration to the Federal Docket Management Systems (FDMS)

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

ACTION:  Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces a service disruption to DOT's Docket 
Management System (DMS), which contains the public dockets for all DOT 
agencies (except for the Surface Transportation Board), the 
Transportation Security Administration (TSA), and the United States 
Coast Guard (USCG). (Subsequent references to ``DOT'' in this document 
also apply to TSA and USCG.) Effective September 30, 2007, DOT's DMS 
will be replaced by the Federal Docket Management System (FDMS), a 
government-wide, electronic docket management system. Please note that 
in preparation for migration, effective Thursday, September 27, 2007 at 
5 p.m. DMS will no longer accept electronic comments/submissions. DMS 
will accept, as well as process, faxed and other paper documents up 
until 12 noon on Friday, September 28, 2007. If falling due during this 
transition, due dates for filings in rulemakings and adjudications will 
be delayed until October 1, 2007, unless otherwise advised by the 
originating office. On October 1, 2007 FDMS will begin accepting DOT-
related electronic submission. At that time, it will display all open 
DOT dockets. Between October 1 and October 31, the remaining DOT 
dockets still will be accessible in DMS. By October 31, the full 
migration of all dockets currently in DMS is expected to be completed. 
The change in systems will not change any requirements in DOT 
regulations.


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Renee V. Wright, Program Manager, 
Docket Operations, Office of Information Services, 1200 New Jersey 
Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590; telephone number: (202) 493-0402; 
fax number (202) 493-2251; e-mail address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    FDMS is a major component of the President's e-Rulemaking 
Initiative, which provides easy access to the public dockets maintained 
by Federal agencies, while streamlining and increasing the efficiency 
of the internal procedures for agencies that did not already have 
electronic internet-accessible systems. FDMS is designed so that the 
public has a single point of access to the public dockets across the 
Federal government. FDMS offers a standard, online procedure for 
Federal agencies to handle and process documents. The Initiative 
reduces costs by eliminating duplicative information systems and 
technical infrastructures.

A. What Is FDMS?

    FDMS is a full-featured electronic docket management system that 
gives Federal personnel and docket managers the ability to better 
manage their rulemakings, adjudications, and other docketed program 
activities. With this system, more than thirty Federal departments and 
agencies can post documents, supporting materials, and public comments/
submissions on the Internet and the public will have a one-stop site to 
search, view, and download documents, as well as to submit comments or 
other documents to the agency dockets. Although all Federal agencies 
are required to use FDMS for their rulemaking dockets, FDMS also will 
handle and process public docket materials for other purposes. DOT will 
use it for all of the material currently docketed in DMS, such as 
adjudications, peer review, and data quality. We will shortly add a 
docket subcategory for significant guidance documents.

B. How Can I Access and Use FDMS?

    You may access FDMS on the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov. 
You may use FDMS to access available public docket materials online, as 
well as submit electronic comments or other documents to a particular 
docket available in FDMS.

C. How Can I Search FDMS?

    You may also search for an available public docket or for 
particular docket material. FDMS provides two basic methods of 
searching to retrieve dockets and docket materials that are available 
in the system: (1) ``Quick Search'' to search using a full-text search 
engine, or (2) ``Advanced Search,'' which displays various indexed 
fields such as the docket name, docket identification number, phase of 
the action, initiating office, date of issuance, document title, 
document identification number, type of document, Federal Register 
reference, CFR citation, etc. Each data field in the advanced search 
may be searched independently or in combination with other fields, as 
desired. Each search yields a simultaneous display of all available 
information found in FDMS that is relevant to the requested subject or 
topic.

[[Page 54316]]

D. How Can I Make Submissions to FDMS?

    1. Online. You may submit your comments/submissions online to FDMS 
when a particular docket is open for public submissions. Federal 
Register notices and adjudicatory and other documents will usually 
identify whether a docket has been established in FDMS. FDMS also can 
be searched to determine if a docket has been established. Using http:/
/www.Regulations.gov to submit comments or other documents is DOT's 
preferred method for receiving comments/submissions. Follow the online 
instructions for submitting comments/submissions.
    2. Mail. Documents also may be submitted by mail to Docket 
Management Facility, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New 
Jersey, SE., West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 
20590-0001.
    3. Hand-delivery. Documents may be submitted by hand delivery or 
courier to West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey 
Avenue, SE., Washington, DC between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET, Monday 
through Friday, except Federal holidays.
    4. Fax. Faxed submissions are accepeted at: 202-493-2251

E. How Will DOT Know Who Is Making a Submission?

    As with DMS, FDMS is an ``anonymous access'' system, which means 
DOT will not know your identity, e-mail address, or other contact 
information unless it is provided in the body of your submission. DOT 
rules applicable to adjudicatory submissions still apply. We recommend 
that you include your name, mailing address, and an e-mail address or 
other contact information in the body of your document to ensure that 
you can be identified as the submitter. This also allows DOT to contact 
you in the event further information is needed or if there are 
questions. For example, if DOT cannot read your submission due to 
technical difficulties and you cannot be contacted, your submission may 
not be considered. Note that it is DOT's policy not to edit your 
submission; all documents received will be posted without change to 
http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information 
provided. Therefore, any identifying or contact information provided in 
the body of a submission will be included in the official public 
docket, and made available to the public.

F. What Effect Will Use of FDMS Have on My Privacy?

    As with DMS, anyone is able to search the electronic form of all 
submissions entered into any of our dockets in FDMS by the name of the 
individual submitting the document (or signing the document, if 
submitted on behalf of an association, business, labor union, etc.). 
You may review DOT's complete Privacy Act Statement in the Federal 
Register published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477-78) or you may visit 
http://DocketsInfo.dot.gov, which will be available by October 1, 2007.

G. Will FDMS Offer List Serves Like DMS?

    FDMS will offer a list serve. Anyone who had formerly signed up for 
the DMS list serve will have to sign up again in FDMS to receive e-mail 
notifications from FDMS. We apologize for any inconvenience this will 
cause. Note that FDMS's list serve will only allow users to sign up for 
specific dockets. Users will not be able to sign up for categories of 
dockets, such as all FMCSA rulemakings. Users also will not be able to 
sign up for the subject areas currently allowed in DMS. (e.g., 
federalism). Some features that were available in DMS will not work in 
FDMS. For example, the list serve in DMS can search our Rulemaking 
Management System (RMS) for data necessary to respond to a list serve 
request. FDMS cannot search RMS for data because it is not allowed to 
go behind the DOT firewall. In response to this change, to help 
identify matters of interest for which the public may wish to sign up 
in the FDMS list serve, DOT will provide some reports and other 
information on http://DocketsInfo.dot.gov.

II. Migration From DMS to FDMS

A. Phased Migration

    Using a phased approach, all dockets currently contained in DMS 
will be moved to FDMS. All open DOT dockets (dockets to which DOT 
agencies or the public may still submit documents or comments) will be 
available in FDMS on October 1, 2007. Due to the tremendous amount of 
data to be transferred from DOT DMS to FDMS, the migration of the 
remaining dockets will occur over the month of October and is expected 
to be completed by October 31, 2007. During this time, DMS will remain 
online for searching, viewing, and downloading documents in these 
remaining DOT dockets.
    Beginning October 1, 2007, any filing to an open docket must go to 
the FDMS at http://www.Regulations.gov. Until 12:00 noon on Friday, 
September 28, 2007, DMS will process all remaining September 27 
electronic submissions in the pipeline, as well as any faxed or paper 
documents. DMS will accept, as well as process, faxed and paper 
documents up until 12:00 noon on Friday, September 28, 2007. Any faxed 
or paper submissions received after that time or not processed by 12:00 
noon Friday, September 28, 2007, in DMS, will be processed on Monday, 
October 1 in FDMS.

B. Docket ID Numbers

    When DOT migrates its DMS data to FDMS, docket (identification) 
numbers that were assigned in DMS (legacy numbers), will, for the most 
part, remain the same in FDMS. However, dockets that used to be 
designated ``OST'', ``RSPA'', ``BTS'', and ``OMCS'' in DMS will change 
to the following:
    OST-2007-1486 will become DOT-OST-2007-1486. RSPA-2007-1486 will 
become PHMSA-RSPA-2007-1486. BTS-2007-1486 will become RITA-BTS-2007-
1486. OMCS-2007-1486 will become FMCSA-OMCS-2007-1486.
    FDMS will provide online public access to all existing, legacy 
dockets in DMS. Any Docket opened after September 27, 2007, will 
receive a docket ID in FDMS format.

C. DOT-wide Searches

    If you want to search all DOT agencies, including OST, for a 
docket, you should do so by selecting ``Department of Transportation 
(ALL)''.

D. FDMS Submissions and Docket Numbers

    Currently in DMS, the public may submit comments and other 
documents, such as applications, petitions, exemptions, waivers, and 
other documents without knowing the actual docket ID. In FDMS, you are 
not allowed to submit a document without a docket ID. To handle this, 
DOT will be implementing ``shell dockets''. A ``shell docket'' will be 
a ``catch all'' for submissions, such as applications, petitions, 
exemptions, and/or waivers, and data quality without a docket ID. DOT 
staff will review the documents in the ``shell docket'' and file them 
appropriately.

E. FDMS Docket Types

    FDMS dockets are divided into two types, ``Rulemaking'' and ``Non-
Rulemaking.'' To review dockets or make submissions, please use the 
``Search the Docket'' tab. Select the department or agency and use the 
docket type ``non-rulemaking'' for all

[[Page 54317]]

dockets other than rulemaking; from there you can select the 
appropriate sub-type, such as ``Peer Review''.

III. Additional Information

A. Information on Use of FDMS

    Additional details about FDMS, as well as detailed instructions and 
assistance for using the system, are available at http://www.regulations.gov DOT will also have available online by October 1, 
2007, a new site that will provide helpful information about the use of 
FDMS for DOT dockets. The site will also contain other helpful 
information, such as reports that were available on DMS but will not be 
available on FDMS. The site will be at http://DocketsInfo.dot.gov. In 
addition, if you are interested in attending informational sessions 
regarding FDMS that DOT will be offering on October 3, 2007, (2-4 pm 
for the public) and October 4, 2007, (9-11 am for the public) in the 
DOT Conference Center/Multi-Media Room, West Building, Room W11-130 at 
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC. Sign up is available at 
http://www.dms.dot.gov.

B. Agencies Covered

    This notice applies to: the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), 
the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the Federal 
Highway Administration (FHWA), the Federal Railroad Administration 
(FRA), the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), the 
Research and Innovative Technology Administrative (RITA), the Federal 
Transit Administration (FTA), the Maritime Administration (MARAD), the 
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), the 
Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation (SLSDC), and the Office 
of the Secretary (OST). Please note that the Transportation Security 
Administration (TSA) and the United States Coast Guard (USCG) also use 
DMS and their dockets will be transferring with the DOT dockets to 
FDMS.

Renee V. Wright,
Program Manager, Docket Operations.
    Dated: September 19, 2007.
[FR Doc. 07-4709 Filed 9-19-07; 2:26 pm]
BILLING CODE 4910-9X-M