[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 55 (Thursday, March 20, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15044-15045]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-5639]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

[Docket No. FMCSA-2008-0036]


Commercial Driver's License (CDL) Standards; Rotel North American 
Tours, LLC; Application for Exemption and Request for Comments

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 Rotel North American Tours, LLC (Rotel) 
has applied for exemption from the Agency's requirement that drivers of 
certain commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) possess a valid commercial 
driver's license (CDL). Rotel has requested this exemption for 22 
German bus drivers who would transport German tourists in the United 
States by means of Rotel's specially equipped passenger-carrying CMVs. 
Rotel hires the bus drivers to conduct the tours in addition to 
operating the CMVs. Rotel previously was able to conduct these 
operations without exemption because its drivers had been able to 
obtain (and renew) non-resident CDLs from certain States. However, 
because of the recent emphasis upon security in the U.S., Rotel reports 
that no State currently issues non-resident CDLs. Rotel believes these 
drivers possess the knowledge and skills necessary to ensure a level of 
safety that is equivalent to, or greater than, the level of safety that 
would be obtained by complying with the U.S. requirement for a CDL. 
FMCSA requests public comment on the Rotel application for exemption.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 21, 2008.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Federal Docket 
Management System Number FMCSA-2008-0036 by any of the following 
methods:
     Web site: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments on the Federal electronic docket 
site.
     Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
     Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, 
DC 20590-0001.
     Hand Delivery: Ground Floor, Room W12-140, DOT Building, 
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. 
e.t., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
    Instructions: All submissions must include the Agency name and 
docket number. For detailed instructions on submitting comments and 
additional information on the exemption process, see the Public 
Participation heading below. Note that all comments received will be 
posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov, including any 
personal information provided. Please see the Privacy Act heading 
below.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to http://www.regulations.gov at any time or to 
the ground floor, room W12-140, DOT Building, New Jersey Avenue, SE., 
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. e.t., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays.
    Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search the electronic form of all 
comments received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual 
submitting the comment (or signing the comment, 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 19476) or you may visit http://www.regulations.gov.
    Public participation: The http://www.regulations.gov Web site is 
generally available 24 hours each day, 365 days each year. You can get 
electronic submission and retrieval help and guidelines under the 
``help'' section of the http://www.regulations.gov Web site and also at 
the DOT's http://docketsinfo.dot.gov Web site. 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 online.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Robert F. Schultz, Jr., FMCSA 
Driver and Carrier Operations Division, Office of Bus and Truck 
Standards and Operations. Telephone: 202-366-4325. 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) amended 49 U.S.C. 31315 
and 31136(e) to provide authority to grant exemptions from motor 
carrier safety regulations. Under its regulations, FMCSA must 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 the 
results of 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(a)). The decision of 
the Agency must be published in the Federal Register (49 CFR 
381.315(b)) with the reason for denying or, in the alternative, the 
specific 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 be renewed (49 CFR 381.300(b)).

Request for Exemption

    Rotel, headquartered in Terre Haute, Indiana, is engaged in 
conducting bus tours of the United States for Europeans. It currently 
has 22 bus drivers and 11 customized buses dedicated to these 
operations. The buses qualify as passenger commercial motor vehicles 
(CMVs) as defined in section 383.5 of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety 
Regulations (FMCSRs) (49 CFR 350 et. seq.); therefore, the operators of 
the buses must possess a valid commercial driver's license (CDL) (49 
CFR 383.110) with passenger endorsement (49 CFR 383.93).
    Rotel drivers operate the buses and deliver oral commentary during 
the trip. Rotel prefers to use native German drivers to conduct the 
tours. It tried to use non-native Germans who were fluent in German, 
but states that the quality of its service was affected adversely.
    Rotel's drivers hold German CDLs, but these are not recognized in 
the U.S. Until recently, the German drivers could obtain (and renew) a 
non-resident CDL in one of several States of the U.S. However, because 
of the recent heightening of security in the U.S., no State currently 
issues or renews non-resident CDLs. Therefore, Rotel's drivers

[[Page 15045]]

cannot obtain or renew non-resident CDLs.
    Rotel requests FMCSA to allow its 22 bus drivers to operate these 
11 buses without a CDL for a period of two years. It believes these 
drivers possess the knowledge and skills to ensure a level of safety 
that is equivalent to, or greater than, the level of safety that would 
be obtained by complying with the U.S. requirement for a CDL. A copy of 
Rotel's application for exemption 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 Rotel's application for exemption from the 
FMCSRs. The Agency will consider all comments received by close of 
business on April 21, 2008. Comments will be available for examination 
in the docket at the location listed under the ADDRESSES section of 
this notice. The Agency will consider to the extent practicable 
comments received in the public docket after the closing date of the 
comment period.

    Issued on: March 13, 2008.
Larry W. Minor,
Associate Administrator for Policy and Program Development.
 [FR Doc. E8-5639 Filed 3-19-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P