[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 168 (Thursday, August 28, 2008)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 50730-50731]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-19837]



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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

49 CFR Parts 564 and 571

[Docket No. NHTSA-2007-28322; Notice 2]


Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards; Lamps, Reflective 
Devices, and Associated Equipment

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), DOT.

ACTION: Final rule; delay of effective date.

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SUMMARY: This final rule delays the effective date of an amendment that 
reorganizes and improves the structure and clarity of the Federal motor 
vehicle safety standard on lamps, reflective devices, and associated 
equipment, from September 1, 2008 to December 1, 2009. The final rule 
reorganizing the lighting standard was published on December 4, 
2007.\1\ The agency received fifteen petitions for reconsideration of 
the final rule, including two that requested a delay in the effective 
date of the rule, and others which raised concerns that the 
reorganization of FMVSS No. 108 imposed new requirements. To allow for 
more time for the agency to analyze the petitions prior to the rule 
taking effect, the agency is delaying the effective date until December 
1, 2009.
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    \1\ See 72 FR 68234.

DATES: The effective date of the final rule amending 49 CFR parts 564 
and 571 published at 72 FR 68234 is delayed until December 1, 2009. The 
incorporation by reference of certain publications listed in the rules 
is approved by the Director of the Federal Register as of December 1, 
2009. Optional early compliance continues to be permitted. Any 
petitions for reconsideration of today's final rule must be received by 
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NHTSA not later than October 14, 2008.

ADDRESSES: Any petitions for reconsideration should refer to the docket 
number of this document and be submitted to: Administrator, National 
Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., 
West Building, Ground Floor, Docket Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For non-legal issues, you may call Mr. 
David Hines, Office of Crash Avoidance Standards (Phone: 202-493-0245; 
FAX: 202-366-7002). For legal issues, you may call Mr. Ari Scott, 
Office of the Chief Counsel (Phone: 202-366-2992; FAX: 202-366-3820). 
You may send mail to these officials at: National Highway Traffic 
Safety Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 
20590.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 108, Lamps 
Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment, specifies requirements 
for original and replacement lamps, reflective devices, and associated 
equipment. The purpose of FMVSS No. 108 is to reduce traffic accidents 
and deaths and injuries resulting from traffic accidents, by providing 
adequate illumination of the roadway, and by enhancing the conspicuity 
of motor vehicles on the public roads so that their presence is 
perceived and their signals understood, both in daylight and in 
darkness or other conditions of reduced visibility.
    On December 4, 2007, NHTSA published a final rule amending FMVSS 
No. 108 to reorganize the standard and provide a more straightforward 
and logical presentation of the applicable regulatory requirements (see 
72 FR 68234). Related amendments were made to 49 CFR part 564, 
Replacement Light Source Information. While the final rule greatly 
reduced the number of third-party standards incorporated by reference, 
it did not impose any new substantive requirements on manufacturers. 
Along with the changes made, the final rule specified an effective date 
of September 1, 2008 for these amendments and permitted voluntary early 
compliance immediately upon publication.

II. Petitions for Reconsideration

    In response to the December 4 final rule, the agency received 
fifteen petitions for reconsideration. Petitions for reconsideration 
were submitted by Grote Industries, LLC, Alliance of Automobile 
Manufacturers (Alliance), Motor and Equipment Manufacturers Association 
(MEMA) \2\, Nissan North America, Inc., Valeo Sylvania, Calcoast 
Industrial Testing Laboratory, Harley-Davidson Motor Company, Koito 
Manufacturing Co, Ltd., Ford Motor Company, Toyota Motor North America, 
Inc., GE Consumer & Industrial Automotive Lighting, SABIC Innovative 
Plastics, Valeo Lighting Systems, Vehicle Services Consulting, Inc., 
and American Association for Justice. The petitions addressed a wide 
range of FMVSS No. 108 subjects, including technical amendments to the 
rule, concern that the reorganization imposed new requirements, and 
requests to change the effective date of the final rule. Among the 
latter, specifically, the Alliance requested that the final rule take 
effect on September 1, 2009 and Harley-Davidson requested, unless the 
agency granted all of the items contained in its petition, that the 
effective date be delayed until September 1, 2010.
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    \2\ MEMA submitted a petition for reconsideration collectively 
with the Transportation Safety Equipment Institute and the Motor 
Vehicle Lighting Council.
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III. Agency Response to Petitions

    In the December 2007 final rule, the agency set a September 1, 2008 
effective date. The fifteen petitions for reconsideration have asked 
the agency to reconsider many aspects of that rulemaking. However, 
NHTSA's consideration of the petitions has not yet concluded, and given 
the imminence of the September 1, 2008 effective date, the agency has 
determined that it is appropriate to first partially respond to 
petitions concerning the effective date of the December 2007 final 
rule. Accordingly, the agency is delaying the effective date of the 
December 2007 final rule until December 1, 2009, when manufacturers 
will be required to meet the new requirements of FMVSS No. 108. Other 
issues raised in the petitions for reconsideration will be addressed by 
the agency in a separate document.
    NHTSA believes that a partial response to the petitions for 
reconsideration is necessary based upon the number of issues raised in 
the petitions for reconsideration, and the impact of the revised 
requirements on compliance documentation. As such, the agency has 
determined that delaying the effective date is appropriate. The agency 
notes that the Alliance originally requested an effective date of 
September 1, 2009, one full year after the final rule in its comments 
to our Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.\3\
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    \3\ See 70 FR 77454 (December 30, 2005) (Docket No. NHTSA-2006-
23634-3).
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    NHTSA expects that all other issues raised in the petitions will be 
fully addressed prior to the new December 1, 2009 effective date. In 
the event, however, that these issues have not been resolved, all 
affected manufacturers will be required to meet the new requirements. 
Effective dates of agency final rules are not stayed due to outstanding 
petitions for reconsideration of those rules.

IV. Effective Date of This Document

    Because September 1, 2008 (the original effective date for the 
FMVSS

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No. 108 final rule) is fast approaching, NHTSA finds for good cause 
that this action delaying the effective date should take effect 
immediately. Today's final rule makes no substantive changes to FMVSS 
No. 108, but delays the effective date of the December 4, 2007 final 
rule until December 1, 2009 while the agency responds to the petitions 
for reconsideration of the rule.

V. Rulemaking Analyses and Notices

A. Executive Order 12866 and DOT Regulatory Policies and Procedures

    This action delays the effective date of an administrative rewrite 
of FMVSS No. 108. It was not reviewed by the Office of Management and 
Budget under E.O. 12866. The agency has considered the impact of this 
action under the Department of Transportation's regulatory policies and 
procedures (44 FR 11034; February 26, 1979), and has determined that it 
is not ``significant'' under them.
    This final rule delays the effective date of a December 4, 2007 
final rule, from September 1, 2008, to December 1, 2009. Neither that 
rule nor today's action will have any measurable effect on costs or 
benefits since the rule merely reorganizes and clarifies existing 
requirements.

B. 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 (Volume 65, Number 70; Pages 19477-78) or you may visit 
http://docketsinfo.dot.gov/.

C. Other Rulemaking Analyses and Notices

    In the December 2007 final rule, the agency discussed relevant 
requirements related to the Regulatory Flexibility Act, the National 
Environmental Policy Act, Executive Order 13132 (Federalism), the 
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act, Civil Justice Reform, the National 
Technology Transfer and Advancement Act, the Paperwork Reduction Act, 
and Executive Order 13045 (Protection of Children from Environmental 
Health and Safety Risks). Since that final rule was an administrative 
rewrite of existing requirements and since today's action simply delays 
the effective date of that final rule, today's rule does not affect the 
agency's analyses in those areas.

    Authority: 49 U.S.C 322, 30111, 30115, 30117, and 30166; 
delegations of authority at 49 CFR 1.50 and 501.8.

    Issued: August 21, 2008.
Stephen R. Kratzke,
Associate Administrator for Rulemaking.
[FR Doc. E8-19837 Filed 8-27-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P