[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 143 (Tuesday, July 28, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37287-37288]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-17956]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

[Docket No. FMCSA-2009-0170]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Revision of a Currently 
Approved Information Collection Request: Annual and Quarterly Report of 
Class I Motor Carriers of Passengers (OMB 2139-0003)

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

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, FMCSA 
announces its plan to submit to the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) for approval its request to revise a currently approved 
information collection request (ICR) entitled, ``Annual and Quarterly 
Report of Class I Motor Carriers of Passengers.'' This information 
collection is necessary to ensure that motor carriers comply with 
financial and operating statistics requirements at chapter III of title 
49 CFR part 369 entitled, ``Reports of Motor Carriers.'' On March 24, 
2009, FMCSA published a Federal Register notice (at 74 FR 12436) 
allowing for a 60-day comment period on the revision of this ICR. The 
comment received in response to the notice expressed support for this 
ICR.

DATES: Please send your comments by August 27, 2009. OMB must receive 
your comments by this date in order to act quickly on the ICR.

ADDRESSES: All comments should reference Federal Docket Management 
System (FDMS) Docket Number FMCSA-2009-0170. Interested persons are 
invited to submit written comments on the proposed information 
collection to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office 
of Management and Budget. Comments should be addressed to the attention 
of the Desk Officer, Department of Transportation/Office of the 
Secretary, and sent via electronic mail to [email protected], or faxed to (202) 395-6974, or mailed to the 
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and 
Budget, Docket Library, Room 10102, 725 17th Street, NW., Washington, 
DC 20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Vivian Oliver, Office of Research 
and Information Technology, Department of Transportation, Federal Motor 
Carrier Safety Administration, West Building 6th Floor, 1200 New Jersey 
Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590. Telephone: 202-366-2974; e-mail 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Annual and Quarterly Report of Class I Motor Carriers of 
Passengers (formerly OMB Control Number 2139-0003).
    OMB Control Number: 2126-0031.
    Type of Request: Revision of a currently-approved information 
collection request.
    Respondents: Class I Motor Carriers of Passengers.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 6.
    Estimated Time per Response: 18 minutes per response.
    Expiration Date: 09/30/2009.
    Frequency of Response: Quarterly and annually.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden: 9 hours [30 responses x 18 minutes 
per response/60 minutes = 9].
    Background: For-hire Class I motor carriers of passengers 
(including interstate and intrastate) \1\ are required to file Motor 
Carrier Annual and Quarterly Reports (Form MP-1) that provide financial 
and operating data (see 49 U.S.C. 14123; and implementing FMCSA 
regulations at 49 CFR part 369). The agency uses this information to 
assess the health of the industry and identify industry changes that 
may affect national transportation policy. The data also show company 
financial stability and traffic patterns. Motor carriers of passengers 
required to comply with the regulations are classified on the basis of 
their annual gross carrier operating revenues. Under the Financial & 
Operating Statistics (F&OS) program, the FMCSA collects balance sheet 
and income statement data along with information on tonnage, mileage, 
employees, transportation equipment, and other related data.
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    \1\ For purposes of the Financial & Operating Statistics (F&OS) 
program, passenger carriers are classified into the following two 
groups; (1) Class I carriers are those having average annual gross 
transportation operating revenues (including interstate and 
intrastate) of $5 million or more from passenger motor carrier 
operations after applying the revenue deflator formula as shown in 
the Note at 49 CFR 369.3; and (2) Class II passenger carriers are 
those having average annual gross transportation operating revenues 
(including interstate and intrastate) of less than $5 million from 
passenger motor carrier operations after applying the revenue 
deflator formula as shown in the Note at 49 CFR 369.3. Only Class I 
carriers of passengers are required to file the Annual and Quarterly 
Report Form MP-1. Class II passenger carriers, however, must notify 
the agency when there is a change in their classification or their 
revenues exceed the Class II limit.
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    The data and information collected is made publicly available as 
prescribed in 49 CFR part 369. Class I motor carriers are required by 
49 U.S.C. 14123 to file annual financial reports with the Secretary. 
The Secretary has exercised his discretion under section 14123 to also 
require Class I property carriers (including dual-property carriers), 
Class I household goods carriers and Class I passengers carriers to 
file quarterly reports.
    Over the years, the regulations were formerly administered by the 
Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC), but the ICC Termination Act of 
1995 (ICCTA) (Pub. L. 104-88, 109 Stat. 803 (Dec. 29, 1995); now 
codified at 49 U.S.C. 14123) abolished the ICC and transferred the 
responsibility for collecting and disseminating motor carrier financial 
information to the Secretary of Transportation (Secretary). On 
September 30, 1998, the Secretary delegated and transferred the 
authority

[[Page 37288]]

to administer the F&OS program to the former Bureau of Transportation 
Statistics (BTS), now a part of the Research and Innovative Technology 
Administration (RITA), to former Chapter XI, subchapter 13 of 49 CFR 
part 1420 (63 FR 52192).
    On September 29, 2004, the Secretary transferred the responsibility 
for the F&OS program from BTS to FMCSA in the belief that the program 
was more aligned with FMCSA's safety mission and its other motor 
carrier responsibilities (69 FR 51009). On August 10, 2006 (71 FR 
45740), the Secretary published a final rule that transferred and 
redesignated the motor carrier financial and statistical reporting 
regulations of BTS that were formerly located at chapter XI of title 49 
CFR to FMCSA in 49 chapter III of title 49 CFR part 369.
    Public Comments Invited: You are asked to comment on any aspect of 
this information collection, including: (1) Whether the proposed 
collection is necessary for the performance of FMCSA's functions; (2) 
the accuracy of the estimated burden; (3) ways for the FMCSA to enhance 
the quality, usefulness, and clarity of the collected information; and 
(4) ways that the burden could be minimized without reducing the 
quality of the collected information. The Agency will summarize and/or 
include your comments in the request for OMB's clearance of this 
information collection request.

    Issued on July 16, 2009.
David Anewalt,
Acting Associate Administrator, Research and Information Technology.
[FR Doc. E9-17956 Filed 7-27-09; 8:45 am]
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