[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 41 (Wednesday, March 3, 2010)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 9568-9571]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-4372]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Office of the Secretary

49 CFR Part 71

[OST Docket No. OST-2010-0046]


Standard Time Zone Boundary in the State of North Dakota: 
Proposed Change for Mercer County, North Dakota, From Mountain to 
Central Time Zone

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

ACTION: Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM).

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SUMMARY: The Chairman of the Board of County Commissioners for Mercer 
County, North Dakota, petitioned the U.S. Department of Transportation 
to move Mercer County from the mountain to the central standard time 
zone. The Department believes that the petition makes a prima facie 
case for the proposed time zone change, and we are using this notice to 
solicit public comment on the proposal.

DATES: Public comments to the docket should be submitted by June 14, 
2010. Late-filed comments will be considered to the extent practicable. 
The Department has scheduled a public hearing on this issue from 7-10 
p.m. (Mountain Daylight Time) on Friday, May 14, 2010, in the ``Large 
Room'' of the City Hall, 146 East Main Street, Hazen, North Dakota.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments (identified by the agency name and 
DOT Docket ID Number OST-2010-0046) by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments.
     Mail: Docket Management Facility: U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., West Building Ground 
Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
     Hand Delivery or Courier: West Building Ground Floor, Room 
W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET, 
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
     Fax: 202-493-2251.
    Instructions: You must include the agency name (Office of the 
Secretary, DOT) and Docket number (OST-2010-) for this notice at the 
beginning of your comments. You should submit two copies of your 
comments if you submit them by mail or courier. Note that all comments 
received will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov 
including any personal information provided and will be available to 
internet users. You may review DOT's complete Privacy Act Statement in 
the Federal Register published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477) or you 
may visit http://DocketsInfo.dot.gov.
    Docket: For internet access to the docket to read background 
documents and comments received, go to http://www.regulations.gov. 
Background documents and comments received may also be viewed at the 
U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE, Docket 
Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, 
DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except 
Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert C. Ashby, Deputy Assistant 
General Counsel for Regulation and Enforcement, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, Room W94-302, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, 
DC 20590, (202) 366-9310, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: For more than a century, time zone 
boundaries in North Dakota have had an interesting and varied history. 
Beginning in 1883, mountain time was observed in the southwest portion 
of the state and a few locations in the northwest, with central time 
being used elsewhere. In 1929, the Interstate Commerce Commission 
(ICC), which then had jurisdiction over time zone boundaries, extended 
central time to cover all but a cluster of counties in

[[Page 9569]]

the southwest corner of the state. Congress transferred the ICC's time 
zone boundary powers to the Department of Transportation (DOT) in 1967. 
DOT exercises these powers under the provisions of the Uniform Time Act 
of 1966 (15 U.S.C. 260-64).
    The Department has exercised its authority under this statute in 
several proceedings affecting North Dakota. In 1968, in response to a 
petition from the Governor of North Dakota, the Department placed 14 
counties lying south and west of the Missouri River into mountain time. 
The change was made to accommodate the historical pattern of time 
observance in the state. In 1992, in response to a petition from the 
Board of Commissioners of Oliver County (which is adjacent to Mercer 
County), the Department moved that county into the central time zone. 
The Department took similar action with respect to Morton County and a 
portion of Sioux County in 2003.
    In 2000-2003, the Department considered a petition from the Mercer 
County Commission to move the county to the central time zone. The 
proposal was controversial in the county. A 2000 referendum favored 
changing to central time by a vote of 1,180 to 1038. However, a 
majority of written comments to the Department's docket favored keeping 
the county in the mountain time zone. After considering the comments, 
and while acknowledging the reasons supporting a change, the Department 
decided to deny the petition (68 FR 53082; September 9, 2003). The 
Department's decision noted that the Commission was free to file a new 
petition on the subject in the future. In a petition dated October 9, 
2009, Mr. Lyle L. Latimer, Chairman of the Mercer County Board of 
County Commissioners, asked the Department to move the county from the 
mountain time zone to the central time zone.
    Under the Uniform Time Act, the Secretary of Transportation has 
authority to issue regulations modifying the boundaries between time 
zones in the United States in order to move an area from one time zone 
to another. The standard in the statute for such decisions is ``regard 
for the convenience of commerce and the existing junction points and 
division points of common carriers engaged in interstate or foreign 
commerce.'' The principal standard for deciding whether to change a 
time zone is defined very broadly to include consideration of all the 
impacts upon a community of a change in its standard of time. DOT has 
developed a series of questions to assist communities and us in 
determining the impact of a time zone change on the ``convenience of 
commerce.'' The Department considers information bearing on these 
questions in making its decision on a proposed time zone change.
    1. From where do businesses in the community get their supplies, 
and to where do they ship their goods or products?
    2. From where does the community receive television and radio 
broadcasts?
    3. Where are the newspapers published that serve the community?
    4. From where does the community get its bus and passenger rail 
services; if there is no scheduled bus or passenger rail service in the 
community to where must residents go to obtain these services?
    5. Where is the nearest airport; if it is a local service airport, 
to what major airport does it carry passengers?
    6. What percentage of residents of the community work outside the 
community; where do these residents work?
    7. What are the major elements of the community's economy; is the 
community's economy improving or declining; what Federal, State, or 
local plans, if any, are there for economic development in the 
community?
    8. If residents leave the community for schooling, recreation, 
health care, or religious worship, what standard of time is observed in 
the places where they go for these purposes?
    The current Mercer County petition stated several reasons for the 
request, outlining the Commission's view of why the change would meet 
the ''convenience of commerce'' standard. The following is a summary of 
the reasons asserted in support of the request, which facially address 
several of the Department's questions.
    * Almost all supplies for businesses in Mercer County, including 
the coal and agriculture industries, are shipped from the Bismarck/
Mandan area and other points in the central time zone.
    * Communications media (newspapers, radio and television stations) 
serving Mercer County are based in the Bismarck/Mandan area.
    * There is no regular passenger transportation serving Mercer 
County. Residents go to the Bismarck/Mandan area to catch planes, 
trains, and buses.
    * The main offices for several Mercer County energy industry 
facilities are located in Bismarck.
    * Many residents regularly travel to the Bismarck/Mandan area for 
recreation, health care, and other purposes.
    * Geographically, Mercer County is adjacent to the central time 
zone on the east, north, and south sides of the county, and is 
therefore well-located for inclusion in the central time zone. The Fort 
Berthold Indian Reservation, located in Mercer County, is currently in 
the central time zone.
    The current petition represents that local government, industry, 
and education leaders recently brought the matter to the Commission's 
attention, requesting that the question of changing the time zone be 
raised. One change affecting the schools that has been mentioned is 
that a school in Stanton, in Mercer County, has closed, with Mercer 
students now being transported to a school in Center, in Oliver County, 
which is located in the central time zone. In addition, it has been 
suggested that commuting patterns may be more oriented toward areas in 
the central time zone than was the case in the 2000-2003 period.
    When DOT considers a petition to change a time zone boundary, the 
Department will generally begin a rulemaking proceeding if the highest 
elected officials in the area make a prima facie case for the proposed 
change. The Department believes that the Mercer County Commission's 
petition does make a prima facie case to change the time zone of Mercer 
County from mountain to central. Consequently, we are issuing this 
notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that would move the county into 
the central time zone.
    The Department is opening a comment period on this matter. The 
public hearing is scheduled during this comment period, to give 
interested persons the opportunity to develop their thoughts and 
comments before the hearing and to respond in writing after the 
hearing, if they wish, to information presented at the hearing.
    The Department wants to make clear that, by issuing this NPRM, we 
are not taking a position on the merits of the petition. The Department 
does not have a ``going-in position'' on whether the county should 
remain in the mountain time zone or change to the central time zone. 
The effect of the NPRM is simply to begin a public input process that 
will include the opportunity for written comments and the opportunity 
to speak at a public hearing in the county.
    In making a decision based on what the Department learns from this 
process, the Department will focus on matters affecting the 
``convenience of commerce,'' which we interpret broadly to encompass 
matters concerning the effects of a potential change on the economy of 
the jurisdiction in question, transportation, education and other 
public institutions, and other factors including the personal views of 
residents. Our ultimate decision will be based on information provided 
to the

[[Page 9570]]

written docket or at the hearing. Commenters and participants at the 
public hearing should present all the information they can, in as great 
detail as possible, relevant to the Department's questions concerning 
whether the proposal meets the ``convenience of commerce'' standard. 
Comments that explain why mountain time or central time is preferable, 
in terms of the Department's ``convenience of commerce'' standard, will 
be of greater use to the Department than unexplained expressions of 
liking one outcome better than the other.
    We believe that the views of community members and leaders is an 
important part of the Department's decisionmaking process, on the 
assumption that the people and organizations who would be most affected 
by a proposed change are in the best position to advise us on the 
effects of a change. The process is not simply a matter of a vote, 
however. As in all rulemaking proceedings, the Department's decision is 
not made solely on the basis of the number of comments that persons 
favoring one outcome or another sent to us.
    If the Department decides to move Mercer County into the central 
time zone, we would time the decision to be effective on November 7, 
2010, to coincide with the change from daylight to standard time. The 
purpose of this timing would be to minimize disruption from the change.

Regulatory Analyses and Notices

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Department has determined that this action is not a significant 
regulatory action for purposes of Executive Order 12866 or the 
Department's regulatory policies and procedures. The rule primarily 
affects the convenience of individuals in scheduling activities. By 
itself, it imposes no direct costs. Its impact is localized in nature, 
affecting only the residents of a single county. We expect the economic 
impact of this final rule to be so minimal that a full Regulatory 
Evaluation under paragraph 10e of the regulatory policies and 
procedures of DOT is unnecessary. While some small entities (i.e., 
small business or governmental entities in Mercer County) would be 
affected by setting their clocks differently than in the past, the 
economic effects of doing so would not be significant. Therefore, the 
Department certifies that the rule would not have a significant 
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.

Federalism

    This NPRM has been analyzed in accordance with the principles and 
criteria contained in Executive Order 13132 (``Federalism''). The NPRM 
does not have a substantial direct effect on, or sufficient federalism 
implications for, the States, nor would it limit the policymaking 
discretion of the States. Therefore, the consultation requirements of 
Executive Order 13132 do not apply.

Unfunded Mandates

    The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1531-1538) and 
E.O. 12875, Enhancing the Intergovernmental Partnership (58 FR 58093; 
October 28, 1993), govern the issuance of Federal regulations that 
impose unfunded mandates. An unfunded mandate is a regulation that 
requires a State, local, or tribal government or the private sector to 
incur direct costs without the Federal Government's having first 
provided the funds to pay those costs. This NPRM would not impose an 
unfunded mandate.

Protection of Children

    We have analyzed this NPRM under E.O. 13045, Protection of Children 
from Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks. This NPRM is not an 
economically significant rule and does not concern an environmental 
risk to health or risk to safety as defined by the Executive Order that 
may disproportionately affect children. The Department will consider 
any comments it receives about potential safety effects on children of 
a time zone change.

Environment

    This rulemaking is not a major Federal action significantly 
affecting the quality of the human environment under the National 
Environmental Policy Act and, therefore, an environmental impact 
statement is not required.

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://dms.dot.gov.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    This rule does not create any information collection requirements 
covered by the Paperwork Reduction Act.

List of Subjects in 49 CFR Part 71

    Time zones.

Robert S. Rivkin,
General Counsel.

    For reasons discussed in the preamble, the Department of 
Transportation proposes to amend Title 49 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations, Part 71, as follows:

PART 71--STANDARD TIME ZONE BOUNDARIES

    1. The authority citation for 49 CFR Part 71 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: Secs. 1-4, 40 Stat. 450, as amended; sec. 1, 41 Stat. 
1446, as amended; secs. 2-7, 80 Stat. 107, as amended; 100 Stat. 
764; Act of Mar. 19, 1918, as amended by the Uniform Time Act of 
1966 and Pub. L. 97-449, 15 U.S.C. 260-267; Pub. L. 99-359; Pub. L. 
106-564, 15 U.S.C. 263, 114 Stat. 2811; 49 CFR 1.59(a), unless 
otherwise noted.

    2. Revise Sec.  71.7 (a) to read as follows:


Sec.  71.7  Boundary line between central and mountain zones.

    (a) Montana-North Dakota. Beginning at the junction of the Montana-
North Dakota boundary with the boundary of the United States and Canada 
southerly along the Montana-North Dakota boundary to the Missouri 
River; thence southerly and easterly along the middle of that river to 
the midpoint of the confluence of the Missouri and Yellowstone Rivers; 
thence southerly and easterly along the middle of the Yellowstone River 
to the north boundary of T. 150 N., R. 104 W.; thence east to the 
northwest corner of T. 150 N., R. 102 W.; thence south to the southwest 
corner of T. 149 N., R. 102 W.; thence east to the northwest corner of 
T. 148 N., R. 102 W.; thence south to the northwest corner of 147 N., 
R. 102 W.; thence east to the southwest corner of T. 148 N., R. 101 W.; 
thence south to the middle of the Little Missouri; thence easterly and 
northerly along the middle of that river to the midpoint of its 
confluence with the Missouri River; thence southerly and easterly along 
the middle of the Missouri River to the midpoint of its confluence with 
the western land boundary of Mercer County; thence south along the 
western county line of Mercer County to the southwest boundary; thence 
east and south along the southwestern county boundary of Morton County 
to the intersection with the boundary with Sioux County; thence west 
and south along the northern boundary of Sioux County to the center of 
State Highway 31; thence south along the center of

[[Page 9571]]

State Highway 31 to the state border with South Dakota; thence east 
along the southern boundary of Sioux County to the middle of the 
Missouri River.
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[FR Doc. 2010-4372 Filed 3-2-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-9X-P