[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 211 (Tuesday, November 1, 2011)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 67400-67401]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-28300]



[[Page 67400]]

=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration

49 CFR Part 633

[Docket No. FTA-2009-0030]
RIN 2132-AA92


Capital Project Management

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), DOT.

ACTION: Extension of comment period on proposed rule and notice of 
informational webinar.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: FTA is extending the comment period on its proposed rule for 
Capital Project Management to December 2, 2011, to allow interested 
parties time to carefully review the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking 
(NPRM) issued September 13, 2011. Also, FTA will hold a webinar on 
November 10, 2011, to enable the public to ask questions and to clarify 
any misunderstandings regarding the NPRM or the Federal Transit 
Administrator's Dear Colleague letter of September 30, 2011.

DATES: Comments on the NPRM must be received by December 2, 2011. Late-
filed comments will be considered to the extent practicable.
    Webinar Date: FTA will hold a webinar on Thursday, November 10, 
2011, commencing at 1 p.m., Eastern Daylight Time. Interested parties 
are invited to join the webinar and conference call as follows:
    1. Click on or paste in your browser the following link: http://fta.adobeconnect.com/capitalprojects-nprm.
    2. Click ``Enter as Guest,'' then type your first and last name, 
then click ``Enter Room.''
    3. Connect to the Conference Call at 1-(877) 873-8017, Access Code: 
2956512. Note that the webinar is only for informational purposes. 
Commenters must submit their comments to the official docket to have 
them considered by FTA.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments to DOT Docket Number FTA-2009-0030 
by any of the following methods:
    Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
    U.S. Mail: U.S. Department of Transportation, Docket Operations, 
West Building, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 
20590.
    Hand Delivery: U.S. Department of Transportation, Docket 
Operations, West Building, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., 
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays.
    Fax: (202) 493-2251.
    Instructions: You must include the agency name (Federal Transit 
Administration) and docket number [FTA-2009-0030] or Regulatory 
Identification Number [RIN-2132-AA92] for this rulemaking at the 
beginning of your comments. All comments received will be posted, 
without change and including any personal information provided, to 
http://www.regulations.gov, where they will be available to internet 
users. Please see the Privacy Act.
    You should submit two copies of your comments if you submit them by 
mail. If you wish to receive confirmation that FTA received your 
comments, you must include a self-addressed, stamped postcard. Due to 
security procedures in effect since October 2001 regarding mail 
deliveries, mail received through the U.S. Postal Service may be 
subject to delays. Parties submitting comments may wish to consider 
using an express mail firm to ensure the prompt filing of any 
submissions not filed electronically or by hand.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For program matters, please contact 
Aaron C. James, Sr. at (202) 493-0107 or [email protected] or Carlos 
M. Garay at (202) 366-6471 or [email protected]. For legal matters, 
please contact Scott A. Biehl at (202) 366-0826 or [email protected] 
or Jayme L. Blakesley at (202) 366-0304 or [email protected]. FTA 
is headquartered at 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., East Building, 
Washington, DC 20590. Office hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday 
through Friday, except Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On September 13, 2011, FTA published an NPRM 
in the Federal Register (76 FR 56363-81) proposing to transform the 
current FTA rule for project management oversight into a discrete set 
of managerial principles for sponsors of major capital projects; set 
standards to enable FTA to more clearly identify whether a sponsor has 
the management capacity and capability necessary to manage a major 
capital project; spell out the many facets of project management that 
must be addressed by a sponsor in the project management plan for a 
major capital project; change the scope and applicability of the rule; 
tailor the level of FTA oversight to the costs, complexities, and risks 
of a major capital project; set forth the means and objectives of FTA 
risk assessments; and articulate the roles and responsibilities of 
FTA's project management oversight contractors. On September 20, 2011, 
FTA staff made an informational presentation on the NPRM during the 
agency's Construction Roundtable, held in Salt Lake City, which was 
attended by a number of managers and engineers from sponsors of major 
capital projects from across the United States. On October 5, 2011, FTA 
staff made another informational presentation on the NPRM during the 
New Starts Workshop held in conjunction with the Annual Meeting of the 
American Public Transportation Association (APTA) in New Orleans, which 
was attended by a number of managers and planners from sponsors of 
major capital projects across the nation, and a number of consultants 
to the transit industry.
    By letter dated October 14, 2011, APTA has requested an extension 
of the comment period to allow its members additional time to consider 
the many proposals set forth in the NPRM and provide thoughtful 
comments to the rulemaking docket. Moreover, FTA is aware that the NPRM 
is of considerable interest throughout the transit, public works, and 
engineering communities, thus, the agency has scheduled a webinar for 
November 10, 2011, to summarize the NPRM and answer any questions from 
the public on any of the subjects related to the NPRM. This webinar is 
not an opportunity to submit comments to FTA on the NPRM, however. 
Interested parties must submit their comments to the rulemaking docket 
as described in this notice, above.
    Also, on a related matter, on September 30, 2011, the Federal 
Transit Administrator issued a Dear Colleague letter announcing a more 
streamlined process for conducting risk assessments on New Starts 
projects, which are among the types of ``major capital projects'' that 
are the subject of the NPRM for Capital Project Management. The 
Administrator's Dear Colleague letter, and the accompanying letter of 
the same date from two of the agency's associate administrators which 
sets forth additional information on risk assessments, are posted on 
FTA's public Web site and are available at http://www.fta.dot.gov/newsroom/12910_13883.html. FTA staff will be available to answer any 
questions regarding the Dear Colleague letter on risk assessments 
during the webinar on the NPRM on November 10, 2011.
    FTA agrees with APTA that an extension of the comment period is in 
the public interest. Accordingly, FTA is extending the comment period 
on the proposed rule from November 14, 2011,

[[Page 67401]]

to December 2, 2011. This extension applies to all parts of the NPRM.

    Issued on: October 26, 2011.
 Peter Rogoff,
Federal Transit Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2011-28300 Filed 10-31-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-57-P