[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 229 (Tuesday, November 29, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Page 73762]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-30741]



[[Page 73762]]

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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

[Docket No. FMCSA-2011-0289]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Revision of an Approved 
Information Collection: Designation of Agents, Motor Carriers, Brokers 
and Freight Forwarders

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 the Information Collection Request (ICR) 
described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review 
and approval and invites public comment. The FMCSA requests approval to 
revise an ICR entitled, ``Designation of Agents, Motor Carriers, 
Brokers and Freight Forwarders,'' which is used to provide registered 
motor carriers, property brokers, and freight forwarders a means of 
meeting process agent requirements.

DATES: We must receive your comments on or before January 30, 2012.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Federal Docket 
Management System (FDMS) Docket Number FMCSA-2011-0289 using any of the 
following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
     Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
     Mail: Docket Management Facility; U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., West Building, Ground 
Floor, Room W12-140, 20590-0001.
     Hand Delivery or Courier: West Building, Ground Floor, 
Room W12-140, 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, and follow the 
online instructions for accessing the dockets, or go to the street 
address listed above.
    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 for the Federal Docket Management System 
published in the Federal Register on January 17, 2008 (73 FR 3316), or 
you may visit http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2008/pdfE8-794.pdf.
    Public Participation: The Federal eRulemaking Portal is available 
24 hours each day, 365 days each year. You can obtain electronic 
submission and retrieval help and guidelines under the ``help'' section 
of the Federal eRulemaking Portal 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. Comments received after the 
comment closing date will be included in the docket and will be 
considered to the extent practicable.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Tura Gatling, Customer Support 
Team Leader, Commercial Enforcement Division, Department of 
Transportation, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001. Telephone Number: (202) 
385-2412; Email Address: [email protected]. Office hours are from 8 
a.m. to 5 p.m., e.t., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Background: The Secretary of Transportation (Secretary) is 
authorized to register forhire motor carriers of regulated commodities 
under the provisions of 49 U.S.C. 13902; freight forwarders under the 
provisions of 49 U.S.C. 13903; and property brokers under provisions of 
49 U.S.C. 13904. These persons may conduct transportation services only 
if they are registered pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 13901. The Secretary has 
delegated authority pertaining to these registration requirements to 
the FMCSA pursuant to 49 CFR 1.73(a)(5).
    Registered motor carriers (including private carriers), brokers and 
freight forwarders must designate an agent on whom service of notices 
in proceedings before the Secretary may be made (49 U.S.C. 13303). 
Registered motor carriers must also designate an agent for every State 
in which they operate and traverse in the United States during such 
operations, agents on whom process issued by a court may be served in 
actions brought against the registered transportation entity (49 U.S.C. 
13304, 49 CFR 366.4). Every broker shall make a designation for each 
State in which its offices are located or in which contracts are 
written (49 U.S.C. 13304, 49 CFR 366.4). Regulations governing the 
designation of process agents are found at 49 CFR part 366. This 
designation is filed with the FMCSA on Form BOC-3, ``Designation of 
Agents for Service of Process.''
    Title: Designation of Agents, Motor Carriers, Brokers and Freight 
Forwarders.
    OMB Control Number: 2126-0015.
    Type of Request: Revision of a currently approved collection.
    Respondents: Motor carriers, freight forwarders and brokers.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 35,000.
    Estimated Time per Response: 10 minutes.
    Expiration Date: May 31, 2012.
    Frequency of Response: Form BOC-3 must be filed by all for-hire 
motor carriers, freight forwarders and brokers when the transportation 
entity first registers with the FMCSA. All brokers shall make a 
designation for each State in which it has an office or in which 
contracts are written. Subsequent filings are made only if the motor 
carrier, broker or freight forwarder changes process agents.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden: 5,833 hours [35,000 Form BOC-3 
filings per year x 10 minutes/60 minutes to complete form = 5,833 
hours].
    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 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 or include your 
comments in the request for OMB's clearance of this information 
collection.

    Issued on: November 18, 2011.
Kelly Leone,
Associate Administrator for Research and Information Technology.
[FR Doc. 2011-30741 Filed 11-28-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P