[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 248 (Thursday, December 28, 2017)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 61531-61532]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-27884]
[[Page 61531]]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
49 CFR Part 395
[Docket No. FMCSA-2017-0336]
Hours of Service of Drivers: Application for Exemption;
Agricultural Retailers Association
AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT.
ACTION: Application for exemption; request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: FMCSA announces that the Agricultural Retailers Association
(ARA) has requested an exemption on behalf of its members from the
requirement that motor carriers and their drivers of commercial motor
vehicles (CMVs) use an electronic logging device (ELD) to record the
driver hours-of-service (HOS). ARA states that the ELD requirement
imposes undue economic and other burdens on its member retailers and
distributors of farm-related products and services. It asserts that
ELDs fail to properly record the complex HOS data, are not properly
certified by the FMCSA, and do not provide appropriate cyber-security
safeguards. ARA also asserts that ELDs will not function properly in
many locations in rural America because of poor internet and cellular
connectivity. ARA states that the operations of its members under
exemption from the ELD requirements will achieve a level of safety
equivalent to, or greater than, the level that would be achieved absent
the proposed exemption. FMCSA requests public comment on ARA's
application for exemption.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before January 29, 2018.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Federal Docket
Management System (FDMS) Number FMCSA-2017-0336 by any of the following
methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: www.regulations.gov. See the
Public Participation and Request for Comments section below for further
information.
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.,
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
Fax: 1-202-493-2251
Each submission must include the Agency name and the
docket number for this notice. Note that DOT posts all comments
received without change to www.regulations.gov, including any personal
information included in a comment. Please see the Privacy Act heading
below.
Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or
comments, go to www.regulations.gov at any time or visit Room W12-140
on the ground level of the West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE,
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., ET, Monday through Friday,
except Federal holidays. The on-line FDMS is available 24 hours each
day, 365 days each year.
Privacy Act: In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits
comments from the public to better inform its rulemaking process. DOT
posts these comments, without edit, including any personal information
the commenter provides, to www.regulations.gov, as described in the
system of records notice (DOT/ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at
www.dot.gov/privacy.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information concerning this
notice, contact Mr. Tom Yager, Chief, FMCSA Driver and Carrier
Operations Division; Office of Carrier, Driver and Vehicle Safety
Standards; Telephone: 614-942-6477. Email: [email protected]. If you have
questions on viewing or submitting material to the docket, contact
Docket Services, telephone (202) 366-9826.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Public Participation and Request for Comments
FMCSA encourages you to participate by submitting comments and
related materials.
Submitting Comments
If you submit a comment, please include the docket number for this
notice (FMCSA-2017-0336), indicate the specific section of this
document to which the comment applies, and provide a reason for
suggestions or recommendations. You may submit your comments and
material online or by fax, mail, or hand delivery, but please use only
one of these means. FMCSA recommends that you include your name and a
mailing address, an email address, or a phone number in the body of
your document so the Agency can contact you if it has questions
regarding your submission.
To submit your comments online, go to www.regulations.gov and put
the docket number, ``FMCSA-2017-0336'' in the ``Keyword'' box, and
click ``Search.'' When the new screen appears, click on ``Comment
Now!'' button and type your comment into the text box in the following
screen. Choose whether you are submitting your comment as an individual
or on behalf of a third party and then submit. If you submit your
comments by mail or hand delivery, submit them in an unbound format, no
larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable for copying and electronic
filing. If you submit comments by mail and would like to know that they
reached the facility, please enclose a stamped, self-addressed postcard
or envelope. FMCSA will consider all comments and material received
during the comment period.
II. Legal Basis
FMCSA has authority under 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 31315 to grant
exemptions from certain parts of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety
Regulations (FMCSRs). FMCSA must publish a notice of each exemption
request in the Federal Register (49 CFR 381.315(a)). The Agency must
provide the public an opportunity to inspect the information relevant
to the application, including any safety analyses that have been
conducted. The Agency must also provide an opportunity for public
comment on the request.
The Agency reviews safety analyses and public comments submitted,
and determines whether granting the exemption would likely achieve a
level of safety equivalent to, or greater than, the level that would be
achieved by the current regulation (49 CFR 381.305). The decision of
the Agency must be published in the Federal Register (49 CFR
381.315(b)) with the reasons for denying or granting the application
and, if granted, the name of the person or class of persons receiving
the exemption, and the regulatory provision from which the exemption is
granted. The document must also specify the effective period and
explain the terms and conditions of the exemption. The exemption may be
renewed (49 CFR 381.300(b)).
III. Request for Exemption
The hours of service (HOS) rules (49 CFR part 395) prescribe the
duty-time limits and rest requirements for interstate drivers of
commercial motor vehicles (CMVs), and provide various exceptions to the
HOS rules for CMV drivers engaged in certain agricultural operations.
Beginning December 18, 2017, most motor carriers and drivers of CMVs in
interstate commerce will be required to use electronic logging devices
(ELDs), not handwritten logbooks, to document their HOS duty status (49
CFR 395.8(a)(1)(i)). The HOS
[[Page 61532]]
rules and the various agricultural exceptions will not change--only the
manner of recording compliance with them.
ARA applies for exemption from the ELD requirement on behalf of its
member retailers and distributors of farm-related products and
services. ARA members rely on CMVs to deliver their products and
services to farms. ARA does not estimate the number of drivers that
would be exempt if its application would be granted.
ARA asserts that its members are not fully prepared to meet the
December 18, 2017 deadline. It seeks exemption to obtain a postponement
of the approaching deadline. ATA recommends that the time created by
the postponement be used by FMCSA to correct what ARA perceives to be
shortcomings of the ELD rule. ARA states that its members need
additional information and guidance about the ELD rule, but also
asserts that the ELD rule as currently constituted is unduly burdensome
for its members. It asserts that ELD vendors and manufacturers do not
offer ELD products that address the needs of ARA members. ARA explains
that the ELD systems being offered do not accommodate the various
exceptions from the HOS rules that agricultural drivers routinely
employ. ARA also believes that FMCSA has complicated the search for
quality ELDs by allowing ELD manufacturers to certify their products
themselves; ARA believes the FMCSA should be certifying ELD devices.
ARA asserts that poor internet and cellular service in certain
parts of the country calls the technological feasibility of ELDs in the
agriculture industry into question. In addition, ARA is concerned that
ELDs are vulnerable to both cybersecurity attack and illicit monitoring
of the movements of member CMVs, some of which transport hazardous
materials. ARA also asserts that ELDs contribute to driver distraction
and thus negatively affect safety. A copy of ARA's application for
exemption is available for review in the docket for this notice.
ARA states that its application will achieve a level of safety
equivalent to, or greater than, the level that would be achieved absent
the proposed exemption.
Issued on: December 14, 2017.
Larry W. Minor,
Associate Administrator for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2017-27884 Filed 12-27-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P