[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 49 (Tuesday, March 13, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10946-10948]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-05001]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
[Docket No. FMCSA-2016-0428]
Hours of Service of Drivers: Electronic Logging Devices;
Application for Exemption; Truck Renting and Leasing Association, Inc.
AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT.
[[Page 10947]]
ACTION: Notice of application for exemption; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: FMCSA announces that the Truck Renting and Leasing Association
Inc. (TRALA) has requested an exemption until December 31, 2018, from
the electronic logging device (ELD) requirements for all drivers of
property-carrying commercial motor vehicles rented for 30 days or
fewer. A waiver for the same purpose and group of drivers was issued to
TRALA on January 19, 2018, and expires on April 19, 2018. TRALA states
that the waiver period, which is limited to 90 days, is not sufficient
to address the ELD problems that they and their short-term lessors are
encountering. This request, if granted, would provide rental-vehicle
owners, carriers, and drivers with additional time to develop
compliance strategies for dealing with the unique issues relating to
the use of ELDs in short-term rental vehicles. TRALA believes that the
exemption, if granted, would not have any adverse impacts on
operational safety, as drivers would continue to remain subject to the
hours-of-service regulations as well as the requirements to maintain a
paper record of duty status. FMCSA requests public comment on TRALA's
application for exemption.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 12, 2018.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Federal Docket
Management System (FDMS) Number FMCSA-2016-0428 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: (202) 366-4325. 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-2016-0428), 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-2016-0428'' 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 and may grant or not grant this application
based on your comments.
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 notice 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. Background
TRALA is a national trade association of companies whose members
rent and lease vehicles. TRALA's membership encompasses the full
spectrum of the industry, including major independent firms such as
Budget, Enterprise Truck Rental, Penske Truck Leasing, Ryder System,
and U Haul, as well as small and medium size businesses that generally
participate as members of four leasing group systems, three of which
are affiliated with a major manufacturer. TRALA states that it has
nearly 500 members whose vehicles account for between 25-30% of all
commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) on the highways today.
TRALA advised that operators of short-term CMV rentals face
challenges in complying with the ELD requirements that no other segment
of the industry faces. Businesses renting CMVs to customers must offer
ELD compliance options for a variety of technical platforms. Motor
carrier fleets use rental vehicles to meet seasonal
[[Page 10948]]
demand, surges in other demands, or to replace breakdowns; these fleets
will already have an ELD platform that in many cases will be different
from the one installed on a rental truck.
TRALA states that FMCSA has recognized the unique compliance
concerns of the short-term CMV rental vehicle market by granting a
partial exemption from the ELD requirements for vehicles rented for no
longer than 8 days (82 FR 47306, October 11, 2017). In addition, FMCSA
has granted an ELD waiver to TRALA until April 19, 2018, for CMVs
rented for no longer than 30 days (83 FR 2868, January 19, 2018).
TRALA states that since FMCSA's October 11, 2017, decision granting
an exemption of only 8 days for rental trucks, TRALA members have taken
several steps to resolve the ELD issues. These include meeting with
customers, building cloud-based portal systems between ELD providers,
and purchasing thousands of ELDs for rental trucks. Nevertheless, TRALA
members and their customers state that they need additional time to
come into full compliance with ELD requirements.
IV. Request for Exemption
TRALA is requesting an exemption until December 31, 2018, from the
ELD requirements in 49 CFR part 395, as applied to drivers of property-
carrying CMVs rented for any reason for no longer than 30 days. Lessors
of short-term CMV rentals are struggling to meet the current April 19,
2018, waiver expiration deadline. TRALA states that its members
continue to work diligently with their customers, developing systems
that will allow renters to record and report their hours seamlessly,
and partnering with ELD providers to give the most options available to
rental customers.
According to TRALA, every customer's needs are unique. An
additional period through the end of this year to prepare for this
transition would allow their members to continue resolving the issues
presented by new technology and the need for individual customer-based
compliance strategies. It would also allow lessors to meet seasonal
demand for short-term rental vehicles through the holiday season in
November and December of this year without disruptions.
TRALA states that allowing short-term CMV rental truck drivers to
not comply with ELD requirements until December 31, 2018, will not have
any impact on safety, nor will it provide a safe harbor for drivers who
may try to avoid compliance with the hours-of-service (HOS) regulations
in general. Nearly half the States now impose daily rental fees which
are a significant disincentive to rent solely for the purpose of
avoiding the ELD regulations.
TRALA also states that, if the exemption is granted, law
enforcement officers would be better able to identify short-term rental
vehicles. Under 49 CFR 390.21(e), a CMV rented for a period not to
exceed 30 days is not required to be marked with the name and USDOT
number of the operating motor carrier if the vehicle otherwise is
marked with the lessor's name and USDOT number, and a copy of the
rental agreement is carried in the vehicle in accordance with that
provision. Enforcement officials inspecting such a vehicle would
examine the short-term rental agreement to determine that the ELD
requirement does not apply to that vehicle. The official would then
check the driver's paper record of duty status for compliance with the
HOS regulations.
According to TRALA, their members represent about 25-30% of CMVs on
the road and are a key component of the trucking industry. Allowing a
further exemption through December 31, 2018, to continue the transition
efforts ongoing since the final rule was published will give all
businesses that use rental trucks comfort that systems can be deployed
to better address the difficulties confronted by the rental truck
market.
A copy of TRALA's application for exemption is available for review
in the docket for this notice.
Issued on: March 5, 2018.
Larry W. Minor,
Associate Administrator for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2018-05001 Filed 3-12-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P