[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 102 (Tuesday, May 28, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24592-24593]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-11035]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

[Docket No. FMCSA-2019-0106]


Hours of Service of Drivers: Kimble Recycling & Disposal, Inc.; 
Application for Exemption

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of application for exemption; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: FMCSA announces that it has received an application from 
Kimble Recycling & Disposal, Inc. (KRD) requesting an exemption from 
the provisions of the hours-of-service (HOS) short-haul exception. 
Specifically, KRD is requesting that its short-haul CMV drivers be 
permitted to return within 14 hours without losing their short-haul 
status instead of returning within 12 hours. FMCSA requests public 
comment on KRD's application for exemption.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before June 27, 2019.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Federal Docket 
Management System Number FMCSA-2019-0106 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. 
E.T., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
     Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
    Each submission must include the Agency name and the docket number 
of this notice. DOT posts all comments received without change to 
www.regulations.gov, including personal information in a comment. 
Please see the Privacy Act heading below.
    Docket: To read background documents or comments, go to 
www.regulations.gov 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 personal information the 
commenter provides, to www.regulations.gov, as described in the system 
of records notice (DOT/ALL-14 FDMS) at www.dot.gov/privacy.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information concerning this 
notice, please contact Ms. Pearlie Robinson, FMCSA Driver and Carrier 
Operations Division; 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-2019-0106), the specific section of this document to 
which the comment applies, and provide reasons for suggestions or 
recommendations. You may submit 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 your document so the Agency can contact you if it has 
questions about your submission.
    To submit your comments online, go to www.regulations.gov and put 
the docket number, ``FMCSA-2019-0106'' in the ``Keyword'' box, and 
click ``Search.'' When the new screen appears, click on the ``Submit a 
Formal Comment'' button and type your comment into the text box in the 
following screen. Indicate 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 deny 
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 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 (up to 5 
years) and explain the terms and conditions of the exemption. The 
exemption may be renewed (49 CFR 381.300(b)).

[[Page 24593]]

III. Request for Exemption

    KRD seeks an exemption for approximately 320 drivers who operate 
CMVs to collect waste and recycling materials. These drivers routinely 
qualify for the short-haul exception in 49 CFR 395.1(e)(1); however, 
occasionally they cannot complete their duty day within 12 hours. KRD 
seeks an exemption to allow its drivers to continue to qualify for the 
short-haul exception up to the 14th hour after coming on duty.
    KRD states that ELDs delay and distract its drivers working to 
collect waste and recycling materials because they require excessive 
interaction. The exemption application states that, as a result of 
frequent stops to pick up trash, its drivers are required to interact 
with the ELD ``hundreds if not thousands of times a day. KRD asserts 
that ELDs are not designed to accommodate operations such as theirs.
    KRD notes that certain CMV drivers already operate up to 14 hours 
without forfeiting short-haul status such as those in the ready-mixed 
concrete industry [49 CFR 395.1(e)(1)(ii)(B)] or the asphalt-paving 
business [83 FR 3864, Jan. 26, 2018]. It asserts that KRD's operations 
are similar to these industries because its drivers spend a significant 
portion of their days conducting non-driving duties.

IV. Method To Ensure an Equivalent or Greater Level of Safety

    KRD listed the following fatigue management programs and processes 
it would implement if the exemption were granted: Observation Program; 
Routeware DriveCam Video Event Recorder Program; and the KRD Fatigued 
Driver Process. Details of these plans are provided in KRD's 
application for exemption which is available for review in the docket 
for this notice. KRD is requesting a 5-year exemption

    Issued on: May 21, 2019.
Larry W. Minor
Associate Administrator for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2019-11035 Filed 5-24-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P