[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 156 (Tuesday, August 13, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65968-65969]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-17966]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

[Docket No. FMCSA-2024-0208]


Notice of Review of Guidance

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

ACTION: Regulatory guidance; notice of review of guidance.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) will 
be reviewing its existing guidance documents to evaluate their 
continued necessity and determine whether they should be updated or 
eliminated. As part of this review, FMCSA invites the public to 
identify and provide input on existing guidance documents that are good 
candidates for revision or rescission.

DATES: Comments should be received on or before September 12, 2024.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Docket Number FMCSA-
2024-0208 using any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to https://www.regulations.gov/docket/FMCSA-2024-0208/document. Follow the online 
instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail: Dockets Operations, U.S. DOT, 1200 New Jersey Avenue 
SE, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-
0001.
     Hand Delivery or Courier: Dockets Operations, U.S. DOT, 
1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 
Washington, DC 20590-0001, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, except Federal holidays. To be sure someone is there to help 
you, please call (202) 366-9317 or (202) 366-9826 before visiting 
Dockets Operations.
     Fax: (202) 493-2251.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Anna Winkle, Attorney-Advisor, 
Office of Chief Counsel, FMCSA, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, Washington, DC 
20590-0001; 202-366-5257; [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Public Participation and Request for Comments

A. Comments Sought for Consideration During Regular Review of FMCSA 
Guidance Documents

    FMCSA's primary mission is to reduce crashes, injuries and 
fatalities involving large trucks and buses. In carrying out this 
safety mandate, FMCSA develops and enforces data-driven regulations and 
produces guidance documents to clarify regulatory requirements and aid 
compliance. Section 5203(c) of the Fixing America's Surface 
Transportation (FAST) Act requires that, not less than once every 5 
years, FMCSA conduct a comprehensive review (``regular review'') of the 
guidance documents it has issued to determine whether such documents 
are consistent and clear, uniformly and consistently enforced, and 
still necessary. A similar comprehensive review was conducted in early 
2020, culminating in the effective reissuance of all of the guidance in 
FMCSA's guidance portal on March 3, 2020, the date the Department 
announced the availability of the regulatory guidance portals.\1\ Prior 
to beginning a regular review, FMCSA is required to publish a notice 
and request for comment in the Federal Register that solicits input 
from stakeholders on which guidance documents should be updated or 
eliminated. This notice satisfies this statutory requirement.
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    \1\ See 85 FR 12663 and https://www.transportation.gov/guidance/operating-administration-guidance-portals.
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    Accordingly, FMCSA seeks written input from the public on all FMCSA 
guidance documents that are good candidates for revision or rescission 
including guidance published at FMCSA's guidance portal page located at 
https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/guidance. The public is encouraged to 
identify guidance documents that: (1) are inconsistent or unclear; (2) 
may not be conducive to uniform or consistent enforcement; or (3) are 
no longer necessary.

B. Submitting Comments

    If you submit a comment, please include the docket number for this 
notice (FMCSA-2024-0208), indicate the specific guidance document to 
which your comment applies, and provide a reason for each suggestion or 
recommendation. 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 FMCSA 
can contact you if there are questions regarding your submission.
    To submit your comment online, go to https://www.regulations.gov/docket/FMCSA-2024-0208/document, click on this notice, click 
``Comment,'' and type your comment into the text box on the following 
screen.
    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.

C. Content of Comments

    FMCSA will consider all comments and material received during the 
comment period. To maximize the usefulness of comments, FMCSA 
encourages commenters to provide the following information.
    1. A specific reference to the guidance document and associated 
statutes or regulations that the comment discusses. This should include 
the title or subject, the date of issuance, guidance document number if 
available (e.g., FMCSA-CDL-383.73-FAQ01(2024-05-20)), internet address 
of guidance location, or other source of the guidance document. You may 
also provide copies of the guidance if it is not readily identifiable 
through these sources. If available, the reference should include 
citations to the associated statutes (e.g., FAST Act) or regulations in 
the Code of Federal Regulations. A specific reference will assist FMCSA 
in identifying the guidance document and any associated statutory or 
regulatory requirements.
    2. A description of the problem with the specific guidance 
document. A comment that explains why the guidance document should be 
eliminated or revised is more useful than a comment that merely asserts 
that the guidance should be eliminated or revised. Comments that 
reflect experience with the guidance or a related statutory or 
regulatory requirement and provide data describing that experience are 
more helpful than comments that are not tied to direct experience.
    3. A description of alternatives that are better than the specific 
guidance document. If the commenter believes that the objective that 
motivated the guidance document may be achieved using a better 
alternative, the commenter should describe that alternative in detail. 
Likewise, if the

[[Page 65969]]

commenter believes that there is not a better alternative or there is 
not a legitimate objective served by the guidance document, then that 
should be explained in the comment.
    4. Examples of entities that are, have been, or will be negatively 
affected by the specific guidance document and examples of entities 
that will benefit if the guidance is removed or revised. A comment 
listing specific entities is more useful because it will assist FMCSA 
in investigating the guidance document and its impact.

D. Confidential Business Information (CBI)

    CBI is commercial or financial information that is both customarily 
and actually treated as private by its owner. Under the Freedom of 
Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552), CBI is exempt from public disclosure. 
If your comments responsive to the notice contain commercial or 
financial information that (1) is customarily treated as confidential 
and that you actually treat as confidential, and (2) is relevant or 
responsive to the notice, you may request confidential treatment. It is 
important that you clearly designate the submitted comments as CBI. 
Please mark each page of your submission that constitutes CBI as 
``PROPIN'' to indicate it contains proprietary information. For pages 
that contain both CBI and non-confidential information, commenters 
should use markings (e.g., brackets, highlighting, font changes, or 
other markings) to identify the portions of text that constitute CBI 
and provide a description of the markings used. FMCSA will treat such 
marked submissions as confidential under the Freedom of Information 
Act, and they will not be placed in the public docket for this notice. 
FMCSA is currently treating electronic submission as an acceptable 
method for submitting CBI to the Agency. Submissions containing CBI 
should be sent electronically to Brian Dahlin, Chief, Regulatory 
Evaluation Division, Office of Policy at [email protected]. At this 
time, you need not send a duplicate hardcopy of your electronic CBI 
submissions to FMCSA headquarters. Any comments FMCSA receives not 
specifically designated as CBI will be placed in the public docket for 
this notice.

E. Viewing Comments and Documents

    To view comments, as well as any documents mentioned as being 
available in the docket, go to https://www.regulations.gov/docket/FMCSA-2024-0208/document and choose the document to review. To view 
comments, click this notice, then click ``Browse Comments.'' If you do 
not have access to the internet, you may view the docket online by 
visiting Dockets Operations on the ground floor of the DOT West 
Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590-0001, between 
9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. To 
be sure someone is there to help you, please call (202) 366-9317 or 
(202) 366-9826 before visiting Dockets Operations.

F. Privacy Act

    In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits comments from the 
public to better inform its regulatory 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 (Federal Docket Management System (FDMS)), 
which can be reviewed at https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/privacy/privacy-act-system-records-notices, the comments are searchable 
by the name of the submitter.

Sue Lawless,
Acting Deputy Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2024-17966 Filed 8-12-24; 8:45 am]
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