[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 82 (Wednesday, April 30, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17995-17997]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-07447]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
[Docket No. NHTSA-2024-0054]
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the
Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; Request for
Comment; Limousine Crashworthiness Safety Research
AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA),
Department of Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notice and request for comments on a request for approval of a
new collection of information.
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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA),
this notice announces that the Information Collection Request (ICR)
summarized below will be submitted to the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The ICR describes the nature of
the information collection and its expected burden. This ICR is a new
information collection by NHTSA for the purpose of researching
limousine crash safety. A Federal Register Notice with a 60-day comment
period soliciting comments on the information collection was published
on October 7, 2024. One comment was received expressing support; thus,
there are no changes to the planned collection from that proposed in
the previous notice.
DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before May 30, 2025.
ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed
information collection, including suggestions for reducing burden,
should be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget at
www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. To find this particular information
collection, select ``Currently under Review--Open for Public Comment''
or use the search function.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For additional information or access
to background documents, contact Ian Hall, Structures and Restraints
Research Division (NSR-210), (202) 366-4714, National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration, W46-443, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200
New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590. Please identify the
relevant collection of information by referring to its OMB Control
Number.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), a
Federal agency must receive approval from the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) before it collects certain information from the public,
and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information
by a Federal agency unless the collection displays a valid OMB control
number. In compliance with these requirements, this notice announces
that the following information collection request will be submitted
OMB.
Title: Limousine Crashworthiness Safety Research.
OMB Control Number: New.
Form Number(s): NHTSA Form 1802 Interview Guide--OEM; NHTSA Form
1803 Interview Guide--OEM Program Non-Participant; NHTSA Form 1804
Interview Guide--OEM Program Participant.
Type of Request: New.
Type of Review Requested: Regular.
Length of Approval Requested: 3 years from date of approval.
Summary of the Collection of Information:
In an effort to comply with a Congressional mandate and understand
the limousine market and the characteristics of limousine vehicles with
respect to crashworthiness and occupant safety, NHTSA is seeking
approval for a new ICR.
Many federal safety regulations (e.g., Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standards [FMVSS] Nos. 207, 208, 209, and 210) do not currently apply
to limousines; as a result, the extent of limousine crash safety
features and performance is not well known. Since limousine
manufacturers fall into one of three categories (vehicle original
equipment manufacturers [OEM], OEM program participants, and OEM
program nonparticipants), each of which uses distinct methods for
vehicle fabrication and vehicle design, NHTSA must conduct this
research with survey tools targeting each of those specific categories.
The research approach consists of one-time voluntary interviews with
members of the three groups related to the limousine market: (a)
vehicle OEMs, (b) OEM program participants, and (c) OEM program
nonparticipants. The interviews will consist of open-ended questions
regarding limousine fabrication and are intended to report on safety
characteristics related to evacuation, crashworthiness, occupant
seating, and restraints. Three versions of the interview will be used,
one for each category of manufacturer. Interview results will be
collected and summarized in a final report available for public
consumption via the National Transportation Library, and the data will
help inform NHTSA actions in alignment with the Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).
Description of the Need for the Information and Proposed Use of the
Information:
On November 15, 2021, Public Law 117-58, also known as IIJA, became
law. Sections 23015 and 23023 of IIJA mandate that the Secretary of
Transportation, NHTSA through delegation, conduct a variety of research
and actions. These include research into the development of motor
vehicle safety standards for side impact protection, roof crush
resistance, and air bag systems for the protection of occupants in
limousines with alternative seating positions--including perimeter
seating arrangements; safety features and standards that aid evacuation
in the event that an exit in the passenger compartment of a limousine
is blocked; and amending FMVSS Nos. 207, 208, 209, and 210 such that
they apply to limousines for each designated seating position,
including side-facing seats. This information collection will also aid
in any cost-benefit analyses that would be required for promulgating
new federal safety regulation and other regulatory alternative
considerations if those actions are deemed necessary and appropriate.
60-Day Notice:
A Federal Register notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting
public comments on the following information collection was published
on October 7, 2024 (89 FR 81134). NHTSA received one comment during the
60-day comment period. The comment came from the National Association
of Mutual Insurance Companies (NAMIC) and expressed support for NHTSA's
information collection. Specifically, the comment stated that ``NAMIC
supports
[[Page 17996]]
this effort and the intended safety goal. The proposed collection of
information seems reasonably necessary to assist in safety
determinations and to have practical utility.'' Additionally, NHTSA
notified the public about the research and the opportunity to comment
on the information collection at the NHTSA Safety Research Portfolio
Public Meeting,\1\ which had an approximate attendance of 1,228. NHTSA
opened docket NHTSA-2024-0040 to announce and receive comments
regarding the NHTSA Safety Research Portfolio Public Meeting at which
this research was discussed. Four comments were received to this
docket; however, none of the comments referenced the Limousine
Study.\2\ With no specific feedback to the information requested during
the study nor comments regarding the burden estimates, no changes were
made to the study.
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\1\ https://www.nhtsa.gov/events/nhtsa-safety-research-portfolio-public-meeting-fall-2024. Day 1: Opening Remarks &
Crashworthiness: 21:50.
\2\ https://www.regulations.gov/docket/NHTSA-2024-0040/comments.
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Affected Public:
This includes selected limousine manufacturers/fabricators who will
fall into one of three categories, including vehicle OEMs, limousine
fabricators associated with an OEM limousine program (OEM program
participants), and limousine fabricators not associated with an OEM
program (OEM program nonparticipants). Participation is voluntary.
Estimated Annual Number of Respondents: 53.
Frequency: Once.
Estimated Annual Number of Responses: 53.
Estimated Annual Burden Hours: 53 hours.
This information collection will consist of interviews conducted
across three categories of limousine manufacturers: vehicle OEMs, OEM
program participants, and OEM program nonparticipants. The interviews
in this ICR will be one-time responses of limousine manufacturers. For
each manufacturer type, the target for minimum number of responses is
10, plus an approximately equal distribution of the 11 remaining
planned interviews to arrive at a total of a minimum of 41 successful
responses. Respondents in some of the groups may be more difficult for
interview completion than others; thus, the target maximum respondent
outreach of 160 contacts is as follows: a maximum of 20 OEMs will be
contacted in total with an annual average of seven OEMs contacted
(greatest expected response rate), a maximum of 40 OEM program
participants will be contacted in total with an annual average of 13
OEM program participants contacted (mid-range expected response), and a
maximum of 100 OEM program nonparticipants will be contacted in total
with an annual average of 33 OEM program nonparticipants contacted
(these will be the smaller businesses, and response rate is expected to
be low).
While each interview guide varies slightly, the time to complete
the interview is not expected to vary greatly with an average of 60
minutes per interview. While NHTSA and the research team will
discontinue the interview process after a minimum of 41 successful
responses is complete across a relatively equal distribution of the
categories, there is no similar study to calculate response rates or
average completion time of an incomplete response or declined
interview. Therefore, for calculation of burden, NHTSA and the research
team have used the maximum number of contacts to provide an absolute
maximum burden. The table below provides estimated burden costs and
hours, both total burden and annual burden. Based on the average
interview time from a preliminary round of nine interviews with
limousine manufacturers, the time required to complete each interview
is expected to be 60 minutes. This results in a total burden to
respondents of 160 hours over the three-year study and an annual burden
of 53 hours.
The database of respondents for limousine manufacturers will be
from S&P Global Mobility and their extensive canvasing of the
automotive industry. The respondents in each category will be selected
at random and given the opportunity to accept or decline the interview
before moving on to the subsequent outreach effort.
Table 1 provides a summary of the estimated burden hours associated
with those submissions. Note there are slight variations between the
total and the annual figures based on rounding.
Table 1--Burden Estimates
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Number of
Information collection respondents (total/ Frequency of Time (minutes) Burden hours
annual) response
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Interview Guide--OEM (NHTSA Form 20 total/7 annual.... 1 60 20 total/7 annual.
1802).
Interview Guide--OEM Program 40 total/13 annual... 1 60 40 total/13 annual.
Participant (NHTSA Form 1804).
Interview Guide--OEM Program 100 total/33 annual.. 1 60 100 total/33 annual.
Nonparticipant (NHTSA Form 1803).
Total Burden.................. ..................... .............. .............. 160.
Annualized Burden............. ..................... .............. .............. 53.
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Estimated Total Annual Cost Burden: $0.
There will be no start-up or record-keeping costs to respondents to
complete the interviews. Respondents are completing the interview in-
person or via phone, and no equipment or software is required for
completion.
Public Comments Invited: You are asked to comment on any aspects of
this information collection, including (a) whether the proposed
collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of
the functions of the agency, including whether the information will
have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of
the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the
validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (c) ways to enhance
the quality, utility and clarity of the information to be collected;
and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on
respondents, including the use of appropriate automated, electronic,
mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms
of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of
responses.
Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. Chapter
35, as
[[Page 17997]]
amended; 49 CFR 1.49; and DOT Order 1351.29A.
Cem Hatipoglu,
Associate Administrator, Office of Vehicle Safety Research.
[FR Doc. 2025-07447 Filed 4-29-25; 8:45 am]
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