Agency Information Collection Activities; New Information Collection Request: State Commercial Driver's License Program Plan |
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G. Kelly Regal
Federal Highway Administration
May 28, 2015
[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 102 (Thursday, May 28, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30529-30532]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-12856]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
[Docket No. FMCSA-2014-0133]
Agency Information Collection Activities; New Information
Collection Request: State Commercial Driver's License Program Plan
AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT.
ACTION: Notice and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, FMCSA
announces its plan to submit the Information Collection Request (ICR)
described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review
and approval and invites public comment. The FMCSA requests approval of
a new ICR titled, ``State Commercial Driver's License Program Plan,''
as a result of requirements from
[[Page 30530]]
Section 32305 of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act
(MAP-21), Public Law 112-141, dated July 6, 2012. The Act requires
States to submit a plan to the Secretary describing the actions the
State will take to address any deficiencies in the State's commercial
driver's license (CDL) program, as identified by the Secretary in the
most recent audit of the program. This ICR is needed to ensure that the
States are complying with notification and recordkeeping requirements
for information related to testing, licensing, violations, convictions
and disqualifications and that the information is accurate, complete
and transmitted and recorded within certain time periods as required by
the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1986 (CMVSA), as amended.
DATES: Please send your comments by June 29, 2015. OMB must receive
your comments by this date in order to act quickly on the ICR.
ADDRESSES: All comments should reference Federal Docket Management
System (FDMS) Docket Number FMCSA-2014-0133. Interested persons are
invited to submit written comments on the proposed information
collection to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office
of Management and Budget. Comments should be addressed to the attention
of the Desk Officer, Department of Transportation/Federal Motor Carrier
Safety Administration, and sent via electronic mail to
oira_submission@omb.eop.gov, or faxed to (202) 395-6974, or mailed to
the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management
and Budget, Docket Library, Room 10102, 725 17th Street NW.,
Washington, DC 20503.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Michael Gordon, Office of State
Programs, Commercial Driver's License Division (MC-ESL),, Federal Motor
Carrier Safety Administration, West Building 6th Floor, 1200 New Jersey
Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590. Telephone: 304-549-2651; email
michael.gordon2@dot.gov. Office hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday
through Friday, except Federal Holidays.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: State Driver's License Program Plan.
OMB Control Number: 2126-00XX.
Type of Request: New collection.
Respondents: State Driver Licensing Agencies (SDLAs).
Estimated Number of Respondents: 51 State respondents.
Estimated Time per Response: 40 hours per SDLA.
Expiration Date: N/A. New collection.
Frequency of Response: One-time effort.
Estimated Total Annual Burden: 2,040 hours.
FMCSA estimates that each SDLA would need approximately 40 hours to
complete the State Commercial Driver's License Program Plan and submit
it to FMCSA. The Program Plan is completed on a one-time basis as
required by Section 32305 of MAP-21. There is no continuing information
collection function associated with submitting this Program Plan. The
Program Plan asks for information which is readily available to the
filer.
For the purposes of the CDL program, the District of Columbia is
considered a State. Therefore, there are 51 State responses with an
estimated 40 hours per response to complete and submit the Program Plan
to FMCSA.
The FMCSA estimates the SDLAs total annual burden is 2,040 hours
(51 responses x 40 hours = 2,040 hours).
Background: The FMCSA is responsible for compliance and oversight
of SDLAs. SDLAs are required to comply with the requirements of 49 CFR
part 384, titled ``State Compliance with Commercial Driver's License
Program.'' Section 32305 of MAP-21 amends 49 U. S.C. 31311 by adding
paragraph (d) State Commercial Driver's License Program Plan
requirements. In paragraph (d)(1), a State shall submit a plan to the
Secretary of Transportation for complying with the requirements under
this section during the period beginning on the date the plan is
submitted and ending on September 30, 2016. In paragraph (d)(2), a plan
submitted by a State under paragraph (d)(1) shall identify--(A) the
actions that the State will take to address any deficiencies in the
State's Commercial Driver's License Program, as identified by the
Secretary in the most recent audit of the program; and (B) other
actions that the State will take to comply with the requirements under
subsection (a). Paragraph (d)(3) establishes the following: ``(A)
Implementation Schedule--A plan submitted by a State under paragraph
(d)(1) shall include a schedule for the implementation of the actions
identified under paragraph (d)(2). In establishing the schedule, the
State shall prioritize actions to address any deficiencies highlighted
by the Secretary as critical in the most recent audit of the program.
(B) Deadline for Compliance with the requirements.--A plan submitted by
a State under paragraph (1) shall include assurances that the State
will take the necessary actions to comply with the requirements of
subsection (a) not later than September 30, 2015.
This collection of information supports the DOT strategic goal of
safety by requiring the States to assure that drivers of CMVs are
properly licensed according to all applicable Federal requirements.
States will be required to complete a Commercial Driver's License
Program Plan using a spreadsheet or pdf document that will be provided
by FMCSA to each SDLA. The spreadsheet has been placed in the FMCSA
docket and is available for immediate public consideration at the
location http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=FMCSA-2014-0133-
0007 as item 7. The plan will be completed by the State and provided to
FMCSA's CDL Division via the Automated Compliance Review System (ACRS),
for review and concurrence. FMCSA may reject a State's Commercial
Driver's License Program Plan if it is determined to be deficient by
not adequately addressing the State's deficiencies and/or assurances.
Within the plan, the State will identify any deficiencies from the most
recent audit and will be required to provide detailed information to
demonstrate how the State will obtain compliance with the Section 32305
of MAP-21 requirement to be in compliance with the CDL Regulations by
September 30, 2015, and remain in compliance through September 30,
2016. This will enable FMCSA to determine a State's level of compliance
with the CDL requirements. Previous to Section 32305 of MAP-21, there
was no requirement for a SDLA to submit a Commercial Driver's License
Program Plan.
The spreadsheet was developed by FMCSA. The spreadsheet will be
sent to each SDLA. The SDLA will complete the spreadsheet and send
directly to FMCSA via electronic transmission. FMCSA will then review
each plan to assess each State's level of compliance with the CDL
requirements. The spreadsheets will then be uploaded into FMCSA's ACRS.
Appropriate feedback will be provided from MC-ESL to each State after
review.
Comments From the Public
General Summary
FMCSA received four comments to the 60-day Federal Register notice
published on November 13, 2014 (79 FR 67540) regarding the Agency's
Information Collection Activities; New Information Collection: State
Commercial Driver's License Program Plan. Comments were received from
the Nebraska Department of Motor Vehicles, New York Department of Motor
[[Page 30531]]
Vehicles, Colorado Department of Revenue, and North Carolina Department
of Transportation. Comments and responsive considerations are as
follows:
The Nebraska Department of Motor Vehicles commented that the
proposed rule indicates that States will be required to complete a
Commercial Driver's License Program Plan using a spreadsheet or pdf
document that will be provided by FMCSA to each SDLA. The Plan will be
completed by the State and provided to FMCSA's Division via the
Automated Compliance Review System (ACRS), for review and concurrence.
The Nebraska DMV recommends that the desired information be placed on
ACRS for entry by the SDLA in lieu of the paper spreadsheet or pdf
document being used. The proposed rule states that FMCSA estimates that
each SDLA would need approximately 40 hours to complete the State
Commercial Driver's License Program Plan. The Nebraska DMV already
spends an inordinate amount of time working on CDL federal
requirements. The Nebraska DMV questions the value of a spreadsheet
that takes 40 hours to complete as SDLAs have other responsibilities
besides the CDL Program. Quantity does not necessarily equate to
quality. The proposed rule says that the spreadsheet was developed by
FMCSA. However, it is not attached to this proposed rule. The Nebraska
DMV suggests that the SDLAs be allowed to comment on the information
being gathered and the tool used to gather the information. This
promotes a better understanding by the SDLAs in knowing what is needed,
why it is needed and may after comments, help FMCSA reduce duplication
of information, and understand why the spreadsheet may not be relevant
or needed. It is difficult to provide feedback and comments on a
document sight unseen.''
The FMCSA agrees with Nebraska's recommendation that the ACRS
should be utilized to its fullest capacity to complete the State Plan.
The spreadsheet has been placed in the FMCSA docket and is available
for immediate public consideration at the location http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=FMCSA-2014-0133-0007 as item 7.
FMCSA's intention is to utilize ACRS to deliver the final version of
the spreadsheet to each SDLA. The SDLA will be able to download,
complete and sign the document and re-upload via the ACRS State Plans
function. ACRS's functionality prevents the use of the system to
complete a State Plan within ACRS.
The FMCSA does not expect it to take 40 hours for each CDL
Coordinator to complete the spreadsheet. The estimation was based upon
the differences in complexities and extent of compliance deficiencies,
the various 51 SDLAs have in regards to the number of existing
compliance findings. This estimation is also based upon the
consideration that a new CDL Coordinator with limited experience may be
completing the spreadsheet. In creating the spreadsheet, FMCSA took
into consideration the demands being placed upon the SDLAs and
attempted to implement the most efficient and least demanding process
to meet the Section 32305 of MAP-21 requirement.
The New York Department of Motor Vehicles stated opinion is that
the ICR is unnecessary for the performance of FMCSA's functions in that
the information requested to be collected from the Commercial Driver's
License Program Plan is already made available to FMCSA via the ACRS
System. New York has maintained updates to our audits and annual
program review action plans and fails to understand why FMCSA needs
states to duplicate information that is already supplied to them.
The New York DMV also commented on the Section 32305 of MAP-21
compliance date of September 30, 2015. New York stated while it is
working diligently towards that goal, the deadline is unrealistic,
considering the many obstacles New York and the other states face. New
York does not understand why a deadline is even essential, in that all
of New York's Action Plans listed on ACRS include our estimated
completion dates for each project. With FMCSA changing from a 3 year
CDL Program Review to an annual review, deficiencies are discovered
earlier and therefore, corrected earlier, helping the states to achieve
compliance. Over the last six years, FMCSA has published two major
rulemakings and numerous smaller rulemakings related to the CDL
Program. FMCSA has indicated that more Final rulemakings are to be
published within the year. Due to strained fiscal circumstances states
have scarce resources, making it difficult to implement the significant
number of changes in order to fully comply with all the federal
requirements by the regulatory deadline. Both New York's ITS staff that
maintain our CDL programs and the DMV business units that administer
the programs are severely challenged in complying with the complexity
and enormity of federal regulation. At the same time, such staff must
continue to serve our many clients, including eleven and a half million
licensed drivers, a half million of which hold a CDL. The complexity of
the CLP rule is reflected in the monthly CLP Permit Rule Roundtable,
where states and the FMCSA discuss issues and concerns about the rule.
FMCSA continues to modify its interpretation of the rule. Which causes
implementation delays for the states. New York would like to petition
for the elimination of a deadline for full State compliance, or if one
absolutely needs to be established, an extension of the September 30,
2015, full compliance date, for at a minimum, another year (September
30, 2016). New York is dedicated to fulfilling all the necessary
requirements needed to obtain full compliance and we are reiterating
that our mission is to make our highways safe for all drivers and for
all types of operations. The elimination or extension of the deadline
would allow more time for states to ensure the accuracy of all final
programming and procedural changes.
The FMCSA notes that the State Plan is in response to the mandated
Section 32305 of MAP-21 requirement. The FMCSA understands the
information contained within ACRS. This approach and the spreadsheet
were developed in such a manner as to not require a State to provide
duplicative information that already exists within ACRS, but only
reference it. This approach allows the State to provide the assurances
required by Section 32305 of MAP-21, that the State will remain in
compliance through September 30, 2016.
The FMCSA did not set the deadline for September 30, 2015. This was
a Section 32305 of MAP-21 requirement. The FMCSA understands that
States have existing action plans that have been approved by FMCSA in
ACRS. As previously stated FMCSA has attempted to mitigate redundant
work by a State. The FMCSA has created a spreadsheet that allows a
State to refer to an existing (approved) action plan within ACRS when
referring to a deficiency or finding. The spreadsheet will meet the
additional Section 32305 of MAP-21 requirement for a State to provide
assurances that they will remain in compliance through September 30,
2016. The FMCSA understands and appreciates the many demands that
recent rulemaking have placed upon the states.
The Colorado Department of Revenue stated that it wholeheartedly
appreciates and supports FMCSA's mission of promoting highway safety,
preventing accidents and getting the bad driver off the road. Colorado
also, within reason, agrees with FMCSA's approach of making each SDLA
responsible for their
[[Page 30532]]
individual CDL program. However, within this proposal there are some
concerns. Colorado is concerned that there is no disclosure of what
will be contained in the proposed spreadsheet. Additionally, regarding
data accuracy there is no indication as to what level of error
constitutes a compliance issue. Colorado feels that there should be an
opportunity to comment on all information that will be contained in the
proposed spreadsheet and what will meet compliance and what will not.
Moving forward, Colorado would like a better understanding as to the
relationship between what is contained in the proposed spreadsheet and
the Annual Performance Review (APR). Will both documents still be
required and will they be done at the same time? Colorado would also
like clarification as to whether the 40 hours discussed in the proposed
rule also covers time spent completing the APR documents. Colorado
would hope that effort to prevent duplicity has been made. Colorado
would also like clarification on this remark. The program plan is
completed on a one time basis as required by Section 32305 of MAP-21.
There is no continuing information collection function associated
with submitting the Program Plan. What does this mean? Overall, to
fully comment on this proposal, Colorado would like a better
understanding as to what FMCSA is going to require from the SDLAs
regarding what is compliance and what a SDLA will have to do to remain
or get into compliance and how long they will have to do so.
When developing the spreadsheet to meet the Section 32305 of MAP-21
requirement, FMCSA decided upon an approach that would limit the amount
of duplicity and redundancy of the various FMCSA requirements. The
spreadsheet has been placed in the FMCSA docket and is available for
immediate public consideration at the location http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=FMCSA-2014-0133-0007 as item 7.
Specifically, the spreadsheet focuses on each specific section of 49
CFR part 384 and asks the question if the State is in compliance with
each requirement? If not, the follow-up question is, does a State have
an approved Action Plan within ACRS? If yes, then the State has
fulfilled that specific requirement. If not, then the State would have
to provide an action plan for each compliance finding or deficiency
within the spreadsheet that does not have an approved action plan
within ACRS. A finding or deficiency is an instance where the State is
not in compliance with a particular part of the regulations. This could
be from any number of activities, including an Annual Program or Skills
Test Review, a review of a State's data, and operation performance, a
comprehensive compliance review, or any other means by which FMCSA may
become aware that a State is not in compliance. This particular aspect
has not changed by the State Plan requirement, and the publishing of
this ICR. The State Plan requirement is not a reoccurring requirement.
Section 32305 of MAP-21 required the submittal of a State Plan one
time.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation stated that it
contends that the requirement to submit the CDL Program Plan is
redundant since this information is already available to FMCSA on ACRS.
This requirement places an additional burden on the states when efforts
are needed most to work toward compliance with the regulations.
The FMCSA has developed the spreadsheet to eliminate redundancy and
limit the amount of time and effort for each State to complete and to
comply with this requirement. In addition, the Section 32305 of MAP-21
requirement for States to provide assurances that they will remain in
compliance through September 30, 2016, is not information that is
currently available to FMCSA.
Public Comments Invited: You are asked to comment on any aspect of
this information collection, including: (1) Whether the proposed
collection is necessary for the FMCSA to perform its functions; (2) the
accuracy of the estimated burden; (3) ways for the FMCSA to enhance the
quality, usefulness, and clarity of the collected information; and (4)
ways that the burden could be minimized without reducing the quality of
the collected information.
Issued under the authority of 49 CFR 1.87 on: May 18, 2015.
G. Kelly Regal,
Associate Administrator, Office of Research and Information Technology.
[FR Doc. 2015-12856 Filed 5-27-15; 8:45 am]
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