Draft Environmental Assessment for Rulemaking To Establish Minimum Sound Requirements for Hybrid and Electric Vehicles

Christopher J. Bonanti
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
January 14, 2013

[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 9 (Monday, January 14, 2013)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 2868-2869]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-00361]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

49 CFR Parts 571 and 585

[Docket No. NHTSA-2011-0100]


Draft Environmental Assessment for Rulemaking To Establish 
Minimum Sound Requirements for Hybrid and Electric Vehicles

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 
Department of Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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[[Page 2869]]

SUMMARY: NHTSA is announcing the availability of a Draft Environmental 
Assessment (EA) to evaluate the potential environmental impacts of a 
proposed rule establishing a Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 
(FMVSS) setting minimum sound requirements for hybrid and electric 
vehicles.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before March 15, 2013.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on the EA to the docket number 
identified in the heading of this document using any of the following 
methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments.
     Mail: Docket Management Facility, M-30, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, West Building, Ground Floor, Rm. W12-140, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590.
     Hand Delivery or Courier: West Building Ground Floor, Room 
W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Eastern 
Time, Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
     Fax: (202) 493-2251.
    Regardless of how you submit your comments, you should mention the 
docket number of this document.
    You may call the Docket at 202-366-9324.
    Instructions: For detailed instructions on submitting comments and 
additional information on the rulemaking process, see the Public 
Participation heading of the Supplementary Information section of this 
document. Note that all comments received will be posted without change 
to http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information 
provided.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  For non-legal issues, Ms. Gayle 
Dalrymple, Office of Crash Avoidance Standards, National Highway 
Traffic Safety Administration, NVS-112, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., 
Washington, DC 20590. Telephone: 202-366-5559; fax: 202-493-2990.
    For legal issues, Mr. Russell Krupen, Office of the Chief Counsel, 
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, NCC-113, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590. Telephone: 202-366-1834; fax: 
202-366-3820.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  Pursuant to the National Environmental 
Policy Act, NHTSA has prepared a Draft EA analyzing the potential 
environmental impacts of the agency's proposed action to establish 
minimum sound requirements for hybrid and electric vehicles. The Draft 
EA is being issued together with the agency's Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking for FMVSS No.141, Minimum Sound Requirements for Hybrid and 
Electric Vehicles. The proposal would require hybrid and electric 
passenger cars, light trucks, medium and heavy duty trucks and buses, 
low speed vehicles, and motorcycles to meet certain minimum sound 
requirements and would apply to electric vehicles and to those hybrid 
vehicles that are capable of propulsion in any forward or reverse gear 
without operation of the vehicle's internal combustion engine.
    On July 12, 2011, the agency published a Notice of Intent to 
Prepare an Environmental Assessment, which sought comment on the scope 
of the environmental analysis, the significant issues to be analyzed, 
and the nature of the analysis to be conducted. NHTSA received comments 
to the Notice of Intent from 35 individuals and organizations. NHTSA 
developed the alternatives analyzed in the Draft EA based on the 
comments received and further research and analysis conducted by the 
agency.
    NHTSA invites interested parties to comment on the Draft EA by 
following the instructions under ADDRESSES above. The Draft EA is 
available on the agency's Web site at http://www.nhtsa.gov or on the 
public docket at http://www.regulations.gov (Docket No. NHTSA-2011-
0100).

    Issued on: January 7, 2013.
Christopher J. Bonanti,
Associate Administrator for Rulemaking.
[FR Doc. 2013-00361 Filed 1-9-13; 4:15 pm]
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