Hours of Service of Drivers; California Farm Bureau Federation; Application for Exemption

Larry W. Minor
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
January 8, 2015

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 5 (Thursday, January 8, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1069-1070]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-00101]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

[Docket No. FMCSA-2014-0445]


Hours of Service of Drivers; California Farm Bureau Federation; 
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 the 
California Farm Bureau Federation (CFBF) on behalf of its members and 
other agricultural organizations for an exemption from the 30-minute 
rest break provision of the Agency's hours-of-service regulations for 
certain commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers transporting bees. The 
exemption would enable CMV drivers transporting bees to operate without 
taking a 30-minute break during the

[[Page 1070]]

workday. FMCSA considers the request to be on behalf of all motor 
carriers and drivers when transporting bees.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before February 9, 2015.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Federal Docket 
Management System Number FMCSA-2014-0445 by any of the following 
methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: www.regulations.gov. Follow 
the online instructions for submitting comments.
     Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
     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.
    Instructions: All submissions must include the Agency name and 
docket number. For detailed instructions on submitting comments and 
additional information on the exemption process, see the Public 
Participation heading below. Note that all comments received will be 
posted without change to www.regulations.gov, including any personal 
information provided. Please also see the Privacy Act heading below.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to www.regulations.gov, and follow the online 
instructions for accessing the dockets, or go to the street address 
listed above.
    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 any personal information 
the commenter provides, to www.regulations.gov, as described in the 
system of records notice (DOT/ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at 
www.dot.gov/privacy.
    Public participation: The Federal eRulemaking Portal is available 
24 hours each day, 365 days each year. You can obtain electronic 
submission and retrieval help and guidelines under the ``help'' section 
of the Federal eRulemaking Portal Web site. If you want us to notify 
you that we received your comments, please include a self-addressed, 
stamped envelope or postcard, or print the acknowledgement page that 
appears after submitting comments online. Comments received after the 
comment closing date will be included in the docket and will be 
considered to the extent practicable.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Robert F. Schultz, Jr., FMCSA 
Driver and Carrier Operations Division; Office of Carrier, Driver and 
Vehicle Safety Standards; Telephone: 202-366-4325. Email: 
MCPSD@dot.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    FMCSA has authority under 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 31315 to grant 
exemptions from certain parts of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety 
Regulations. Before doing so, the Agency must provide an opportunity 
for public comment. The Agency is required to publish a notice of each 
exemption request in the Federal Register (49 CFR 381.315(a)), 
providing the public an opportunity to inspect the information relevant 
to the application, including any safety analyses that have been 
conducted, and to comment on the request. FMCSA must review the safety 
analyses and public comments submitted and determine 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 Agency must publish its decision in 
the Federal Register (49 CFR 381.315(b)) and state the reasons for 
denying or granting the application. If the exemption is granted, the 
notice must include the name of the person or entity, or class of 
persons, receiving the exemption, and the regulation from which the 
exemption is granted. The notice must also specify the effective period 
of the exemption and state the terms and conditions of the exemption, 
if any. The exemption may be renewed (49 CFR 381.300(b)).
    On December 27, 2011, FMCSA published a final rule establishing 
mandatory rest breaks for CMV drivers (76 FR 81133). Effective July 1, 
2013, drivers were barred from operating a CMV if 8 hours or more had 
elapsed since the end of their last off-duty or sleeper-berth period of 
at least 30 minutes [49 CFR 395.3(a)(3)(ii)]. FMCSA did not specify 
when drivers must take the 30-minute break.

Request for Exemption

    CFBF is a trade organization representing various stakeholders in 
the beekeeping industry, including those who provide bee-pollination 
services and those who benefit from these services. Many crops in the 
U.S. require bee pollination, including almonds, apples, lettuce, and 
several varieties of berries. There is no substitute for the 
pollination provided by bees. CFBF cites a report in Scientific 
American concluding that in the absence of bee pollination, the United 
States could lose one third of its crops. CFBF states that the number 
of bee colonies has been declining for several decades. Recently, the 
Obama administration established the Pollinator Health Task Force 
chaired by the Secretaries of Agriculture and Environmental Protection 
to address problems related to this decline.
    Because of the reduced number of colonies available to pollinate, 
bees are transported long distances to provide crop pollination. CFBF 
states that the CMVs transporting bees must maintain a flow of cool, 
fresh air to the hives on board and that excessive heat in the CMV 
interior can jeopardize the health and welfare of the bees. CFBF 
maintains that if CMVs transporting hives were stopped for 30 minutes, 
particularly in warm weather, the risk of harm to the bees would be 
significant, and possibly fatal. A copy of the application for 
exemption is available for review in the docket for this notice.

Request for Comments

    In accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 31315(b)(4), FMCSA 
requests public comment on CFBF's application for an exemption from the 
rest-break requirement of 49 CFR 395.3(a)(3)(ii). The Agency will 
consider all comments received by close of business on February 9, 
2015. Comments will be available for examination in the docket at the 
location listed under the ADDRESSES section of this notice. The Agency 
will consider to the extent practicable comments received in the public 
docket after the closing date of the comment period.

    Issued on: December 31, 2014.
 Larry W. Minor,
 Associate Administrator for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2015-00101 Filed 1-7-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P