Minimum Training Requirements for Entry-Level Drivers of Commercial Motor Vehicles: Negotiated Rulemaking Committee Meetings

Larry W. Minor
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
March 6, 2015

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 44 (Friday, March 6, 2015)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 12136-12137]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-05197]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

49 CFR Chapter III

[Docket No. FMCSA-2007-27748]


Minimum Training Requirements for Entry-Level Drivers of 
Commercial Motor Vehicles: Negotiated Rulemaking Committee Meetings

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

ACTION: Notice of advisory committee public meetings.

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SUMMARY: FMCSA announces the meeting schedule for the Entry-Level 
Driver Training Advisory Committee (ELDTAC), established to complete a 
negotiated rulemaking on Entry-Level Driver Training (ELDT) for 
individuals who want to operate Commercial Motor Vehicles (CMVs). 
ELDTAC is a negotiated rulemaking committee established to develop a 
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to implement section 32304 of the 
Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) concerning ELDT 
standards for individuals applying for a commercial driver's license 
(CDL) or CDL upgrade. The meetings will be held Thursday-Friday, March 
19-20, April 9-10 and 23-24, and May 14-15 and 28-29, 2015. The 
meetings are open to the public for their entirety.

DATES: The meetings will be held Thursday-Friday, March 19-20, April 9-
10 and 23-24, and May 14-15 and 28-29, 2015, from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., 
Eastern Daylight Time (E.T.), on Thursdays and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., E.T., 
on Fridays at various locations in Washington, DC, and Arlington, VA. 
Specific locations and an agenda for each meeting will be posted in 
advance of the meetings at http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/eldtac.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Shannon L. Watson, Senior Policy 
Advisor, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, U.S. Department 
of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590, 
(202) 366-2551, eldtac@dot.gov.
    Services for Individuals With Disabilities: For information on 
facilities or services for individuals with disabilities or to request 
special assistance at the meeting, contact Eran Segev at (617) 494-
3174, eran.segev@dot.gov, one week prior to each meeting.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

Entry-Level Driver Training

    Section 32304 of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century 
(MAP-21) (Pub. L. 112-141, 126 Stat. 405 (July 6, 2012)) requires FMCSA 
to establish new regulations concerning ELDT. MAP-21 requires ``that 
the training regulations address knowledge and skills for motor vehicle 
operation, specific requirements for hazmat and passenger endorsements, 
create a certificate system for meeting requirements, and require 
training providers to demonstrate that their training meets uniform 
standards.'' The new requirements would apply to individuals seeking a 
CDL to operate CMVs, as defined in 49 CFR 383.5.
    On August 19, 2014 (79 FR 49044), FMCSA announced that the Agency 
would explore the feasibility of conducting a negotiated rulemaking 
concerning entry-level driver training for drivers of CMVs. The Agency 
announced the hiring of a convener to speak with interested parties 
about the feasibility of conducting an ELDT negotiated rulemaking and 
requested public comments by September 18, 2014. As part of the first 
step in this process, the convener conducted these interviews and 
submitted a report to the Agency on November 26, 2014, regarding the 
feasibility of conducting a negotiated rulemaking. The convening report 
is available both in the rulemaking docket at FMCSA-2007-27748 and on 
the Internet at eldtac.fmcsa.dot.gov.
    On December 10, 2014 (79 FR 73273), FMCSA announced its intent to 
establish a negotiated rulemaking committee to negotiate and develop 
proposed regulations to implement the MAP-21 provision concerning ELDT 
based on the recommendations of the convener. On February 12, 2015 (80 
FR 7814), FMCSA announced the appointment of members to the Entry-Level 
Driver Training Advisory Committee (ELDTAC) established to complete a 
negotiated rulemaking on ELDT for individuals who want to operate CMVs.

ELDTAC

    The ELDTAC is established by charter in accordance with the Federal 
Advisory committee Act (FACA), 5 U.S.C., App. 2. Transportation 
Secretary Anthony Foxx signed the ELDTAC charter on January 15, 2015, 
which provides up to 2 years for the Committee's duration, in 
accordance with section 14 of FACA. Additionally, as the ELDTAC is a 
negotiated rulemaking committee (``Reg Neg''), it

[[Page 12137]]

complies with the Negotiated Rulemaking Act (5 U.S.C. 564). The 
Committee is effective from the date of signature through January 15, 
2017.

ELDTAC Membership

    In its December 10, 2014, Federal Register notice, the Agency 
announced that it was soliciting applications and nominations for 
membership on the ELDTAC. These members are experts in their respective 
fields and appointed as Special Government employees or representatives 
of entities or interests including but not limited to the following: 
CMV driver training organizations; industry representatives; 
representatives of driver training schools; motor carriers (of property 
and passengers) and associations; State licensing agencies; State 
enforcement agencies; labor unions; safety advocacy groups; insurance 
companies; and others selected with a view toward achieving varied 
perspectives on ELDT. In an effort to balance these interests to the 
extent practicable, the FMCSA Acting Administrator appointed 26 members 
on January 30, 2015, who will each serve for up to one two-year term. 
The members met for the first time Thursday-Friday, February 26-27, 
2015.

II. Meeting Participation

    Oral comments from the public will be heard during the meeting, as 
managed by the Reg Neg facilitator.

III. Submitting Written Comments

    Members of the public may submit written comments on the topics to 
be considered during the meeting one week prior to each meeting to 
Federal Docket Management System (FDMC) Docket Number FMCSA-2007-27748. 
If you submit a comment, please include the docket number for this 
notice (FMCSA-2007-27748). 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 that FMCSA can contact you if there are questions regarding 
your submission.
    To submit your comment online, go to http://www.regulations.gov, 
put the docket number, FMCSA-2007-27748, in the keyword box, and click 
``Search.'' When the new screen appears, click on the ``Comment Now!'' 
button and type your comment into the text box on the following screen. 
Choose whether you are submitting your comment as an individual or on 
behalf of a third party and then submit.
    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.

Viewing Comments and Documents

    To view comments, as well as any documents mentioned in this 
preamble as being available in the docket, go to http://www.regulations.gov. Insert the docket number, FMCSA-2007-27748, in the 
keyword box, and click ``Search.'' Next, click the ``Open Docket 
Folder'' button and choose the document to review. If you do not have 
access to the Internet, you may view the docket online by visiting the 
Docket Management Facility in Room W12-140 on the ground floor of the 
DOT West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590, 
between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., E.T., Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays.

Privacy Act

    DOT posts 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.

IV. Future Committee Meetings and Rulemaking Calendar

    In coordination with the Reg Neg facilitator, FMCSA has developed 
this schedule of committee meetings, running through May 2015.
    FMCSA intends to complete the Reg Neg process for the proposed rule 
within the first half of 2015 and to publish a Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking (NPRM) this year, followed by a Final Rule in 2016. After 
the conclusion of the committee meetings, the Agency will draft the 
NPRM, which is expected to take approximately 6-8 weeks, depending on 
the degree of consensus on the issues and the supporting data developed 
by the committee. The NPRM will then be reviewed by DOT's Office of the 
Secretary and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The Agency 
will then publish the NPRM for public comment.
    Following the close of the public comment period the Agency will 
evaluate and respond to public comments as it drafts a final rule, 
which will also undergo Departmental and OMB review. Although the time 
needed to address public comments to an NPRM that has been developed 
through a successful negotiated rulemaking process is typically shorter 
than for rules conducted through the ordinary informal notice and 
comment process, the Agency must nonetheless address substantive public 
comments in the final rule, in accordance with the Administrative 
Procedure Act. While the Agency cannot state with certainty the time 
required to complete the Reg Neg process and notice and comment 
rulemaking, the target date for publication of an NPRM is October 15, 
2015.

    Issued on: March 2, 2015.
Larry W. Minor,
Associate Administrator for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2015-05197 Filed 3-5-15; 8:45 am]
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