Commercial Driver's License Standards: Application for Exemption; State of Idaho, Idaho Transportation Department (ITD)

Larry W. Minor
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
9 March 2016

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 46 (Wednesday, March 9, 2016)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 12443-12445]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-05243]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

49 CFR Part 395

[Docket No. FMCSA-2015-0489]


Commercial Driver's License Standards: Application for Exemption; 
State of Idaho, Idaho Transportation Department (ITD)

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

ACTION: Notice of application for exemption; request for comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: FMCSA announces that the Division of Motor Vehicles, Idaho 
Transportation Department (ITD), has applied for an exemption from 
provisions of 49 CFR 383.75(a)(8)(v) that require third-party 
commercial driver license (CDL) testers to initiate and maintain a bond 
in an amount determined by the State to be sufficient to pay for re-
testing drivers in the event that the third party or one or more of its 
examiners is involved in fraudulent activities related to conducting 
skills testing of CDL applicants. FMCSA requests public comment on 
IDT's application for exemption.

[[Page 12444]]


DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 8, 2016.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Federal Docket 
Management System (FDMS) Number FMCSA-2015-0489 by any of the following 
methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: www.regulations.gov. Follow 
the online instructions for submitting comments.
     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., 
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
     Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
     Each submission must include the Agency name and the 
docket number for this notice. Note that DOT posts all comments 
received without change to www.regulations.gov, including any personal 
information included in a comment. Please see the Privacy Act heading 
below.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments, go to www.regulations.gov at any time or visit Room W12-140 
on the ground level of the West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., 
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., ET, Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays. The on-line FDMS is available 24 hours each 
day, 365 days each year.
    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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information concerning this 
notice, contact Mr. Richard Clemente, FMCSA Driver and Carrier 
Operations Division; Office of Carrier, Driver and Vehicle Safety 
Standards; Telephone: 202-366-4325. Email: MCPSD@dot.gov. If you have 
questions on viewing or submitting material to the docket, contact 
Docket Services, telephone (202) 366-9826.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Public Participation and Request for Comments

    FMCSA encourages you to participate by submitting comments and 
related materials regarding this application for exemption. Comments 
should address the safety assessment provided by the applicant.

Submitting Comments

    If you submit a comment, please include the docket number for this 
notice (FMCSA-2015-0489), indicate the specific section of this 
document to which the comment applies, and provide a reason for 
suggestions or recommendations. 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 the Agency can contact you if it has questions 
regarding your submission.
    To submit your comments online, go to www.regulations.gov and put 
the docket number, ``FMCSA-2015-0489'' in the ``Keyword'' box, and 
click ``Search.'' When the new screen appears, click on ``Comment 
Now!'' button and type your comment into the text box in the following 
screen. Choose whether you are submitting your comment as an individual 
or on behalf of a third party and then submit. An option to upload a 
file is provided. 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. If you submit comments by 
mail and would like to know that they reached the facility, please 
enclose a stamped, self-addressed postcard or envelope. FMCSA will 
consider all comments and material received during the comment period 
and may grant or not grant this application based on your comments.

II. Legal Basis

    FMCSA has authority under 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 31315(b) to grant 
exemptions from certain parts of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety 
Regulations, including the CDL regulations in 49 CFR part 383. See also 
49 CFR 381.300(c)(2), FMCSA must publish a notice of each exemption 
request in the Federal Register (49 CFR 381.315(a)). The Agency must 
provide the public an opportunity to inspect the information relevant 
to the application, including any safety analyses that have been 
conducted. The Agency must also provide an opportunity for public 
comment on the request.
    The Agency reviews safety analyses and public comments submitted, 
and determines 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 U.S.C. 31315(b)(1) and 49 CFR 
381.305). The decision of the Agency must be published in the Federal 
Register (49 CFR 381.315(b)) with the reasons for denying or granting 
the application and, if granted, the name of the person or class of 
persons receiving the exemption, and the regulatory provision from 
which the exemption is granted. The notice must also specify the 
effective period and explain the terms and conditions of the exemption. 
The exemption may be renewed (49 CFR 381.300(b)).

III. Request for Exemption

    The Idaho Transportation Department (ITD) is the State of Idaho 
governmental organization responsible for state transportation 
infrastructure. The Agency is responsible for overseeing the 
disbursement of Federal, State, and grant funding for the 
transportation programs of the State. IDT's CDL program is designed to 
improve safety on the highways while meeting Federal requirements for 
the testing and licensing of commercial drivers.
    Idaho is a geographically large state with a relatively small 
population. To adequately serve their constituents, the ITD oversees a 
third-party tester program consisting of approximately 60 CDL 
examiners. ITD utilizes contractors as the third-party examiners, so 
these examiners are not considered government employees, who would not 
need to be bonded.
    The IDT has applied for an exemption from the regulations in 49 CFR 
383.75(a)(8)(v) that require third-party testers to initiate and 
maintain a bond in an amount determined by the State to be sufficient 
to pay for re-testing drivers in the event that the third party or one 
or more of its examiners is involved in fraudulent activities related 
to conducting skills testing of CDL applicants. The ITD requests the 
exemption because this regulation creates a financial hardship for 
testing examiners who must be bonded but conduct only a few tests 
monthly and the State of Idaho has had no instances of fraud in their 
third-party testing organizations. IDT believes that the exemption, if 
granted, would achieve a level of safety that is equivalent to or 
greater than the level of safety provided by complying with the 
regulation.
    According to IDT, most of their examiners work in small cities and 
towns scattered throughout the State of Idaho. Many of these examiners 
only conduct one or two CDL tests per month. The cost of requiring 
these examiners to be bonded creates a financial hardship for the 
examiners who earn just $60 per test. This regulation results in some 
badly-needed examiners potentially dropping out of

[[Page 12445]]

the CDL testing arena. The State of Idaho is self-insured, in that 
Idaho state employee staff members are qualified and available to re-
test any applicants who may be found to have given a CDL ``tainted'' by 
some type of fraud. This would be done at no cost to the applicants.
    In support of their request, the ITD indicates that it uses, and 
has used for over a year now, the Commercial Skills Test Information 
Management System (CSTIMS) to monitor CDL skills test examiners and to 
improve safety. This Internet-based tool provides a consistent way to 
track the scheduling and entry of test results for CDL skills tests by 
jurisdiction and third-party examiners. CSTIMS enforces jurisdiction-
defined rules to manage CDL skills testing and will alert jurisdictions 
when circumstances are encountered that may require investigation to 
determine if fraud may have occurred. CSTIMS also produces reports that 
can be reviewed for patterns of potential fraud, and surveys are also 
sent to all individuals tested to help monitor Idaho's testing program 
and detect fraud.

IV. Method To Ensure an Equivalent or Greater Level of Safety

    ITD states that granting this exemption will result in a level of 
safety that is equal to or greater than the level of safety of the rule 
without the exemption. According to the application for exemption, 
Idaho has had no instances of fraud in its third-party testing 
organizations. ITD requests, therefore, that FMCSA approve this request 
based on the alternate measures they have put in place supporting the 
spirit and purpose of 49 CFR 383.75(a)(8)(v) and, in its view, provide 
an equivalent or greater level of safety.
    A copy of ITD's application for exemption is available for review 
in the docket for this notice.

    Issued on: February 26, 2016.
 Larry W. Minor,
 Associate Administrator for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2016-05243 Filed 3-8-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P