Lease and Interchange of Vehicles; Motor Carriers of Passengers

Larry W. Minor
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
27 September 2016

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 187 (Tuesday, September 27, 2016)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 66243-66244]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-23253]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

49 CFR Part 390

[Docket No. FMCSA-2012-0103]
RIN 2126-AB90


Lease and Interchange of Vehicles; Motor Carriers of Passengers

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

ACTION: Notice of meeting; request for comment.

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SUMMARY: FMCSA announces it will hold a roundtable discussion on 
October 31, 2016, as a follow-up to its August 31, 2016, notice of 
intent concerning the petitions for reconsideration of the final rule, 
titled ``Lease and Interchange of Vehicles; Motor Carriers of 
Passengers,'' which published May 27, 2015. The meeting will be open to 
the public. Individuals with diverse experience, expertise, and 
perspectives are encouraged to attend. If all comments have been 
exhausted before the end of the session, the session may conclude 
early.

DATES: The roundtable discussion will be held on Monday, October 31, 
2016, from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Eastern Time (ET) at the U.S. 
Department of Transportation, Media Center, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., 
Ground Floor, Washington, DC 20590. The entire proceedings will be 
public.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments bearing the Federal Docket 
Management System Docket ID (FMCSA-2012-0103) 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: U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., West Building Ground Floor, 
Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590.
    Hand Delivery or Courier: West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 
1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 
p.m., ET, 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 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays. The online Federal document management system 
is available 24 hours each day, 365 days each year. If you would like 
acknowledgment that the Agency received your comments, please include a 
self-addressed, stamped envelope or postcard or print the 
acknowledgement page that appears after submitting comments online. The 
docket FMCSA-2016-0102 will remain open indefinitely.
    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: Ms. Loretta G. Bitner, (202) 385-2428, 
loretta.bitner@dot.gov, Chief, Commercial Passenger Carrier Safety 
Division, Office of Enforcement and Compliance, Federal Motor Carrier 
Safety Administration. FMCSA office hours are from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. 
ET, Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.

[[Page 66244]]

    For information about the public meeting: Ms. Shannon L. Watson, 
Senior Policy Advisor, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, 
1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590, by telephone at 202-
366-2551, or by email at Shannon.Watson@dot.gov. If you have questions 
on viewing or submitting material to the docket, contact Docket 
Services at 202-366-9826. Business hours are from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. 
ET, Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background:

    On August 31, 2016, FMCSA published a notice of intent concerning 
the lease and interchange of passenger-carrying commercial motor 
vehicles (CMVs) (81 FR 59951). The purpose of the notice of intent was 
to inform the public about the Agency's decision concerning the 37 
petitions for reconsideration which have been filed in the public 
docket referenced above. Upon review of these petitions, FMCSA 
concluded that some have merit. FMCSA, therefore, extended the 
compliance date of the final rule from January 1, 2017, to January 1, 
2018 (82 FR 13998; March 16, 2016), to allow the Agency time to 
complete any rulemaking action to amend the rule where necessary.

FMCSA Decision

    FMCSA plans to issue a rulemaking notice to address the four areas 
of concern in the August 31, 2016, notice of intent:
    (1) Exclusion of ``chartering'' (i.e., subcontracting) from the 
leasing requirements;
    (2) Amending the CMV requirements for the location of temporary 
markings for leased/interchanged vehicles;
    (3) Changing the requirement that carriers notify customers within 
24 hours when they subcontract service to other carriers; and
    (4) Expanding the 48-hour delay in preparing a lease to include 
emergencies when passengers are not actually on board a bus.
    The Agency believes that less burdensome regulatory alternatives 
that would not adversely impact safety could be adopted before the 
January 1, 2018, compliance date.

Public Roundtable

    FMCSA will hold a public roundtable on Monday, October 31, 2016, to 
discuss these four issue areas. The public will have an opportunity to 
speak about these issues and provide the Agency with information on how 
to address them. All public comments will be placed in the docket of 
this rulemaking. The agenda for this meeting will be posted on the 
FMCSA Web site www.fmcsa.dot.gov in the near future.

     Issued on: September 15, 2016.
Larry W. Minor,
Associate Administrator for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2016-23253 Filed 9-26-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P