Agency Information Collection Activities; Extension of a Currently Approved Information Collection Request: Unified Registration System, FMCSA Registration/Updates.

G. Kelly Regal
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
14 October 2016

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 199 (Friday, October 14, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71178-71179]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-24934]



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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

[Docket No. FMCSA-2016-0161]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Extension of a 
Currently Approved Information Collection Request: Unified Registration 
System, FMCSA Registration/Updates.

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

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, FMCSA 
announces its plan to submit the Information Collection Request (ICR) 
described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review 
and approval. The information collection request (ICR) titled, 
``Unified Registration System'' (78 FR 52608 dated August 23, 2013) 
required those entities that are subject to the FMCSA's licensing, 
registration and certification regulations to use a new application 
Form MCSA-1 titled, ``FMCSA Registration/Update(s).''

DATES: Please send your comments on or before November 14, 2016. OMB 
must receive your comments by this date in order to act quickly on the 
ICR.

ADDRESSES: All comments should reference Federal Docket Management 
System (FDMS) Docket Number FMCSA-2016-0161. Interested persons are 
invited to submit written comments on the proposed information 
collection to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office 
of Management and Budget. Comments should be addressed to the attention 
of the Desk Officer, Department of Transportation/Federal Motor Carrier 
Safety Administration, and sent via electronic mail to 
oira_submission@omb.eop.gov, or faxed to (202) 395-6974, or mailed to 
the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management 
and Budget, Docket Library, Room 10102, 725 17th Street NW., 
Washington, DC 20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Jeffrey Secrist, Office of 
Registration and Safety Information, Department of Transportation, 
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue 
SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001. Telephone Number: (202) 385-2367; Email 
Address: jeff.secrist@dot.gov. Office hours are from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 
p.m., E.T., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Unified Registration System, FMCSA Registration/Updates.
    OMB Control Number: 2126-0051.
    Type of Request: Extension of a currently-approved information 
collection.
    Respondents: Motor carriers (including private and exempt for-hire 
carriers effective January 14, 2017), freight forwarders, brokers, 
cargo tank (CT) facilities, and intermodal equipment providers (IEPs) 
that are required to initially register for and then maintain their 
safety and operating authority registrations with USDOT.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 78,400 respondents for initial 
registration filings; 507,500 respondents for completing the biennial 
update; 13,000 respondents for filing name/address change requests; 
1,100 respondents for transfer of operating authority registration 
notifications; and 2,030 respondents for reinstatements of operating 
authority registration.
    Estimated Time per Response: 1.34 hours for initial registration 
filings; and 10 minutes each for the biennial update, name/address 
change request, notification of transfer of operating authority 
registration, and reinstatement of revoked or inactive registration.
    Expiration Date: November 30, 2016
    Frequency of Response: This information collection covers the 
initial application to register with FMCSA as a motor carrier, freight 
forwarder, broker, intermodal equipment provider, and cargo tank 
facility; as well as subsequent applications to complete a biennial 
update or any other update of the information recorded on the 
registration system, submit a name/address change request, seek a 
reinstatement of revoked or inactive registration, and notify the 
Agency of a transfer of operating authority registration.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden: 105,000 burden hours for the initial 
applications of registration; 84,600 burden hours for completing 
biennial updates; 2,200 burden hours for filing name/address change 
requests; 180 burden hours for operating authority registration 
transfer notifications; and 340 burden hours for reinstatements of 
revoked or inactive registration; for a total estimated annual burden 
of 192,320 hours.
    Background: Section 103 of the ICC Termination Act of 1995 (ICCTA) 
enacted 49 U.S.C. 13908, which required the Secretary of Transportation 
(Secretary) to propose regulations to replace four current 
identification and registration systems with a single, online, Federal 
system--the Unified Registration System (URS). The Unified Carrier 
Registration Act of 2005, subtitle C of title IV of the Safe, 
Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy 
for Users (SAFETEA-LU) [Pub. L. 109-59, 119 Stat. 1714, August 10, 
2005] modified the requirements for a unified registration system by 
amending Sec.  13908. In particular, SAFETEA-LU repealed the Single 
State Registration System (SSRS), one of the four systems identified in 
Sec.  13908, and replaced it with the Unified Carrier Registration 
Agreement. It also modified the requirement that fees collected under 
the new system cover the costs of operating and upgrading the 
registration by placing limitations on certain fees that the Agency 
could charge. Section 4304 of SAFETEA-LU reiterated the congressional 
requirement for a single, Federal online system to replace the four 
individual systems identified under 49 U.S.C. 13908. This consolidation 
simplifies current Federal registration processes and makes data on 
interstate motor carriers, property brokers, freight forwarders, and 
other regulated entities more accessible.
    This information collection supports the DOT Strategic Goal of 
Safety. It will streamline the existing registration process and ensure 
that FMCSA can more efficiently track motor carriers, freight 
forwarders, brokers, and other entities regulated by the Agency.
    The information on the on-line Form MCSA-1 will be used by FMCSA to 
identify its regulated entities, to help prioritize the Agency's 
activities, to aid in assessing the safety outcomes of those activities 
and for statistical purposes. The FMCSA will collect the information 
electronically through on-line forms. The information is currently 
being collected through a series of forms, which may be filed on-line 
or on paper. Every interstate motor carrier operating commercial motor 
vehicles is required to register with FMCSA to obtain a USDOT Number. 
Most for-hire carriers are also required to file a separate application 
for operating authority under 49 U.S.C. 13901. Mexico- and Non-North 
America-domiciled motor carriers file a separate registration form. The 
information collection will replace these three collections and create 
a single on-line form. This rule will streamline the collection and 
eliminate the need for motor carriers to file the same information on 
multiple forms.
    On June 10, 2016, FMCSA published a notice in the Federal Register 
requesting public comments on ``Unified Registration System, FMCSA 
Registration/Updates'' Information Collection Request, OMB Control 
Number 2126-0051 (81 FR 37661). No comments were received.

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    Public Comments Invited: You are asked to comment on any aspect of 
this information collection, including: (1) Whether the proposed 
collection is necessary for the performance of FMCSA's functions; (2) 
the accuracy of the estimated burden; (3) ways for the FMCSA to enhance 
the quality, usefulness, and clarity of the collected information; and 
(4) ways that the burden could be minimized without reducing the 
quality of the collected information.

    Issued under the authority delegated in 49 CFR. 1.87 on: October 
11, 2016.
G. Kelly Regal,
Associate Administrator for Office of Research and Information 
Technology.
[FR Doc. 2016-24934 Filed 10-13-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P