San Francisco International Airport Ground Transportation Rules; Petition for Determination of Preemption

Raymond P. Martinez
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
9 May 2019

[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 90 (Thursday, May 9, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20466-20467]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-09546]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

[Docket No. FMCSA-2018-0408]


San Francisco International Airport Ground Transportation Rules; 
Petition for Determination of Preemption

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

ACTION: Notice of petition for determination of preemption; request for 
comments.

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SUMMARY: FMCSA requests comments on a petition submitted by the 
American Bus Association, Inc. (ABA) and the United Motorcoach 
Association, Inc. (UMA) requesting a determination that certain vehicle 
inspection requirements for ground transportation operators imposed by 
the San Francisco International Airport (SFO) on passenger-carrying 
motor vehicles in interstate commerce are preempted by Federal law. 
FMCSA requests comments in response to this petition.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before June 10, 2019.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Federal Docket 
Management System (FDMS) Number FMCSA-2018-0408 by any of the following 
methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: www.regulations.gov. See the 
Public Participation and Request for Comments section below for further 
information.
     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.
     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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tracy M. White, Enforcement and 
Litigation Division; FMCSA Office of Chief Counsel; Telephone: (202) 
493-0349; Email: Tracy.White@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.

Submitting Comments

    If you submit a comment, please include the docket number for this 
notice (FMCSA-2018-0408), indicate

[[Page 20467]]

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 comment online, go to www.regulations.gov and put 
the docket number, ``FMCSA-2018-0408'' 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 in 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. 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.
    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: DOT solicits comments from the public to better inform 
its preemption determinations. 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.transportation.gov/privacy.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    On October 18, 2018, the ABA and the UMA submitted a petition to 
FMCSA requesting a determination that the SFO vehicle inspection 
requirement is preempted by Federal law. According to the petition, the 
Airport Commission of the City and County of San Francisco has adopted 
Rules and Regulations to govern the general conduct of the public, 
tenants, employees, and commercial users of SFO as their activities 
relate to the possession, management, supervision, operation, and 
control of the Airport. The current Rules and Regulations became 
effective on January 1, 2018 and contain provisions that govern 
commercial ground transportation operations (Rule 4.7). The petition 
states that under Rule 4.7, transportation companies that pick up and 
drop off passengers at SFO must apply for a Ground Transportation 
Operating Permit and that to obtain a permit, companies must first be 
licensed with the California Public Utilities Commission or have been 
granted Operating Authority by FMCSA for out-of-state carriers. The 
petition states that SFO's website provides notice of a requirement 
that, upon application for a Ground Transportation Operating Permit and 
annually thereafter, ground transportation vehicles must be inspected 
by airport mechanics. An offsite inspection is allowed, with fees 
attached, for fleets of 25 or more vehicles. The petition also alleges 
that while the SFO website includes a ``San Francisco International 
Airport Vehicle Safety Inspection Checklist,'' neither the checklist 
nor Rule 4.7 identifies the standards used to determine whether a 
particular vehicle component has passed or failed the inspection, nor 
is there any indication as to what overall score is necessary for a 
commercial motorcoach to pass such an inspection.
    While the petition states that all vehicles operating at SFO are 
required to display a transponder and permit-specific decals, the 
petition seeks a preemption determination concerning only the vehicle 
inspection requirement.

Applicable Law

    Section 31141 of title 49 of the United States Code prohibits 
States from enforcing a law or regulation on CMV safety that the 
Secretary of Transportation (Secretary) has determined to be preempted. 
To determine whether a State law or regulation is preempted, the 
Secretary must decide whether a State law or regulation: (1) Has the 
same effect as a regulation prescribed under 49 U.S.C. 31136, which is 
the authority for much of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations 
(FMCSRs); (2) is less stringent than such a regulation; or (3) is 
additional to or more stringent than such a regulation 49 U.S.C. 
31141(c)(1).
    If the Secretary decides that a State law or regulation has the 
same effect as a regulation prescribed under 49 U.S.C. 31136, the State 
law or regulation may be enforced. 49 U.S.C. 31141(c)(2). If the 
Secretary decides that a State law or regulation is less stringent than 
a regulation prescribed under 49 U.S.C. 31136, the State law or 
regulation may not be enforced. 49 U.S.C. 31141(c)(3). If the Secretary 
decides that a State law or regulation is additional to or more 
stringent than a regulation prescribed by the Secretary under 49 U.S.C. 
31136, the State law or regulation may be enforced unless the Secretary 
decides that the State law or regulation (1) has no safety benefit; (2) 
is incompatible with the regulation prescribed by the Secretary; or (3) 
would cause an unreasonable burden on interstate commerce. 49 U.S.C. 
31141(c)(4). To determine whether a State law or regulation will cause 
an unreasonable burden on interstate commerce, the Secretary may 
consider the cumulative effect that the State's law or regulation and 
all similar laws and regulations of other States will have on 
interstate commerce. 49 U.S.C. 31141(c)(5). The Secretary's authority 
under 49 U.S.C. 31141 is delegated to the FMCSA Administrator pursuant 
to 49 CFR 1.87(f).

Request for Comments

    Although preemption under 49 U.S.C. 31141 is a legal determination 
reserved to the judgment of the Agency, FMCSA seeks comments on any 
issues raised in the petition or otherwise relevant ones. The Agency 
has placed the petition in the docket.

    Issued on: May 3, 2019.
Raymond P. Martinez,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2019-09546 Filed 5-8-19; 8:45 am]
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