Inspection, Repair, and Maintenance; Periodic Inspection of Commercial Motor Vehicles

Rodney E. Slater
Federal Highway Administration
April 14, 1994

[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 72 (Thursday, April 14, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-8976]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: April 14, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration
[FHWA Docket No. MC-89-10]

 

Inspection, Repair, and Maintenance; Periodic Inspection of 
Commercial Motor Vehicles

AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice to motor carriers on State periodic inspection programs.

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SUMMARY: This notice adds the periodic inspection (PI) program of the 
State of Texas to the list of programs which are comparable to, or as 
effective as, the Federal PI requirements contained in 49 CFR 396.15 
through 396.23. The FHWA published its initial list on December 8, 1989 
(54 FR 50726). The list was most recently revised on November 27, 1992 
(57 FR 56400). Including Texas, there are 21 States, the Alabama 
Liquefied Petroleum Gas Board, the District of Columbia, 9 Canadian 
Provinces, and one Canadian Territory which have PI programs which the 
FHWA has determined to be comparable to, or as effective as, the 
Federal PI requirements.

DATES: This docket will remain open until further notice.

ADDRESSES: Submit written, signed comments to FHWA Docket No. MC-89-10, 
room 4232, HCC-10, Office of the Chief Counsel, Federal Highway 
Administration, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590. All 
comments received will be available for examination at the above 
address from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., e.t., Monday through Friday, 
except legal Federal holidays. Those desiring notification of receipt 
of comments must include a self-addressed, stamped postcard.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Larry W. Minor, Office of Motor 
Carrier Standards, HCS-10, (202) 366-2981; or Mr. Charles Medalen, 
Office of the Chief Counsel, HCC-20, (202) 366-1354, Federal Highway 
Administration, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590. Office 
hours are from 7:45 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., e.t., Monday through Friday, 
except legal Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 210 of the Motor Carrier Safety Act 
of 1984 (the Act) (49 U.S.C. app. 2509) required the Secretary of 
Transportation to establish standards for annual or more frequent 
inspection of commercial motor vehicles (CMVs), and the retention, by 
motor carriers, of the records of such inspections. On December 7, 
1988, the FHWA published a final rule in the Federal Register (53 FR 
49402) [Docket No. MC-113] which implemented the statutory requirements 
by amending part 396, Inspection, Repair, and Maintenance, of the 
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs). That final rule 
requires that CMVs operating in interstate commerce be inspected at 
least once a year. The inspection is to be based on Federal inspection 
standards, or a State inspection program determined by the FHWA to be 
comparable to, or as effective as, the Federal standards. Accordingly, 
if the FHWA determines that a State's PI program is comparable to, or 
as effective as, the requirements of part 396, then a motor carrier 
must ensure that any of its CMVs which are required by that State to be 
inspected through the State's inspection program are so inspected. If a 
State does not have such a program, the motor carrier is responsible 
for ensuring that its CMVs are inspected using one of the alternatives 
included in the final rule.
    On March 16, 1989, the FHWA published a notice in the Federal 
Register (54 FR 11020) [Docket No. MC-89-10] which requested States and 
other interested parties to identify and provide information on the CMV 
inspection programs in their States. Upon review of the information 
submitted, the FHWA published a list of State inspection programs which 
were determined to be comparable to the Federal PI requirements on 
(December 8, 1989, 54 FR 50726). This initial list included 15 States 
and the District of Columbia. The list was revised on September 23, 
1991 (56 FR 47983), to include the inspection programs of the Alabama 
Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) Board, California, Hawaii, Louisiana, 
Minnesota, all of the Canadian Provinces, and the Yukon Territory. On 
November 27, 1992 (57 FR 56400), the list was revised to include the 
Wisconsin bus inspection program.

Determination: State of Texas CMV Inspection Program

    On October 8, 1993, the State of Texas (the State) amended its 
inspection requirements for CMVs under Sec. 23.101 of the Texas 
Administrative Code. The State requires CMVs which are registered in 
Texas to be inspected annually. The State defines a CMV as any self-
propelled or towed vehicle (except certain farm vehicles with a gross 
weight, registered weight, or gross weight rating of less than 48,000 
pounds) used on a public highway to transport passengers or property 
when: (1) The vehicle or combination of vehicles has a gross weight, 
registered weight, or gross weight rating in excess of 26,000 pounds, 
(2) the vehicle is designed to transport more than 15 passengers, 
including the driver, or (3) the vehicle is used in the transportation 
of hazardous materials in a quantity requiring placarding. Upon review 
of the material submitted by the State, the FHWA has determined that 
the Texas CMV inspection program in effect as of January 1, 1994, is 
comparable to or as effective as the Federal PI requirements. 
Therefore, motor carriers operating CMVs (as defined in 49 CFR 390.5) 
subject to the Texas PI program must use the State's program to satisfy 
the Federal PI requirements. Not all CMVs are subject to the Texas 
program, however. Motor carriers operating vehicles that fall below the 
threshold weight for the Texas program, but which meet the FHWA's 
definition of a CMV may continue to use alternative means to satisfy 
the Federal PI requirements (e.g., self-inspection, the use of a 
commercial garage or similar facility, or passing a roadside inspection 
that meets the requirements of 49 CFR 396.17).
    The FHWA notes that the State requires that CMVs subject to its 
program, and inspected prior to January 1, 1994, be inspected on or 
before the expiration of the current State inspection certificate or 
decal but no later than December 31, 1994. Therefore, CMVs that have 
Texas inspection certificates or decals issued prior to January 1, 
1994, may use the alternative means provided by Sec. 396.17 until the 
pre-1994 inspection certificate or decal expires, but no later than 
December 31, 1994.
    It should also be noted that in accepting the State's PI program, 
the FHWA also accepts the recordkeeping requirements associated with 
the inspection program. Texas issues inspection decals for CMVs which 
pass the State inspection. The State inspection decal is considered by 
the FHWA as satisfying the Federal requirement for proof of inspection 
on the CMV.

States With Equivalent Periodic Inspection Programs

    The following is a complete list of States with inspection programs 
the FHWA has determined are comparable to, or as effective as, the 
Federal PI requirements.

Alabama (LPG Board)
Arkansas
California
District of Columbia
Hawaii
Illinois
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Michigan
Minnesota
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New York
Oklahoma
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
West Virginia
Wisconsin

    In addition to the States listed above, the FHWA has determined 
that the inspection programs of the 9 Canadian Provinces and the Yukon 
Territory are comparable to, or as effective as, the Federal PI 
requirements. All other States either have no PI programs for CMVs or 
their PI programs have not been determined by the FHWA to be comparable 
to, or as effective as, the Federal PI requirements. Should any of 
these States wish to establish a program or modify their programs in 
order to make them comparable to the Federal requirements, the State 
should contact the appropriate FHWA regional office listed in 49 CFR 
390.

    Authority: 49 U.S.C. 3102; 49 U.S.C. App. 2505; 49 CFR 1.48.

    Issued on: April 7, 1994.
Rodney E. Slater,
Federal Highway Administrator.
[FR Doc. 94-8976 Filed 4-13-94; 8:45 am]
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