|
|---|
|
Commercial Driver's License: Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles; Application for Exemption Publication: Federal Register Agency: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Byline: Larry W. Minor Date: 5 December 2023 Subject: American Government  , Driver Licensing
|
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 232 (Tuesday, December 5, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 84387-84389]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-26689]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
[Docket No. FMCSA-2023-0236]
Commercial Driver's License: Florida Department of Highway Safety
and Motor Vehicles; Application for Exemption
AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), Department
of Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notice of application for exemption; request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: FMCSA announces that the Florida Department of Highway Safety
and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) has applied for an exemption from the
commercial driver's license (CDL) skills testing regulation requiring
the three-part CDL skills test to be administered and successfully
completed in the following order: pre-trip inspection, basic vehicle
control skills, and on-road skills. The FLHSMV is seeking an exemption
to allow the tester, at their discretion, to continue testing an
applicant who fails the pre-trip inspection or basic vehicle controls
segments of the CDL test and allow the applicant to come back at a
later date to retake the failed segment(s) only. FMCSA requests public
comment on the applicant's request for exemption.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before January 4, 2024.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Federal Docket
Management System (FDMS) Number FMCSA-2023-0236 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: Dockets Operations, 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: (202) 493-2251.
[[Page 84388]]
Each submission must include the Agency name and the docket number
(FMCSA-2023-0236) 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 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. To
be sure someone is there to help you, please call (202) 366-9317 or
(202) 366-9826 before visiting Dockets Operations.
Privacy Act: In accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31315(b), DOT solicits
comments from the public to better inform its exemption process. DOT
posts these comments, 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 under the ``Department
Wide System of Records Notices'' link at https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/privacy/privacy-act-system-records-notices. The comments are posted without edit and are searchable by the
name of the submitter.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Richard Clemente, Driver and
Carrier Operations Division; Office of Carrier, Driver and Vehicle
Safety Standards, FMCSA; (202) 366-2722; richard.clemente@dot.gov. If
you have questions on viewing or submitting material to the docket,
contact Dockets Operations at (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-2023-0236), 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 comment online, go to www.regulations.gov and put
the docket number ``FMCSA-2023-0236'' in the keyword box, and click
``Search.'' Next, sort the results by ``Posted (Newer-Older),'' choose
the first notice listed, click the ``Comment'' button, and type your
comment into the text box on 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.
Confidential Business Information (CBI)
CBI is commercial or financial information that is both customarily
and actually treated as private by its owner. Under the Freedom of
Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552), CBI is exempt from public disclosure.
If your comments responsive to the notice contain commercial or
financial information that is customarily treated as private, that you
actually treat as private, and that is relevant or responsive to the
notice, it is important that you clearly designate the submitted
comments as CBI. Please mark each page of your submission that
constitutes CBI as ``PROPIN'' to indicate it contains proprietary
information. FMCSA will treat such marked submissions as confidential
under the Freedom of Information Act, and they will not be placed in
the public docket of the notice. Submissions containing CBI should be
sent to Brian Dahlin, Chief, Regulatory Evaluation Division, Office of
Policy, FMCSA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590-0001 or
via email at brian.g.dahlin@dot.gov. At this time, you need not send a
duplicate hardcopy of your electronic CBI submissions to FMCSA
headquarters. Any comments FMCSA receives not specifically designated
as CBI will be placed in the public docket for this notice.
II. Legal Basis
FMCSA has authority under 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 31315(b) to grant
exemptions from Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs).
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
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 maintain a
level of safety equivalent to, or greater than, the level that would be
achieved by the current regulation (49 CFR 381.305(a)). The Agency must
publish its decision in the Federal Register (49 CFR 381.315(b)). If
granted, the notice will identify the regulatory provision from which
the applicant will be exempt, the effective period, and all terms and
conditions of the exemption (49 CFR 381.315(c)(1)). If the exemption is
denied, the notice will explain the reason for the denial (49 CFR
381.315(c)(2)). The exemption may be renewed (49 CFR 381.300(b)).
III. Applicant's Request
The FLHSMV seeks an exemption from the requirement in 49 CFR
383.133(c)(6) which requires the three-part CDL test be administered
and successfully completed in the following order: pre-trip inspection,
basic vehicle control skills, and on-road skills. Florida operates as a
third-party testing state, where nearly all CDL skills tests are
conducted by third-party testers. If an applicant fails one segment of
the test, they cannot attempt the next segment(s) and must return on a
different day to retake all three parts of the test. The FLHSMV is
seeking an exemption to allow the tester, at their discretion, to
continue testing an applicant who fails the pre-trip inspection or
basic vehicle controls segments of the test and allow the applicant to
come back at a later date to retake only the failed segment(s). The
applicant cites that the most failed segment of the test is the pre-
trip inspection, and if the exemption is granted, the tester could
continue to test basic vehicle control skills and on-road skills in
this instance. If the CDL applicant passed these other portions of the
test, they could return at a later date and retake just the pre-trip
inspection portion of the test. The exemption applicant further states
that, if granted, the exemption would allow their compliance staff to
better utilize their time and resources in completing the required
monitoring of third-party testers. FLHSMV believes the exemption would
not compromise safety, because the decision to continue with the test
would reside with certified, experienced testers. The FLHSMV also notes
that,
[[Page 84389]]
with the implementation of the Federal Entry-Level Driver Training
regulations, most applicants being tested have been certified as
proficient in operating commercial motor vehicles, having completed
behind-the-wheel training that prepares them to safely operate a
commercial motor vehicle during the on-road portion of the CDL skills
test.
A copy of the FLHSMV's application for exemption is available for
review in the docket for this notice.
IV. Request for Comments
In accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31315(b), FMCSA requests public
comment from all interested persons on FLHSMV's application for an
exemption from the requirement in 49 CFR 383.133(c)(6) that the CDL
skills test must be administered and successfully completed in the
following order: pre-trip inspection, basic vehicle control skills, and
on-road skills. All comments received before the close of business on
the comment closing date indicated at the beginning of this notice will
be considered and will be available for examination in the docket at
the location listed under the Addresses section of this notice.
Comments received after the comment closing date will be filed in the
public docket and will be considered to the extent practicable. In
addition to late comments, FMCSA will also continue to file, in the
public docket, relevant information that becomes available after the
comment closing date. Interested persons should continue to examine the
public docket for new material.
Larry W. Minor,
Associate Administrator for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2023-26689 Filed 12-4-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P