Fees for the Unified Carrier Registration Plan and Agreement, 605-613 [2017-28509]

Download as PDF Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 4 / Friday, January 5, 2018 / Rules and Regulations under the heading ‘‘Data Elements’’, the words ‘‘Car rental, Taxis, Other’’ and adding ‘‘Car rental, Taxi, TNC, Innovative mobility technology company, Other’’ in its place. PART 302–1—GENERAL RULES 17. The authority citation for part 302–1 continues to read as follows: ■ Authority: 5 U.S.C. 5738; 20 U.S.C. 905(a). § 302–1.102 ■ [Removed] 18. Remove § 302–1.102. PART 302–4—ALLOWANCES FOR SUBSISTENCE AND TRANSPORTATION 19. The authority citation for part 302–4 continues to read as follows: ■ Authority: 5 U.S.C. 5738; 20 U.S.C. 905(a); E.O. 11609, 36 FR 13747, 3 CFR, 1971–1973 Comp., p. 586. § 302–4.302 [Amended] 20. Amend § 302–4.302, by removing from paragraph (b), ‘‘taxicab fares’’ and adding ‘‘taxi or TNC fares, or the cost of utilizing an innovative mobility technology company,’’ in its place. ■ PART 304–2—DEFINITIONS 21. The authority citation for part 304–2 continues to read as follows: ■ Authority: 5 U.S.C. 5707; 31 U.S.C. 1353. § 304–2.1 [Amended] 22. Amend § 304–2.1, in the definition ‘‘Travel, subsistence, and related expenses (travel expenses)’’, in the first sentence, by removing ‘‘taxi fares’’ and adding ‘‘taxi or TNC fares, or the cost of utilizing an innovative mobility technology company,’’ in its place. ■ [FR Doc. 2017–28503 Filed 1–4–18; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6820–14–P DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration 49 CFR Part 367 [Docket No. FMCSA–2017–0118] daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with RULES RIN 2126–AC03 Fees for the Unified Carrier Registration Plan and Agreement Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT. ACTION: Final rule. AGENCY: This rule establishes reductions in the annual registration SUMMARY: VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:04 Jan 04, 2018 Jkt 244001 fees collected from motor carriers, motor private carriers of property, brokers, freight forwarders, and leasing companies for the Unified Carrier Registration (UCR) Plan and Agreement for the registration years 2018, 2019 and subsequent years. For the 2018 registration year, the fees will be reduced below the current level by approximately 9.10% to ensure that fee revenues do not exceed the statutory maximum, and to account for the excess funds held in the depository. For the 2019 registration year and subsequent years, the fees will be reduced below the current level by approximately 4.55% to ensure the fee revenues in that and future years do not exceed the statutory maximum. DATES: This final rule is effective January 5, 2018. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Gerald Folsom, Office of Registration and Safety Information, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590–0001 or by telephone at 202– 385–2405. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This Final Rule is organized as follows: I. Rulemaking Documents A. Availability of Rulemaking Documents B. Privacy Act II. Abbreviations and Acronyms III. Executive Summary A. Purpose and Summary of the Major Provisions B. Benefits and Costs IV. Legal Basis for the Rulemaking V. Statutory Requirements for UCR Fees A. Legislative History B. Fee Requirements VI. Background Recommendation From the UCR Plan VII. Discussion of the Comments A. Small Business in Transportation Coalition B. Revenue Entitlement for the State of Texas C. Change Design of Fee Structure D. Other Concerns VIII. International Impacts IX. Section-by-Section Analysis X. Regulatory Analyses A. Executive Order (E.O.) 12866 (Regulatory Planning and Review), E.O. 13563 (Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review), and DOT Regulatory Policies and Procedures B. E.O. 13771 Reducing Regulation and Controlling Costs C. Regulatory Flexibility Act (Small Entities) D. Assistance for Small Entities E. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 F. Paperwork Reduction Act (Collection of Information) G. E.O. 13132 (Federalism) H. E.O. 12988 (Civil Justice Reform) I. E.O. 13045 (Protection of Children) J. E.O. 12630 (Taking of Private Property) PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 605 K. Privacy Impact Assessment L. E.O. 12372 (Intergovernmental Review) M. E.O. 13211 (Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use) N. E.O. 13175 (Indian Tribal Governments) O. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (Technical Standards) P. Environment (National Environmental Policy Act, Clean Air Act, Environmental Justice) I. Rulemaking Documents A. Availability of Rulemaking Documents For access to docket FMCSA–2017– 0118 to read background documents, go to https://www.regulations.gov at any time, or to Docket Services at U.S. Department of Transportation, Room W12–140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. B. Privacy Act In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) solicits comments from the public to better inform its rulemaking process. DOT posts any 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 https://www.transportation.gov/privacy. II. Abbreviations and Acronyms The following is a list of abbreviations used in this document Board Unified Carrier Registration Board of Directors CAA Clean Air Act CE Categorical Exclusion FMCSA Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration OMB Office of Management and Budget OOIDA Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association PRA Paperwork Reduction Act RFA Regulatory Flexibility Act SBA Small Business Administration SBREFA Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act SBTC Small Business in Transportation Coalition SSRS Single State Registration System Texas DMV Texas Department of Motor Vehicles UCR Unified Carrier Registration UCR Agreement Unified Carrier Registration Agreement UCR Plan Unified Carrier Registration Plan. III. Executive Summary A. Purpose and Summary of the Major Provisions The UCR Plan and the 41 States participating in the UCR Agreement establish and collect fees from motor carriers, motor private carriers of E:\FR\FM\05JAR1.SGM 05JAR1 daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with RULES 606 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 4 / Friday, January 5, 2018 / Rules and Regulations property, brokers, freight forwarders, and leasing companies. The UCR Plan and Agreement are administered by a 15-member board of directors (UCR Board); 14 appointed from the participating States and the industry, plus the Deputy Administrator of FMCSA. Revenues collected are allocated to the participating States and the UCR Plan. The statute sets a statutory maximum amount that the UCR Plan may collect. If annual revenues will exceed the statutory maximum allowed, then the UCR Plan must request adjustments to the fees. 49 U.S.C. 14504a(f)(1)(E). Also, any excess funds held by the UCR Plan after payments are made to the States and for administrative costs are retained in the UCR depository and subsequent fees charged are reduced as required by 49 U.S.C. 14504a(h)(4). Adjustments in the fees are requested by the UCR Plan and approved by FMCSA. These two provisions are the reasons for the twostage adjustment adopted in this final rule. The final rule provides for a reduction for at least the next two registration years to the annual registration fees established for the Unified Carrier Registration (UCR) Agreement. The UCR Plan and the participating States collect registration fees for each registration year, which is the same period as the calendar year. Generally, collection begins on October 1st of the previous year, and continues until December 31st of the year following the registration year. For example, collection for the 2016 registration year began on October 1, 2015, and will end on December 31, 2017. Currently the UCR Plan estimates that by December 31, 2017, total revenues will exceed the statutory maximum for the 2016 registration year by $5.13 million, or approximately 4.55%. This is the first time that revenues collected will exceed the statutory maximum. Therefore, in March 2017, the UCR Board requested that FMCSA adjust the fees in a twostage process. For the 2018 registration year, with collection beginning on October 1, 2017 and ending December 31, 2019, the fees would be reduced below the current level by approximately 9.10% to ensure that fee revenues do not exceed the statutory maximum, and to reduce the excess funds held in the depository. For the 2019 registration year, with collection beginning on October 1, 2018 and ending December 31, 2020, the fees would be reduced below the current level by approximately 4.55% to ensure the fee revenues in that and future years do not exceed the statutory maximum. VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:04 Jan 04, 2018 Jkt 244001 B. Benefits and Costs The changes imposed by this final rule reduce the fees paid by motor carriers, motor private carriers of property, brokers, freight forwarders, and leasing companies to the participating States. Fees are considered by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A–4, Regulatory Analysis, as transfer payments, not costs. Transfer payments are payments from one group to another that do not affect total resources available to society. Therefore, transfers are not considered in the monetization of societal costs and benefits of rulemakings. The UCR Plan’s formal recommendation requested the Secretary (delegated to FMCSA) to set annual fees beginning in the registration year 2018, as required by 49 U.S.C. 14504a(d)(7). FMCSA issued a notice of proposed rulemaking proposing to reduce the fees paid by motor carriers, motor private carriers of property, brokers, freight forwarders, and leasing companies based on an analysis of current collections and past trends. The Agency reviewed the UCR Plan’s formal recommendation prior to issuing the NPRM and concluded that the UCR Plan’s projection of the total revenues received for registration year 2016 may have been understated. 49 U.S.C. 14504a(d)(7). This understatement would result in slightly higher fees for certain brackets. FMCSA conducted its own analysis, adjusted the methodology for projecting collections through the remainder of 2017, and updated the fees accordingly. The total amount targeted for collection by the UCR Plan will not change as a result of this rule, but the fees paid, or transfers, per affected entity will be slightly reduced from the UCR Plan’s original formal recommendation. IV. Legal Basis for the Rulemaking This rule adjusts the annual registration fees for the UCR Agreement established by 49 U.S.C. 14504a. The requested fee adjustments are required by 49 U.S.C. 14504a because, for the registration year 2016, the total revenues collected are expected to exceed the total revenue entitlements of $107.78 million distributed to the 41 participating States plus the $5 million established for the administrative costs associated with the UCR Plan and Agreement. The requested adjustments have been submitted by the UCR Plan in accordance with 49 U.S.C. 14504a(f)(1)(E)(ii), which requires the Board to request an adjustment by the Secretary when the annual revenues PO 00000 Frm 00018 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 exceed the maximum allowed. In addition, 49 U.S.C. 14504a(h)(4) states that any excess funds held by the UCR Plan in its depository, after payments to the States and for administrative costs, shall be retained ‘‘and the fees charged . . . shall be reduced by the Secretary accordingly.’’ The Secretary also has broad rulemaking authority in 49 U.S.C. 13301(a) to carry out 49 U.S.C. 14504a, which is part of 49 U.S.C. subtitle IV, part B. Authority to administer these statutory provisions has been delegated to the FMCSA Administrator by 49 CFR 1.87(a)(2) and (7). The APA also allows agencies to make rules effective immediately with good cause, instead of requiring publication 30 days prior to the effective date. 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3). FMCSA finds there is good cause for this rule to be effective immediately so that the UCR Plan and the participating States may begin collection of fees immediately for the registration year that will begin on January 1, 2018. The immediate commencement of fee collection will avoid further delay in distributing revenues to the participating States. V. Statutory Requirements for the UCR Fees A. Legislative History The Unified Carrier Registration Plan is ‘‘the organization . . . responsible for developing, implementing, and administering the unified carrier registration agreement.’’ 49 U.S.C. 14504a(a)(9). The UCR Agreement developed by the UCR Plan is the ‘‘interstate agreement . . . governing the collection and distribution of registration and financial responsibility information provided and fees paid by motor carriers, motor private carriers, brokers, freight forwarders, and leasing companies . . . .’’ 49 U.S.C. 14504a(a)(8). The legislative history of 49 U.S.C. 14504a indicates that the purpose of the UCR Plan and Agreement is both to replace the Single State Registration System (SSRS) for registration of interstate motor carrier entities with the States and to ‘‘ensure that States don’t lose current revenues derived from SSRS’’ (S. Rep. 109–120, at 2 (2005)). The statute provides for a 15-member Board of Directors for the UCR Plan to be appointed by the Secretary of Transportation. The statute specifies that the UCR Board should consist of one individual (either the FMCSA Deputy Administrator or another Presidential appointee) from the Department of Transportation; four directors from among the chief E:\FR\FM\05JAR1.SGM 05JAR1 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 4 / Friday, January 5, 2018 / Rules and Regulations daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with RULES administrative officers of the State agencies responsible for administering the UCR Agreement (one from each of the four FMCSA service areas); five directors from among the professional staffs of State agencies responsible for administering the UCR Agreement, to be nominated by the National Conference of State Transportation Specialists; and five directors from the motor carrier industry, of whom at least one must be from a national trade association representing the general motor carrier of property industry and one from a motor carrier that falls within the smallest fleet fee bracket. 49 U.S.C. 14504a(d)(1)(B). The UCR Plan and the participating States are authorized by 49 U.S.C. 14504a(f) to establish and collect fees from motor carriers, motor private carriers of property, brokers, freight forwarders, and leasing companies. The current annual fees charged are set out in 49 CFR 367.30. These fees were adopted by FMCSA in 2010 after a rulemaking proceeding that considered the substantial increase in fees over the fees initially established in 2007. Compare Fees for the Unified Registration Plan and Agreement, 75 FR 21993 (Apr. 27, 2010) (‘‘2010 Final Rule’’) with Fees for Unified Registration Plan and Agreement, 72 FR 48585 (Aug. 24, 2007) (‘‘2007 Final Rule’’). For carriers and freight forwarders, the fees vary according to the size of the vehicle fleets, as required by 49 U.S.C. 14504a(f). The fees collected are allocated to the States and the UCR Plan in accordance with 49 U.S.C. 14504a(h). Participating States submit a plan demonstrating that an amount equivalent to the revenues received are used for motor carrier safety programs, enforcement or the administration of the UCR Plan and Agreement. 49 U.S.C. 14504a(e)(1)(B). B. Fee Requirements The statute specifies that fees are to be based upon the recommendation of the UCR Board, 49 U.S.C. 14504a(d)(7)(A). In recommending the level of fees to be assessed in any agreement year, and in setting the fee level, both the Board and the Agency shall consider the following factors: • Administrative costs associated with the UCR Plan and Agreement; • Whether the revenues generated in the previous year and any surplus or shortage from that or prior years enable the participating States to achieve the revenue levels set by the Board; and • Provisions governing fees in 49 U.S.C. 14504a(f)(1). The Secretary, if asked by the Board, may also adjust the fees within a VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:04 Jan 04, 2018 Jkt 244001 reasonable range on an annual basis if the revenues derived from the fees are either insufficient to provide the participating States with the revenues they are entitled to receive or exceed those revenues (49 U.S.C. 14504a(f)(1)(E)). Overall, the fees assessed under the UCR Agreement must produce the level of revenue established by statute. Section 14504a(g) establishes the revenue entitlements for States that choose to participate in the UCR Plan. That section provides that a State, participating in SSRS in the registration year prior to the enactment of the Unified Carrier Registration Act of 2005 is entitled to receive revenues under the UCR Agreement equivalent to the revenues it received in the year before that enactment. Participating States that also collected intrastate registration fees from interstate motor carrier entities (whether or not they participated in SSRS) are also entitled to receive revenues of this type under the UCR Agreement, in an amount equivalent to the amount received in the previous registration year. The statute also requires that States that did not participate in SSRS previously, but that choose to participate in the UCR Plan, may receive revenues not to exceed $500,000 per year. The Board calculates the amount of revenue that each participating State is entitled to under the UCR Agreement which is then approved by the Secretary. FMCSA’s responsibilities under 49 U.S.C. 14504a in setting fees for the UCR Plan and Agreement are guided by the primacy the statute places on the need both to set and to adjust the fees so they ‘‘provide the revenues to which the States are entitled.’’ The statute links the requirement that the fees be adjusted ‘‘within a reasonable range’’ by both the UCR Plan and FMCSA to the provision of sufficient revenues to meet the entitlements of the participating States (49 U.S.C. 14504a(f)(1)(E); see also 49 U.S.C. 14504a(d)(7)(A)(ii)). Additionally, section 14504a(h)(4) requires FMCSA to reduce the fees for all motor carrier entities in the year following any year in which the depository retains any funds in excess of the amount necessary to satisfy the revenue entitlements of the participating States and the UCR Plan’s administrative costs. VI. Background Recommendation From the UCR Plan On March 14, 2017, the Board voted unanimously to submit a recommendation to the Secretary for a reduction of registration fees collected PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 607 by the UCR Plan for 2018, with an adjustment in fees in 2019 and subsequent years. The recommendation was submitted to the Secretary on March 22, 2017, and a copy has been placed in the docket.1 The requested fee adjustments are required by 49 U.S.C. 14504a because, for the registration year 2016, the total revenues collected have, for the first time, exceeded the total revenue entitlements of $107.78 million distributed to the 41 participating States, plus the $5 million established for ‘‘the administrative costs associated with the unified carrier registration plan and agreement.’’ 49 U.S.C. 14504a((d)(7)(A)(i)). The maximum revenue entitlements for each of the 41 participating States, totaling $107.78 million and already established in accordance with 49 U.S.C. 14504a(g), are set out in the table attached to the March 22, 2017 recommendation. These revenue entitlements for the States are the same as those that were approved in the 2010 final rule (75 FR at 22008–9 and Table 5) that have continued in effect for each of the eight registration years from 2010 to 2017, inclusive. As indicated in the analysis attached to the March 22, 2017 letter, as of the end of February 2017, the UCR Plan had already collected $4.15 million more than the statutory maximum of $112.78 million for 2016. The UCR Plan estimates that by the end of 2017, total revenues will exceed the statutory maximum, for 2016, by $5.13 million, or approximately 4.55%. The excess revenues collected will be held in a depository maintained by the Plan as required by 49 U.S.C. 14504a(h)(4). Because of the collection of excess revenue, the UCR Plan requested adjustments to the fees in accordance with 49 U.S.C. 14504a(f)(1)(E)(ii), which requires the Board to request an adjustment when the annual revenues exceed the maximum allowed. In addition, 49 U.S.C. 14504a(h)(4) states that any excess funds held by the UCR Plan in its depository, after payments to the States and for administrative costs, shall be retained ‘‘and the fees charged . . . shall be reduced by the Secretary accordingly.’’ These two provisions are distinct, and are the basis for the twostage adjustment in the recommendation. The requested adjustments would occur in two stages; an initial reduction below the current level by approximately 9.10% for 2018 to account for the excess revenues already 1 The UCR recommendation submitted March 22, 2017 including the letter request from the Board and all related tables is located in docket FMCSA– 2017–0118 at: www.regulations.gov. E:\FR\FM\05JAR1.SGM 05JAR1 608 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 4 / Friday, January 5, 2018 / Rules and Regulations collected in 2016, followed by a reduction below the current level by approximately 4.55% for 2019 and subsequent years to keep future revenues below the statutory maximum. The adjusted fees recommended for each bracket for 2018 and 2019 are shown in the analysis attached to the March 22 letter. The UCR Plan requested that the reduction for the 2018 registration year be adopted not later than August 31, 2017, to enable the participating States and the UCR Plan to reflect the new fees when fee collection for the 2018 registration year that began on October 1, 2017. VII. Discussion of the Comments FMCSA received 7 comments on the NPRM. Five commenters disagreed with some aspect or another of the NPRM, including the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles (Texas DMV), OwnerOperator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), Small Business in Transportation Coalition (SBTC) and two anonymous commenters. Two additional anonymous commenters agreed with the NPRM favoring the fee reduction. The major comments included a request to have the NPRM withdrawn, as well as a recommendation to have the UCR Board submit a new recommendation to implement the fee reduction with a new 2019 fee schedule and a request for assurance that the State of Texas will be able to collect all of the revenues to which it is entitled. Also comments addressed recommendations for changing the current design of the fee structure. Additional concerns included the absence of consistent enforcement of penalties, and the difficulty for small businesses to realize benefits from the mandated fees paid due to the existing structure and administration of the program. A. Small Business in Transportation Coalition daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with RULES Comments The Small Business in Transportation Coalition (SBTC) contended that the NPRM published September 21, 2017, is unlawful and should be withdrawn. It contends that while the UCR Plan notified the FMCSA of its recommendation for a reduction in the fees on March 22, 2017, the Agency failed to set the new fees within the 90day period specified in the statute. As a result of the lack of action within 90 days, SBTC asserts that on September 14, 2017, the Board held an ‘‘improperly noticed secret meeting’’ that changed the date for commencement of the registration and payment of fees from VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:04 Jan 04, 2018 Jkt 244001 October 1, 2017, to November 1, 2017. SBTC claims that this action by the UCR Plan thereby shortens the period for carriers to comply with the UCR requirement, even though the affected registrants would then be paying a reduced fee. After the close of the comment period, SBTC and a broker, 12 Percent Logistics, Inc., brought a civil action in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia (Civil Action No 1:17–cv– 2000) in which they sought injunctive relief to set aside the UCR Plan’s postponement of the date for commencement of registration and fee payment. On October 18, the court denied the request to set aside the postponement of the registration period but ordered the UCR Board and the operator of its on-line registration system (the Indiana Department of Revenue) to post the draft minutes of a September 14, 2017, meeting of the UCR Board on their respective websites and to make an announcement of these postings at the Board’s October 26, 2017, meeting. The draft minutes of the Board’s September 14, 2017 meeting were posted on websites www.ucrplan.org and www.ucr.in.gov/ ucrHome.html on October 20, 2017 and October 24, 2017, respectively. The Board announced the availability of the draft minutes on these websites at its October 26, 2017 meeting. FMCSA Response SBTC cites no authority for its contention that FMCSA and the Secretary no longer have the authority to set new fees for 2018 because the statutory deadline for such action of 90 days in 49 U.S.C. 14504a(d)(7) has not been met. SBTC’s contention that FMCSA ‘‘has missed its lawful opportunity’’ to set the fees based on the UCR Plan’s March 22 recommendation is legally incorrect. SBTC cannot point to any explicit statement in the provisions of 49 U.S.C. 14504a that bars action by FMCSA when the 90-day period is not met, because there is none. In addition, there are important public rights at stake that would be affected if FMCSA lost its power to act on the UCR Plan’s recommendation, as contended by SBTC. The fee reduction recommended by the UCR Plan, proposed for implementation in the NPRM and now adopted in this final rule, is necessary to comply with two important provisions in the statute that require compliance with the statutory maximum amount of revenues to be collected by the UCR Plan and the participating States. 49 U.S.C. 14504a(f)(1)(E)(ii) and (h)(4). Instead of PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 allowing SBTC’s members and the rest of the motor carrier industry to benefit as soon as possible from the reduction in fees based on excess revenues that the UCR Plan has already recognized were collected for registration year 2016, SBTC’s request would have the harmful effect of delaying the benefits of the reduction until 2019. FMCSA and the Secretary have not lost the power to take action to implement the reduction in fees for 2018 and later years because the Agency did not complete such action within 90 days. SBTC’s request for withdrawal of this rulemaking is therefore denied. B. Revenue Entitlement for the State of Texas Comments The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles requested that FMCSA ‘‘take the necessary steps to ensure that the state of Texas receives the full amount of UCR revenues to which Texas is entitled under 49 U.S.C. 14504a(g)(1).’’ Texas DMV stated that after the State’s move from the SSRS to the UCR Plan and Agreement, it had not received the amount of funds from the UCR Plan and Agreement to which it believes it is entitled. Since 2007, under the revenue entitlement calculations submitted by the UCR Plan to the Secretary and FMCSA, the revenue entitlement for Texas has been set at $2,718,628.06. 72 FR at 48588 and Table 1 (2007 Final Rule) and 75 FR at 22008–9 and Table 5 (2010 Final Rule). Texas DMV now claims that the State’s revenue entitlement for every year since 2007 should have been set at $5,765,819.93, representing a difference of $3,047,191.87 for each registration year. In total, Texas DMV claims that the State did not receive revenues of $33,519,110.57 for the years 2007 to 2017, inclusive. Texas DMV now asks that the Agency approve a revised annual revenue entitlement for Texas of $5,765,819.93, starting with the year 2018, and approve the ‘‘shortage’’ amount of $33,519,110.57 for the years 2007–2017. Most significantly, for the purpose of this rulemaking, Texas DMV asks the Agency to revise the current fees established in 49 CFR part 367 ‘‘as necessary to ensure enough UCR fees are collected to cover the full amount to which Texas is entitled for years 2007 through 2017 and beyond.’’ FMCSA Response The actions by the Agency that Texas DMV requests would not only require declining to implement the reduction in fees requested by the UCR Plan, but E:\FR\FM\05JAR1.SGM 05JAR1 daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with RULES Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 4 / Friday, January 5, 2018 / Rules and Regulations taking two additional steps: (1) Revising the approved revenue entitlement for Texas; and (2) increasing the fees by an uncertain but clearly substantial amount, not only to provide revenues for the new entitlement, but also to cover eleven years of a claimed ‘‘shortage.’’ FMCSA does not have authority under the provisions of 49 U.S.C. 14504a to take either of these additional actions. Both the approval of a revised revenue entitlement for Texas and an adjustment of the fees to cover both Texas’ claimed revised entitlement and the ‘‘shortage’’ would require that a recommendation be made to the Secretary by the Board. Because no such request has been made for either action, FMCSA is without authority to take the action requested by Texas. The fees are based on the only set of revenue entitlements submitted by the UCR Plan to the Secretary, which were approved in the 2010 final rule and which includes a revenue entitlement of $2,718,628.06 for Texas. The statute has provisions in 49 U.S.C. 14504a(g)(1) to (3) governing how the revenue entitlement for each participating State should be determined. Texas DMV asserts that the Texas revenue entitlement should be determined under paragraph (g)(1), based on the revenues Texas received during the calendar year 2004 under SSRS. But the Texas DMV does not explain how or why its revenue entitlement under this provision should be $5,765,819.93 for each year under the UCR Agreement, instead of the $2,718,628.06 that has been in effect since 2007. It also does not explain why it has waited more than 11 years to assert that it is entitled to a larger revenue entitlement. Even if Texas DMV is correct that the larger amount is appropriate under the statute, it has failed to submit its claim to the Board. The statute provides that the amount of revenues generated under the UCR Agreement to which a State is entitled shall be calculated by the Board and approved by the Secretary. 49 U.S.C. 14504a(g)(4). A revised calculation of the Texas revenue entitlement, which shows that it complies with the statutory requirements in section 14504a(g)(1), has not been submitted to the Board for its review and confirmation, and it has not been submitted by the Board to FMCSA for approval. FMCSA is without authority to consider or approve a revised revenue entitlement for Texas unless and until a revised calculation is submitted by the UCR Plan’s board of directors. The statute has similar provisions governing adjustments in the fees. The VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:04 Jan 04, 2018 Jkt 244001 Board may ask FMCSA to adjust the fees within a reasonable range on an annual basis if the revenues derived from the fees are insufficient to provide the revenues to which the States are entitled. 49 U.S.C. 14504a(f)(1)(E)(i). No request has been made by the Board to adjust the fees in order to provide any revenues to satisfy the claim by Texas for a larger annual revenue entitlement or to provide funds to make up the ‘‘shortage’’ Texas has supposedly incurred for 11 years. The only request before the Agency from the Board is the reduction in fees submitted on March 22, 2017 after a unanimous vote of the UCR Board. FMCSA is without authority to consider or approve any adjustment in the fees (other than the one submitted on March 22) unless and until the Board makes a recommendation that would reflect the effects of the revised revenue entitlement claimed by Texas. C. Change Design of Fee Structure Comments OOIDA stated that single-truck operators or small fleet carriers represented approximately 95% of the motor carrier industry and that the current fee structure is burdensome and costly to its members due to the limited resources they have in comparison to larger competitors. OOIDA stated that the inequalities are particularly noted between and within the arbitrary payment brackets in effect and proposed that a standard flat fee per vehicle should be considered to reduce inequity amongst small, medium, and large fleets. An anonymous commenter felt that the current structure appears punitive to companies who are on the lower end of the tiered brackets that are currently in effect. The commenter cited the following examples in the current fee structure in which by going from 100 power units to 101 power units or even 1000 power units to 1001 power units companies would incur enormous percentage fee increases for a single power unit. The commenter recommended that the fee should be charged on a per unit basis. The per unit fee recommendation was also supported by another anonymous commenter. FMCSA Response Three commenters suggested changing the UCR fees to a ‘‘per-unit’’ (i.e. on a per vehicle) basis. FMCSA has not evaluated the merits of this suggestion because it is not an alternative available to the Agency. The statute requires that the Board set the fee structure based on 4 to 6 brackets depending on the size of the fleet. 49 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 609 U.S.C. 14504a(f)(1)(C). Implementing the commenters’ ‘‘per unit’’ suggestion would require a statutory amendment. Unless and until that occurs, neither the Board nor FMCSA has authority to change the current fee structure using brackets. D. Other Concerns Comments OOIDA expressed other specific concerns regarding the proposed rule including the fact that smaller carriers lack the resources to assist payment processing and submission of paperwork. OOIDA also expressed concerns regarding the lack of consistency among states in their use of the fees for enforcement or administration purposes. Overall, OOIDA felt that the existing organization and administration of the UCR program makes it difficult for small-business truckers and owneroperators to recognize any benefits from the mandated fees they are expected to pay. OOIDA recommended a federal audit of the UCR plan to review how states are actually spending UCR revenues. FMCSA Response OOIDA’s concerns described above are outside of the scope of this rulemaking. VIII. International Impacts Motor carriers and other entities involved in interstate and foreign transportation in the United States that do not have a principal office in the United States, are nonetheless subject to the fees for the UCR Plan. They are required to designate a participating State as a base State and pay the appropriate fees to that State. 49 U.S.C. 14504a(a)(2)(B)(ii) and (f)(4). IX. Section-by-Section Analysis Under this final rule, the provisions of 49 CFR 367.30 are revised to apply to registration years 2010 to 2017, inclusive. A new 49 CFR 367.40 establishes the reduced fees for registration year 2018. A second new section, 49 CFR 367.50, establishes fees for 2019, which will remain in effect in subsequent registration years unless and until revised in the future. X. Regulatory Analyses A. Executive Order (E.O.) 12866 (Regulatory Planning and Review), E.O. 13563 (Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review), and DOT Regulatory Policies and Procedures FMCSA determined that this final rule is not a significant regulatory action E:\FR\FM\05JAR1.SGM 05JAR1 610 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 4 / Friday, January 5, 2018 / Rules and Regulations under section 3(f) of Executive Order (E.O.) 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993), Regulatory Planning and Review, as supplemented by E.O. 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21, 2011), Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review, and does not require an assessment of potential costs and benefits under section 6(a)(3) of that Order. Accordingly, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has not reviewed it under that Order. It is also not significant within the meaning of DOT regulatory policies and procedures (DOT Order 2100.5 dated May 22, 1980; (44 FR 11034), February 26, 1979). The changes imposed by this final rule adjust the registration fees paid by motor carriers, motor private carriers of property, brokers, freight forwarders, and leasing companies to the UCR Plan and the participating States. Fees are considered by OMB Circular A–4, Regulatory Analysis, as transfer payments, not costs. Transfer payments are payments from one group to another that do not affect total resources available to society. By definition, transfers are not considered in the monetization of societal costs and benefits of rulemakings. This rule establishes adjustments in the annual registration fees for the UCR Plan and Agreement. The total amount targeted for collection by the UCR Plan will not change as a result of this rule, but the fees paid, or transfers, per affected entity will be reduced. The primary entities affected by this rule are the participating States, motor carriers, motor private carriers of property, brokers, freight forwarders, and leasing companies. Because the total amount collected will continue to be the statutory maximum, the participating States will not be impacted by this rule. The primary impact of this rule will be a reduction in fees paid by individual motor carriers, motor private carriers of property, brokers, freight forwarders, and leasing companies. The reduction will range from approximately $7 to $6,700 per entity in the first year, and from approximately $3 to $3,400 per entity in subsequent years, depending on the number of vehicles owned and/ or operated by the affected entities. daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with RULES B. E.O. 13771 Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs 16:04 Jan 04, 2018 Jkt 244001 C. Regulatory Flexibility Act The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (RFA) (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), as amended by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 (SBREFA) (Pub. L. 104–121, 110 Stat. 857), requires Federal agencies to consider the impact of their regulatory proposals on small entities, analyze effective alternatives that minimize small entity impacts, and make their analyses available for public comment. The term ‘‘small entities’’ means small businesses and not-for-profit organizations that are independently owned and operated and are not dominant in their fields, and governmental jurisdictions with 2 Executive E.O. 13771 requires that for ‘‘every one new [E.O. 13771 regulatory action] issued, at least two prior regulations be identified for elimination, and that the cost of planned regulations be prudently managed and controlled through a VerDate Sep<11>2014 budgeting process.’’ 2 Implementation guidance for E.O. 13771 issued by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on April 5, 2017, defines two different types of E.O. 13771 actions: An E.O. 13771 deregulatory action, and an E.O. 13771 regulatory action.3 An E.O. 13771 deregulatory action is defined as ‘‘an action that has been finalized and has total costs less than zero.’’ As this is a zero total cost rulemaking and consequently does not have total costs less than zero, it therefore is not an E.O. 13771 deregulatory action. An E.O. 13771 regulatory action is defined as: (i) a significant action as defined in Section 3(f) of E.O. 12866 that has been finalized, and that imposes total costs greater than zero; or (ii) a significant guidance document (e.g., significant interpretive guidance) reviewed by Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs under the procedures of E.O. 12866 that has been finalized and that imposes total costs greater than zero. The Agency action, in this case a rulemaking, must meet both the significance and the total cost criteria to be considered an E.O. 13771 regulatory action. This rulemaking is not a significant regulatory action as defined in Section 3(f) of E.O. 12866, and therefore does not meet the significance criterion for being an E.O. 13771 regulatory action. Consequently, this rulemaking is not an E.O. 13771 regulatory action and no further action under E.O. 13771 is required. Office of the President. Executive Order 13771 of January 30, 2017. Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs. 82 FR 9339–9341. February 3, 2017. 3 Executive Office of the President. Office of Management and Budget. Guidance Implementing Executive Order 13771, Titled ‘‘Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs.’’ Memorandum M–17–21. April 5, 2017. PO 00000 Frm 00022 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 populations under 50,000.4 Accordingly, DOT policy requires an analysis of the impact of all regulations on small entities, and mandates that agencies strive to lessen any adverse effects on these entities. Section 605 of the RFA allows an agency to certify a rule, in lieu of preparing an analysis, if the rulemaking is not expected to have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. This rule will directly affect the participating States, motor carriers, motor private carriers of property, brokers, freight forwarders, and leasing companies. Under the standards of the RFA, as amended by the SBREFA, the participating States are not small entities. States are not considered small entities because they do not meet the definition of a small entity in Section 601 of the RFA. Specifically, States are not considered small governmental jurisdictions under Section 601(5) of the RFA, both because State government is not included among the various levels of government listed in Section 601(5), and because, even if this were the case, no State nor the District of Columbia has a population of less than 50,000, which is the criterion by which a governmental jurisdiction is considered small under Section 601(5) of the RFA. The Small Business Administration (SBA) size standard for a small entity (13 CFR 121.201) differs by industry code. The entities affected by this rule fall into many different industry codes. In order to determine if this rule would have an impact on a significant number of small entities, FMCSA examined the 2012 Economic Census 5 data for two different industries; truck transportation (Subsector 484) and transit and ground transportation (Subsector 485). According to the 2012 Economic Census, approximately 99 percent of truck transportation firms, and approximately 97 percent of transit and ground transportation firms, had annual revenue less than the SBA revenue threshold of $27.5 million and $15 million, respectively. Therefore, FMCSA has determined that this rule will impact a substantial number of small entities. However, FMCSA has determined that this rule will not have a significant impact on the affected entities. The 4 Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). Available at: https://www.sba.gov/advocacy/ regulatory-flexibility-act (accessed February 13, 2017). 5 U.S. Census Bureau, 2012 US Economic Census. Available at: https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/ tableservices/jsf/pages/ productview.xhtml?pid=ECN_2012_US_ 48SSSZ4&prodType=table (accessed April 27th, 2017). E:\FR\FM\05JAR1.SGM 05JAR1 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 4 / Friday, January 5, 2018 / Rules and Regulations rule will not result in any such expenditure, the Agency discusses the effects of this rule elsewhere in this preamble. D. Assistance for Small Entities In accordance with section 213(a) of the SBREFA, FMCSA wants to assist small entities in understanding this final rule so that they can better evaluate its effects on themselves and participate in the rulemaking initiative. If the final rule would affect your small business, organization, or governmental jurisdiction and you have questions concerning its provisions or options for compliance, please consult the FMCSA point of contact, Gerald Folsom, listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this final rule. Small businesses may send comments on the actions of Federal employees who enforce or otherwise determine compliance with Federal regulations to the Small Business Administration’s Small Business and Agriculture Regulatory Enforcement Ombudsman and the Regional Small Business Regulatory Fairness Boards. The Ombudsman evaluates these actions annually and rates each agency’s responsiveness to small business. If you wish to comment on actions by employees of FMCSA, call 1–888–REG– FAIR (1–888–734–3247). DOT has a policy regarding the rights of small entities to regulatory enforcement fairness and an explicit policy against retaliation for exercising these rights. daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with RULES effect of this rule will be to reduce the registration fee motor carriers, motor private carriers of property, brokers, freight forwarders, and leasing companies are currently required to pay. The reduction will range from approximately $7 to $6,700 per entity, in the first year, and from approximately $3 to $3,400 per entity in subsequent years, depending on the number of vehicles owned and/or operated by the affected entities. FMCSA asserts that the reduction in fees will be entirely beneficial to these entities, and will not have a significant impact on the affected small entities. Accordingly, I hereby certify that this rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. G. E.O. 13132 (Federalism) A rule has implications for Federalism under Section 1(a) of E.O. 13132 if it has ‘‘substantial direct effects on the States, on the relationship between the national government and the States, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities among the various levels of government.’’ FMCSA has determined that this rule would not have substantial direct costs on or for States, nor would it limit the policymaking discretion of States. Nothing in this document preempts any State law or regulation, imposes substantial direct unreimbursed compliance costs on any State, or diminishes the power of any State to enforce its own laws. As detailed above, the UCR Board of Directors includes substantial State representation. The States have already had opportunity for input through their representatives. Accordingly, this rulemaking does not have Federalism implications warranting the application of E.O. 13132. E. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1531–1538) requires Federal agencies to assess the effects of their discretionary regulatory actions. In particular, the Act addresses actions that may result in the expenditure by a State, local, or tribal government, in the aggregate, or by the private sector of $156 million (which is the value equivalent of $100 million in 1995, adjusted for inflation to 2015 levels) or more in any one year. Though this final I. E.O. 13045 (Protection of Children) E.O. 13045, Protection of Children from Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks (62 FR 19885, Apr. 23, 1997), requires agencies issuing ‘‘economically significant’’ rules, if the regulation also concerns an environmental health or safety risk that an agency has reason to believe may disproportionately affect children, to include an evaluation of the regulation’s environmental health and safety effects on children. The Agency determined this final rule is not economically VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:04 Jan 04, 2018 Jkt 244001 F. Paperwork Reduction Act Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), Federal agencies must obtain approval from the OMB for each collection of information they conduct, sponsor, or require through regulations. FMCSA determined that no new information collection requirements are associated with this final rule, nor are there any revisions to existing, approved collections of information. Therefore, the PRA does not apply to this final rule. H. E.O. 12988 (Civil Justice Reform) This final rule meets applicable standards in sections 3(a) and 3(b)(2) of E.O. 12988, Civil Justice Reform, to minimize litigation, eliminate ambiguity, and reduce burden. PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 611 significant. Therefore, no analysis of the impacts on children is required. In any event, the Agency does not anticipate that this regulatory action could in any respect present an environmental or safety risk that could disproportionately affect children. J. E.O. 12630 (Taking of Private Property) FMCSA reviewed this final rule in accordance with E.O. 12630, Governmental Actions and Interference with Constitutionally Protected Property Rights, and has determined it will not effect a taking of private property or otherwise have taking implications. K. Privacy Impact Assessment Section 522 of title I of division H of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2005, enacted December 8, 2004 (Pub. L. 108–447, 118 Stat. 2809, 3268, 5 U.S.C. 552a note), requires the Agency to conduct a privacy impact assessment (PIA) of a regulation that will affect the privacy of individuals. This rule does not require the collection of personally identifiable information. L. E.O. 12372 (Intergovernmental Review) The regulations implementing E.O. 12372 regarding intergovernmental consultation on Federal programs and activities do not apply to this program. M. E.O. 13211 (Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use) FMCSA has analyzed this final rule under E.O. 13211, Actions Concerning Regulations That Significantly Affect Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use. The Agency has determined that this rule is not a ‘‘significant energy action’’ under that order because it is not a ‘‘significant regulatory action’’ likely to have a significant adverse effect on the supply, distribution, or use of energy. Therefore, it does not require a Statement of Energy Effects under E.O. 13211. N. E.O. 13175 (Indian Tribal Governments) This rule does not have tribal implications under E.O. 13175, Consultation and Coordination with Indian Tribal Governments, because it does not have a substantial direct effect on one or more Indian tribes, on the relationship between the Federal Government and Indian tribes, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities between the Federal Government and Indian tribes. E:\FR\FM\05JAR1.SGM 05JAR1 612 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 4 / Friday, January 5, 2018 / Rules and Regulations O. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (Technical Standards) The National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (15 U.S.C. 272 note) directs agencies to use voluntary consensus standards in their regulatory activities unless the agency provides Congress, through OMB, with an explanation of why using these standards would be inconsistent with applicable law or otherwise impractical. Voluntary consensus standards (e.g., specifications of materials, performance, design, or operation; test methods; sampling procedures; and related management systems practices) are standards that are developed or adopted by voluntary consensus standards bodies. This rule does not use technical standards. Therefore, FMCSA did not consider the use of voluntary consensus standards. P. Environment (National Environmental Policy Act, Clean Air Act, Environmental Justice) FMCSA analyzed this rule for the purpose of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and determined this action is categorically excluded from further analysis and documentation in an environmental assessment or environmental impact statement under FMCSA Order 5610.1 (69 FR 9680, March 1, 2004), Appendix 2, paragraph 6.(h). The Categorical Exclusion (CE) in paragraph 6.(h) covers regulations and actions taken pursuant to the regulations implementing procedures to collect fees that will be charged for motor carrier registrations. The content in this rule is covered by this CE and the final action does not have any effect on the quality of the environment. The CE determination is available for inspection or copying in the Regulations.gov. FMCSA also analyzed this rule under the Clean Air Act, as amended (CAA), section 176(c) (42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.), and implementing regulations promulgated by the Environmental Protection Agency. Approval of this action is exempt from the CAA’s general conformity requirement since it does not affect direct or indirect emissions of criteria pollutants. Under E.O. 12898, Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations, each Federal agency must identify and address, as appropriate, ‘‘disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental effects of its programs, policies, and activities on minority populations and lowincome populations’’ in the United States, its possessions, and territories. FMCSA evaluated the environmental justice effects of this final rule in accordance with the E.O. 12898, and has determined that no environmental justice issue is associated with this final rule, nor is there any collective environmental impact that would result from its promulgation. List of Subjects in 49 CFR Part 367 Insurance, Intergovernmental relations, Motor carriers, Surety bonds. For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is amending title 49 CFR chapter III, part 367 as follows: PART 367—STANDARDS FOR REGISTRATION WITH STATES 1. The authority citation for part 367 continues to read as follows: ■ Authority: 49 U.S.C. 13301, 14504a; and 49 CFR 1.87. ■ 2. Revise § 367.30 to read as follows: § 367.30 Fees under the Unified Carrier Registration Plan and Agreement for registration years beginning in 2010 and ending in 2017. TABLE 1 TO § 367.30—FEES UNDER THE UNIFIED CARRIER REGISTRATION PLAN AND AGREEMENT FOR EACH REGISTRATION YEAR 2010–2017 Number of commercial motor vehicles owned or operated by exempt or non-exempt motor carrier, motor private carrier, or freight forwarder Bracket B1 B2 B3 B4 B5 B6 .................... .................... .................... .................... .................... .................... Fee per entity for exempt or non-exempt motor carrier, motor private carrier, or freight forwarder 0–2 ............................................................................................. 3–5 ............................................................................................. 6–20 ........................................................................................... 21–100 ....................................................................................... 101–1,000 .................................................................................. 1,001 and above ........................................................................ 3. Add new §§ 367.40 and 367.50 to subpart B to read as follows: ■ $76 227 452 1,576 7,511 73,346 Fee per entity for broker or leasing company $76 ................................................ ................................................ ................................................ ................................................ ................................................ § 367.40 Fees under the Unified Carrier Registration Plan and Agreement for registration year 2018. TABLE 1 TO § 367.40—FEES UNDER THE UNIFIED CARRIER REGISTRATION PLAN AND AGREEMENT FOR REGISTRATION YEAR 2018 Number of commercial motor vehicles owned or operated by exempt or non-exempt motor carrier, motor private carrier, or freight forwarder daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with RULES Bracket B1 B2 B3 B4 B5 B6 .................... .................... .................... .................... .................... .................... VerDate Sep<11>2014 Fee per entity for exempt or non-exempt motor carrier, motor private carrier, or freight forwarder 0–2 ............................................................................................. 3–5 ............................................................................................. 6–20 ........................................................................................... 21–100 ....................................................................................... 101–1,000 .................................................................................. 1,001 and above ........................................................................ 16:04 Jan 04, 2018 Jkt 244001 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 $69 206 410 1,431 6,820 66,597 E:\FR\FM\05JAR1.SGM 05JAR1 Fee per entity for broker or leasing company $69 ................................................ ................................................ ................................................ ................................................ ................................................ Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 4 / Friday, January 5, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 613 § 367.50 Fees under the Unified Carrier Registration Plan and Agreement for registration years beginning in 2019. TABLE 1 TO § 367.50—FEES UNDER THE UNIFIED CARRIER REGISTRATION PLAN AND AGREEMENT FOR REGISTRATION YEAR 2019 AND EACH SUBSEQUENT REGISTRATION YEAR THEREAFTER Number of commercial motor vehicles owned or operated by exempt or non-exempt motor carrier, motor private carrier, or freight forwarder Bracket B1 B2 B3 B4 B5 B6 .................... .................... .................... .................... .................... .................... Fee per entity for exempt or non-exempt motor carrier, motor private carrier, or freight forwarder 0–2 ............................................................................................. 3–5 ............................................................................................. 6–20 ........................................................................................... 21–100 ....................................................................................... 101–1,000 .................................................................................. 1,001 and above ........................................................................ $73 217 431 1,503 7,165 69,971 Issued under authority delegated in 49 CFR 1.87 on: December 29, 2017. Cathy F. Gautreaux, Deputy Administrator. [FR Doc. 2017–28509 Filed 1–2–18; 4:15 pm] daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with RULES BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:04 Jan 04, 2018 Jkt 244001 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 9990 E:\FR\FM\05JAR1.SGM 05JAR1 Fee per entity for broker or leasing company $73 ................................................ ................................................ ................................................ ................................................ ................................................

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 4 (Friday, January 5, 2018)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 605-613]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-28509]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

49 CFR Part 367

[Docket No. FMCSA-2017-0118]
RIN 2126-AC03


Fees for the Unified Carrier Registration Plan and Agreement

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

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: This rule establishes reductions in the annual registration 
fees collected from motor carriers, motor private carriers of property, 
brokers, freight forwarders, and leasing companies for the Unified 
Carrier Registration (UCR) Plan and Agreement for the registration 
years 2018, 2019 and subsequent years. For the 2018 registration year, 
the fees will be reduced below the current level by approximately 9.10% 
to ensure that fee revenues do not exceed the statutory maximum, and to 
account for the excess funds held in the depository. For the 2019 
registration year and subsequent years, the fees will be reduced below 
the current level by approximately 4.55% to ensure the fee revenues in 
that and future years do not exceed the statutory maximum.

DATES: This final rule is effective January 5, 2018.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Gerald Folsom, Office of 
Registration and Safety Information, Federal Motor Carrier Safety 
Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590-0001 or 
by telephone at 202-385-2405.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    This Final Rule is organized as follows:

I. Rulemaking Documents
    A. Availability of Rulemaking Documents
    B. Privacy Act
II. Abbreviations and Acronyms
III. Executive Summary
    A. Purpose and Summary of the Major Provisions
    B. Benefits and Costs
IV. Legal Basis for the Rulemaking
V. Statutory Requirements for UCR Fees
    A. Legislative History
    B. Fee Requirements
VI. Background
    Recommendation From the UCR Plan
VII. Discussion of the Comments
    A. Small Business in Transportation Coalition
    B. Revenue Entitlement for the State of Texas
    C. Change Design of Fee Structure
    D. Other Concerns
VIII. International Impacts
IX. Section-by-Section Analysis
X. Regulatory Analyses
    A. Executive Order (E.O.) 12866 (Regulatory Planning and 
Review), E.O. 13563 (Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review), 
and DOT Regulatory Policies and Procedures
    B. E.O. 13771 Reducing Regulation and Controlling Costs
    C. Regulatory Flexibility Act (Small Entities)
    D. Assistance for Small Entities
    E. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995
    F. Paperwork Reduction Act (Collection of Information)
    G. E.O. 13132 (Federalism)
    H. E.O. 12988 (Civil Justice Reform)
    I. E.O. 13045 (Protection of Children)
    J. E.O. 12630 (Taking of Private Property)
    K. Privacy Impact Assessment
    L. E.O. 12372 (Intergovernmental Review)
    M. E.O. 13211 (Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use)
    N. E.O. 13175 (Indian Tribal Governments)
    O. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (Technical 
Standards)
    P. Environment (National Environmental Policy Act, Clean Air 
Act, Environmental Justice)

I. Rulemaking Documents

A. Availability of Rulemaking Documents

    For access to docket FMCSA-2017-0118 to read background documents, 
go to https://www.regulations.gov at any time, or to Docket Services at 
U.S. Department of Transportation, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue 
SE, Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, except Federal holidays.

B. Privacy Act

    In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), the U.S. Department of 
Transportation (DOT) solicits comments from the public to better inform 
its rulemaking process. DOT posts any 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 https://www.transportation.gov/privacy.

II. Abbreviations and Acronyms

    The following is a list of abbreviations used in this document

Board Unified Carrier Registration Board of Directors
CAA Clean Air Act
CE Categorical Exclusion
FMCSA Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
OMB Office of Management and Budget
OOIDA Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association
PRA Paperwork Reduction Act
RFA Regulatory Flexibility Act
SBA Small Business Administration
SBREFA Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act
SBTC Small Business in Transportation Coalition
SSRS Single State Registration System
Texas DMV Texas Department of Motor Vehicles
UCR Unified Carrier Registration
UCR Agreement Unified Carrier Registration Agreement
UCR Plan Unified Carrier Registration Plan.

III. Executive Summary

A. Purpose and Summary of the Major Provisions

    The UCR Plan and the 41 States participating in the UCR Agreement 
establish and collect fees from motor carriers, motor private carriers 
of

[[Page 606]]

property, brokers, freight forwarders, and leasing companies. The UCR 
Plan and Agreement are administered by a 15-member board of directors 
(UCR Board); 14 appointed from the participating States and the 
industry, plus the Deputy Administrator of FMCSA. Revenues collected 
are allocated to the participating States and the UCR Plan. The statute 
sets a statutory maximum amount that the UCR Plan may collect. If 
annual revenues will exceed the statutory maximum allowed, then the UCR 
Plan must request adjustments to the fees. 49 U.S.C. 14504a(f)(1)(E). 
Also, any excess funds held by the UCR Plan after payments are made to 
the States and for administrative costs are retained in the UCR 
depository and subsequent fees charged are reduced as required by 49 
U.S.C. 14504a(h)(4). Adjustments in the fees are requested by the UCR 
Plan and approved by FMCSA. These two provisions are the reasons for 
the two-stage adjustment adopted in this final rule. The final rule 
provides for a reduction for at least the next two registration years 
to the annual registration fees established for the Unified Carrier 
Registration (UCR) Agreement.
    The UCR Plan and the participating States collect registration fees 
for each registration year, which is the same period as the calendar 
year. Generally, collection begins on October 1st of the previous year, 
and continues until December 31st of the year following the 
registration year. For example, collection for the 2016 registration 
year began on October 1, 2015, and will end on December 31, 2017. 
Currently the UCR Plan estimates that by December 31, 2017, total 
revenues will exceed the statutory maximum for the 2016 registration 
year by $5.13 million, or approximately 4.55%. This is the first time 
that revenues collected will exceed the statutory maximum. Therefore, 
in March 2017, the UCR Board requested that FMCSA adjust the fees in a 
two-stage process. For the 2018 registration year, with collection 
beginning on October 1, 2017 and ending December 31, 2019, the fees 
would be reduced below the current level by approximately 9.10% to 
ensure that fee revenues do not exceed the statutory maximum, and to 
reduce the excess funds held in the depository. For the 2019 
registration year, with collection beginning on October 1, 2018 and 
ending December 31, 2020, the fees would be reduced below the current 
level by approximately 4.55% to ensure the fee revenues in that and 
future years do not exceed the statutory maximum.

B. Benefits and Costs

    The changes imposed by this final rule reduce the fees paid by 
motor carriers, motor private carriers of property, brokers, freight 
forwarders, and leasing companies to the participating States. Fees are 
considered by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-4, 
Regulatory Analysis, as transfer payments, not costs. Transfer payments 
are payments from one group to another that do not affect total 
resources available to society. Therefore, transfers are not considered 
in the monetization of societal costs and benefits of rulemakings.
    The UCR Plan's formal recommendation requested the Secretary 
(delegated to FMCSA) to set annual fees beginning in the registration 
year 2018, as required by 49 U.S.C. 14504a(d)(7). FMCSA issued a notice 
of proposed rulemaking proposing to reduce the fees paid by motor 
carriers, motor private carriers of property, brokers, freight 
forwarders, and leasing companies based on an analysis of current 
collections and past trends. The Agency reviewed the UCR Plan's formal 
recommendation prior to issuing the NPRM and concluded that the UCR 
Plan's projection of the total revenues received for registration year 
2016 may have been understated. 49 U.S.C. 14504a(d)(7). This 
understatement would result in slightly higher fees for certain 
brackets. FMCSA conducted its own analysis, adjusted the methodology 
for projecting collections through the remainder of 2017, and updated 
the fees accordingly. The total amount targeted for collection by the 
UCR Plan will not change as a result of this rule, but the fees paid, 
or transfers, per affected entity will be slightly reduced from the UCR 
Plan's original formal recommendation.

IV. Legal Basis for the Rulemaking

    This rule adjusts the annual registration fees for the UCR 
Agreement established by 49 U.S.C. 14504a. The requested fee 
adjustments are required by 49 U.S.C. 14504a because, for the 
registration year 2016, the total revenues collected are expected to 
exceed the total revenue entitlements of $107.78 million distributed to 
the 41 participating States plus the $5 million established for the 
administrative costs associated with the UCR Plan and Agreement. The 
requested adjustments have been submitted by the UCR Plan in accordance 
with 49 U.S.C. 14504a(f)(1)(E)(ii), which requires the Board to request 
an adjustment by the Secretary when the annual revenues exceed the 
maximum allowed. In addition, 49 U.S.C. 14504a(h)(4) states that any 
excess funds held by the UCR Plan in its depository, after payments to 
the States and for administrative costs, shall be retained ``and the 
fees charged . . . shall be reduced by the Secretary accordingly.''
    The Secretary also has broad rulemaking authority in 49 U.S.C. 
13301(a) to carry out 49 U.S.C. 14504a, which is part of 49 U.S.C. 
subtitle IV, part B. Authority to administer these statutory provisions 
has been delegated to the FMCSA Administrator by 49 CFR 1.87(a)(2) and 
(7).
    The APA also allows agencies to make rules effective immediately 
with good cause, instead of requiring publication 30 days prior to the 
effective date. 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3). FMCSA finds there is good cause for 
this rule to be effective immediately so that the UCR Plan and the 
participating States may begin collection of fees immediately for the 
registration year that will begin on January 1, 2018. The immediate 
commencement of fee collection will avoid further delay in distributing 
revenues to the participating States.

V. Statutory Requirements for the UCR Fees

A. Legislative History

    The Unified Carrier Registration Plan is ``the organization . . . 
responsible for developing, implementing, and administering the unified 
carrier registration agreement.'' 49 U.S.C. 14504a(a)(9). The UCR 
Agreement developed by the UCR Plan is the ``interstate agreement . . . 
governing the collection and distribution of registration and financial 
responsibility information provided and fees paid by motor carriers, 
motor private carriers, brokers, freight forwarders, and leasing 
companies . . . .'' 49 U.S.C. 14504a(a)(8).
    The legislative history of 49 U.S.C. 14504a indicates that the 
purpose of the UCR Plan and Agreement is both to replace the Single 
State Registration System (SSRS) for registration of interstate motor 
carrier entities with the States and to ``ensure that States don't lose 
current revenues derived from SSRS'' (S. Rep. 109-120, at 2 (2005)). 
The statute provides for a 15-member Board of Directors for the UCR 
Plan to be appointed by the Secretary of Transportation. The statute 
specifies that the UCR Board should consist of one individual (either 
the FMCSA Deputy Administrator or another Presidential appointee) from 
the Department of Transportation; four directors from among the chief

[[Page 607]]

administrative officers of the State agencies responsible for 
administering the UCR Agreement (one from each of the four FMCSA 
service areas); five directors from among the professional staffs of 
State agencies responsible for administering the UCR Agreement, to be 
nominated by the National Conference of State Transportation 
Specialists; and five directors from the motor carrier industry, of 
whom at least one must be from a national trade association 
representing the general motor carrier of property industry and one 
from a motor carrier that falls within the smallest fleet fee bracket. 
49 U.S.C. 14504a(d)(1)(B).
    The UCR Plan and the participating States are authorized by 49 
U.S.C. 14504a(f) to establish and collect fees from motor carriers, 
motor private carriers of property, brokers, freight forwarders, and 
leasing companies. The current annual fees charged are set out in 49 
CFR 367.30. These fees were adopted by FMCSA in 2010 after a rulemaking 
proceeding that considered the substantial increase in fees over the 
fees initially established in 2007. Compare Fees for the Unified 
Registration Plan and Agreement, 75 FR 21993 (Apr. 27, 2010) (``2010 
Final Rule'') with Fees for Unified Registration Plan and Agreement, 72 
FR 48585 (Aug. 24, 2007) (``2007 Final Rule'').
    For carriers and freight forwarders, the fees vary according to the 
size of the vehicle fleets, as required by 49 U.S.C. 14504a(f). The 
fees collected are allocated to the States and the UCR Plan in 
accordance with 49 U.S.C. 14504a(h). Participating States submit a plan 
demonstrating that an amount equivalent to the revenues received are 
used for motor carrier safety programs, enforcement or the 
administration of the UCR Plan and Agreement. 49 U.S.C. 
14504a(e)(1)(B).

B. Fee Requirements

    The statute specifies that fees are to be based upon the 
recommendation of the UCR Board, 49 U.S.C. 14504a(d)(7)(A). In 
recommending the level of fees to be assessed in any agreement year, 
and in setting the fee level, both the Board and the Agency shall 
consider the following factors:
     Administrative costs associated with the UCR Plan and 
Agreement;
     Whether the revenues generated in the previous year and 
any surplus or shortage from that or prior years enable the 
participating States to achieve the revenue levels set by the Board; 
and
     Provisions governing fees in 49 U.S.C. 14504a(f)(1).
    The Secretary, if asked by the Board, may also adjust the fees 
within a reasonable range on an annual basis if the revenues derived 
from the fees are either insufficient to provide the participating 
States with the revenues they are entitled to receive or exceed those 
revenues (49 U.S.C. 14504a(f)(1)(E)).
    Overall, the fees assessed under the UCR Agreement must produce the 
level of revenue established by statute. Section 14504a(g) establishes 
the revenue entitlements for States that choose to participate in the 
UCR Plan. That section provides that a State, participating in SSRS in 
the registration year prior to the enactment of the Unified Carrier 
Registration Act of 2005 is entitled to receive revenues under the UCR 
Agreement equivalent to the revenues it received in the year before 
that enactment. Participating States that also collected intrastate 
registration fees from interstate motor carrier entities (whether or 
not they participated in SSRS) are also entitled to receive revenues of 
this type under the UCR Agreement, in an amount equivalent to the 
amount received in the previous registration year. The statute also 
requires that States that did not participate in SSRS previously, but 
that choose to participate in the UCR Plan, may receive revenues not to 
exceed $500,000 per year. The Board calculates the amount of revenue 
that each participating State is entitled to under the UCR Agreement 
which is then approved by the Secretary.
    FMCSA's responsibilities under 49 U.S.C. 14504a in setting fees for 
the UCR Plan and Agreement are guided by the primacy the statute places 
on the need both to set and to adjust the fees so they ``provide the 
revenues to which the States are entitled.'' The statute links the 
requirement that the fees be adjusted ``within a reasonable range'' by 
both the UCR Plan and FMCSA to the provision of sufficient revenues to 
meet the entitlements of the participating States (49 U.S.C. 
14504a(f)(1)(E); see also 49 U.S.C. 14504a(d)(7)(A)(ii)).
    Additionally, section 14504a(h)(4) requires FMCSA to reduce the 
fees for all motor carrier entities in the year following any year in 
which the depository retains any funds in excess of the amount 
necessary to satisfy the revenue entitlements of the participating 
States and the UCR Plan's administrative costs.

VI. Background

Recommendation From the UCR Plan

    On March 14, 2017, the Board voted unanimously to submit a 
recommendation to the Secretary for a reduction of registration fees 
collected by the UCR Plan for 2018, with an adjustment in fees in 2019 
and subsequent years. The recommendation was submitted to the Secretary 
on March 22, 2017, and a copy has been placed in the docket.\1\ The 
requested fee adjustments are required by 49 U.S.C. 14504a because, for 
the registration year 2016, the total revenues collected have, for the 
first time, exceeded the total revenue entitlements of $107.78 million 
distributed to the 41 participating States, plus the $5 million 
established for ``the administrative costs associated with the unified 
carrier registration plan and agreement.'' 49 U.S.C. 
14504a((d)(7)(A)(i)). The maximum revenue entitlements for each of the 
41 participating States, totaling $107.78 million and already 
established in accordance with 49 U.S.C. 14504a(g), are set out in the 
table attached to the March 22, 2017 recommendation. These revenue 
entitlements for the States are the same as those that were approved in 
the 2010 final rule (75 FR at 22008-9 and Table 5) that have continued 
in effect for each of the eight registration years from 2010 to 2017, 
inclusive.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ The UCR recommendation submitted March 22, 2017 including 
the letter request from the Board and all related tables is located 
in docket FMCSA-2017-0118 at: www.regulations.gov.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    As indicated in the analysis attached to the March 22, 2017 letter, 
as of the end of February 2017, the UCR Plan had already collected 
$4.15 million more than the statutory maximum of $112.78 million for 
2016. The UCR Plan estimates that by the end of 2017, total revenues 
will exceed the statutory maximum, for 2016, by $5.13 million, or 
approximately 4.55%. The excess revenues collected will be held in a 
depository maintained by the Plan as required by 49 U.S.C. 
14504a(h)(4).
    Because of the collection of excess revenue, the UCR Plan requested 
adjustments to the fees in accordance with 49 U.S.C. 
14504a(f)(1)(E)(ii), which requires the Board to request an adjustment 
when the annual revenues exceed the maximum allowed. In addition, 49 
U.S.C. 14504a(h)(4) states that any excess funds held by the UCR Plan 
in its depository, after payments to the States and for administrative 
costs, shall be retained ``and the fees charged . . . shall be reduced 
by the Secretary accordingly.'' These two provisions are distinct, and 
are the basis for the two-stage adjustment in the recommendation.
    The requested adjustments would occur in two stages; an initial 
reduction below the current level by approximately 9.10% for 2018 to 
account for the excess revenues already

[[Page 608]]

collected in 2016, followed by a reduction below the current level by 
approximately 4.55% for 2019 and subsequent years to keep future 
revenues below the statutory maximum. The adjusted fees recommended for 
each bracket for 2018 and 2019 are shown in the analysis attached to 
the March 22 letter. The UCR Plan requested that the reduction for the 
2018 registration year be adopted not later than August 31, 2017, to 
enable the participating States and the UCR Plan to reflect the new 
fees when fee collection for the 2018 registration year that began on 
October 1, 2017.

VII. Discussion of the Comments

    FMCSA received 7 comments on the NPRM. Five commenters disagreed 
with some aspect or another of the NPRM, including the Texas Department 
of Motor Vehicles (Texas DMV), Owner-Operator Independent Drivers 
Association (OOIDA), Small Business in Transportation Coalition (SBTC) 
and two anonymous commenters. Two additional anonymous commenters 
agreed with the NPRM favoring the fee reduction. The major comments 
included a request to have the NPRM withdrawn, as well as a 
recommendation to have the UCR Board submit a new recommendation to 
implement the fee reduction with a new 2019 fee schedule and a request 
for assurance that the State of Texas will be able to collect all of 
the revenues to which it is entitled. Also comments addressed 
recommendations for changing the current design of the fee structure. 
Additional concerns included the absence of consistent enforcement of 
penalties, and the difficulty for small businesses to realize benefits 
from the mandated fees paid due to the existing structure and 
administration of the program.

A. Small Business in Transportation Coalition

Comments
    The Small Business in Transportation Coalition (SBTC) contended 
that the NPRM published September 21, 2017, is unlawful and should be 
withdrawn. It contends that while the UCR Plan notified the FMCSA of 
its recommendation for a reduction in the fees on March 22, 2017, the 
Agency failed to set the new fees within the 90-day period specified in 
the statute.
    As a result of the lack of action within 90 days, SBTC asserts that 
on September 14, 2017, the Board held an ``improperly noticed secret 
meeting'' that changed the date for commencement of the registration 
and payment of fees from October 1, 2017, to November 1, 2017. SBTC 
claims that this action by the UCR Plan thereby shortens the period for 
carriers to comply with the UCR requirement, even though the affected 
registrants would then be paying a reduced fee.
    After the close of the comment period, SBTC and a broker, 12 
Percent Logistics, Inc., brought a civil action in the United States 
District Court for the District of Columbia (Civil Action No 1:17-cv-
2000) in which they sought injunctive relief to set aside the UCR 
Plan's postponement of the date for commencement of registration and 
fee payment. On October 18, the court denied the request to set aside 
the postponement of the registration period but ordered the UCR Board 
and the operator of its on-line registration system (the Indiana 
Department of Revenue) to post the draft minutes of a September 14, 
2017, meeting of the UCR Board on their respective websites and to make 
an announcement of these postings at the Board's October 26, 2017, 
meeting. The draft minutes of the Board's September 14, 2017 meeting 
were posted on websites www.ucrplan.org and www.ucr.in.gov/ucrHome.html 
on October 20, 2017 and October 24, 2017, respectively. The Board 
announced the availability of the draft minutes on these websites at 
its October 26, 2017 meeting.
FMCSA Response
    SBTC cites no authority for its contention that FMCSA and the 
Secretary no longer have the authority to set new fees for 2018 because 
the statutory deadline for such action of 90 days in 49 U.S.C. 
14504a(d)(7) has not been met. SBTC's contention that FMCSA ``has 
missed its lawful opportunity'' to set the fees based on the UCR Plan's 
March 22 recommendation is legally incorrect.
    SBTC cannot point to any explicit statement in the provisions of 49 
U.S.C. 14504a that bars action by FMCSA when the 90-day period is not 
met, because there is none. In addition, there are important public 
rights at stake that would be affected if FMCSA lost its power to act 
on the UCR Plan's recommendation, as contended by SBTC. The fee 
reduction recommended by the UCR Plan, proposed for implementation in 
the NPRM and now adopted in this final rule, is necessary to comply 
with two important provisions in the statute that require compliance 
with the statutory maximum amount of revenues to be collected by the 
UCR Plan and the participating States. 49 U.S.C. 14504a(f)(1)(E)(ii) 
and (h)(4). Instead of allowing SBTC's members and the rest of the 
motor carrier industry to benefit as soon as possible from the 
reduction in fees based on excess revenues that the UCR Plan has 
already recognized were collected for registration year 2016, SBTC's 
request would have the harmful effect of delaying the benefits of the 
reduction until 2019.
    FMCSA and the Secretary have not lost the power to take action to 
implement the reduction in fees for 2018 and later years because the 
Agency did not complete such action within 90 days. SBTC's request for 
withdrawal of this rulemaking is therefore denied.

B. Revenue Entitlement for the State of Texas

Comments
    The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles requested that FMCSA ``take 
the necessary steps to ensure that the state of Texas receives the full 
amount of UCR revenues to which Texas is entitled under 49 U.S.C. 
14504a(g)(1).'' Texas DMV stated that after the State's move from the 
SSRS to the UCR Plan and Agreement, it had not received the amount of 
funds from the UCR Plan and Agreement to which it believes it is 
entitled. Since 2007, under the revenue entitlement calculations 
submitted by the UCR Plan to the Secretary and FMCSA, the revenue 
entitlement for Texas has been set at $2,718,628.06. 72 FR at 48588 and 
Table 1 (2007 Final Rule) and 75 FR at 22008-9 and Table 5 (2010 Final 
Rule). Texas DMV now claims that the State's revenue entitlement for 
every year since 2007 should have been set at $5,765,819.93, 
representing a difference of $3,047,191.87 for each registration year. 
In total, Texas DMV claims that the State did not receive revenues of 
$33,519,110.57 for the years 2007 to 2017, inclusive.
    Texas DMV now asks that the Agency approve a revised annual revenue 
entitlement for Texas of $5,765,819.93, starting with the year 2018, 
and approve the ``shortage'' amount of $33,519,110.57 for the years 
2007-2017. Most significantly, for the purpose of this rulemaking, 
Texas DMV asks the Agency to revise the current fees established in 49 
CFR part 367 ``as necessary to ensure enough UCR fees are collected to 
cover the full amount to which Texas is entitled for years 2007 through 
2017 and beyond.''
FMCSA Response
    The actions by the Agency that Texas DMV requests would not only 
require declining to implement the reduction in fees requested by the 
UCR Plan, but

[[Page 609]]

taking two additional steps: (1) Revising the approved revenue 
entitlement for Texas; and (2) increasing the fees by an uncertain but 
clearly substantial amount, not only to provide revenues for the new 
entitlement, but also to cover eleven years of a claimed ``shortage.'' 
FMCSA does not have authority under the provisions of 49 U.S.C. 14504a 
to take either of these additional actions. Both the approval of a 
revised revenue entitlement for Texas and an adjustment of the fees to 
cover both Texas' claimed revised entitlement and the ``shortage'' 
would require that a recommendation be made to the Secretary by the 
Board. Because no such request has been made for either action, FMCSA 
is without authority to take the action requested by Texas. The fees 
are based on the only set of revenue entitlements submitted by the UCR 
Plan to the Secretary, which were approved in the 2010 final rule and 
which includes a revenue entitlement of $2,718,628.06 for Texas.
    The statute has provisions in 49 U.S.C. 14504a(g)(1) to (3) 
governing how the revenue entitlement for each participating State 
should be determined. Texas DMV asserts that the Texas revenue 
entitlement should be determined under paragraph (g)(1), based on the 
revenues Texas received during the calendar year 2004 under SSRS. But 
the Texas DMV does not explain how or why its revenue entitlement under 
this provision should be $5,765,819.93 for each year under the UCR 
Agreement, instead of the $2,718,628.06 that has been in effect since 
2007. It also does not explain why it has waited more than 11 years to 
assert that it is entitled to a larger revenue entitlement.
    Even if Texas DMV is correct that the larger amount is appropriate 
under the statute, it has failed to submit its claim to the Board. The 
statute provides that the amount of revenues generated under the UCR 
Agreement to which a State is entitled shall be calculated by the Board 
and approved by the Secretary. 49 U.S.C. 14504a(g)(4). A revised 
calculation of the Texas revenue entitlement, which shows that it 
complies with the statutory requirements in section 14504a(g)(1), has 
not been submitted to the Board for its review and confirmation, and it 
has not been submitted by the Board to FMCSA for approval. FMCSA is 
without authority to consider or approve a revised revenue entitlement 
for Texas unless and until a revised calculation is submitted by the 
UCR Plan's board of directors.
    The statute has similar provisions governing adjustments in the 
fees. The Board may ask FMCSA to adjust the fees within a reasonable 
range on an annual basis if the revenues derived from the fees are 
insufficient to provide the revenues to which the States are entitled. 
49 U.S.C. 14504a(f)(1)(E)(i). No request has been made by the Board to 
adjust the fees in order to provide any revenues to satisfy the claim 
by Texas for a larger annual revenue entitlement or to provide funds to 
make up the ``shortage'' Texas has supposedly incurred for 11 years. 
The only request before the Agency from the Board is the reduction in 
fees submitted on March 22, 2017 after a unanimous vote of the UCR 
Board. FMCSA is without authority to consider or approve any adjustment 
in the fees (other than the one submitted on March 22) unless and until 
the Board makes a recommendation that would reflect the effects of the 
revised revenue entitlement claimed by Texas.

C. Change Design of Fee Structure

Comments
    OOIDA stated that single-truck operators or small fleet carriers 
represented approximately 95% of the motor carrier industry and that 
the current fee structure is burdensome and costly to its members due 
to the limited resources they have in comparison to larger competitors. 
OOIDA stated that the inequalities are particularly noted between and 
within the arbitrary payment brackets in effect and proposed that a 
standard flat fee per vehicle should be considered to reduce inequity 
amongst small, medium, and large fleets. An anonymous commenter felt 
that the current structure appears punitive to companies who are on the 
lower end of the tiered brackets that are currently in effect. The 
commenter cited the following examples in the current fee structure in 
which by going from 100 power units to 101 power units or even 1000 
power units to 1001 power units companies would incur enormous 
percentage fee increases for a single power unit. The commenter 
recommended that the fee should be charged on a per unit basis. The per 
unit fee recommendation was also supported by another anonymous 
commenter.
FMCSA Response
    Three commenters suggested changing the UCR fees to a ``per-unit'' 
(i.e. on a per vehicle) basis. FMCSA has not evaluated the merits of 
this suggestion because it is not an alternative available to the 
Agency. The statute requires that the Board set the fee structure based 
on 4 to 6 brackets depending on the size of the fleet. 49 U.S.C. 
14504a(f)(1)(C). Implementing the commenters' ``per unit'' suggestion 
would require a statutory amendment. Unless and until that occurs, 
neither the Board nor FMCSA has authority to change the current fee 
structure using brackets.

D. Other Concerns

Comments
    OOIDA expressed other specific concerns regarding the proposed rule 
including the fact that smaller carriers lack the resources to assist 
payment processing and submission of paperwork. OOIDA also expressed 
concerns regarding the lack of consistency among states in their use of 
the fees for enforcement or administration purposes. Overall, OOIDA 
felt that the existing organization and administration of the UCR 
program makes it difficult for small-business truckers and owner-
operators to recognize any benefits from the mandated fees they are 
expected to pay. OOIDA recommended a federal audit of the UCR plan to 
review how states are actually spending UCR revenues.
FMCSA Response
    OOIDA's concerns described above are outside of the scope of this 
rulemaking.

VIII. International Impacts

    Motor carriers and other entities involved in interstate and 
foreign transportation in the United States that do not have a 
principal office in the United States, are nonetheless subject to the 
fees for the UCR Plan. They are required to designate a participating 
State as a base State and pay the appropriate fees to that State. 49 
U.S.C. 14504a(a)(2)(B)(ii) and (f)(4).

IX. Section-by-Section Analysis

    Under this final rule, the provisions of 49 CFR 367.30 are revised 
to apply to registration years 2010 to 2017, inclusive. A new 49 CFR 
367.40 establishes the reduced fees for registration year 2018. A 
second new section, 49 CFR 367.50, establishes fees for 2019, which 
will remain in effect in subsequent registration years unless and until 
revised in the future.

X. Regulatory Analyses

A. Executive Order (E.O.) 12866 (Regulatory Planning and Review), E.O. 
13563 (Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review), and DOT Regulatory 
Policies and Procedures

    FMCSA determined that this final rule is not a significant 
regulatory action

[[Page 610]]

under section 3(f) of Executive Order (E.O.) 12866 (58 FR 51735, 
October 4, 1993), Regulatory Planning and Review, as supplemented by 
E.O. 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21, 2011), Improving Regulation and 
Regulatory Review, and does not require an assessment of potential 
costs and benefits under section 6(a)(3) of that Order. Accordingly, 
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has not reviewed it under 
that Order. It is also not significant within the meaning of DOT 
regulatory policies and procedures (DOT Order 2100.5 dated May 22, 
1980; (44 FR 11034), February 26, 1979).
    The changes imposed by this final rule adjust the registration fees 
paid by motor carriers, motor private carriers of property, brokers, 
freight forwarders, and leasing companies to the UCR Plan and the 
participating States. Fees are considered by OMB Circular A-4, 
Regulatory Analysis, as transfer payments, not costs. Transfer payments 
are payments from one group to another that do not affect total 
resources available to society. By definition, transfers are not 
considered in the monetization of societal costs and benefits of 
rulemakings.
    This rule establishes adjustments in the annual registration fees 
for the UCR Plan and Agreement. The total amount targeted for 
collection by the UCR Plan will not change as a result of this rule, 
but the fees paid, or transfers, per affected entity will be reduced. 
The primary entities affected by this rule are the participating 
States, motor carriers, motor private carriers of property, brokers, 
freight forwarders, and leasing companies. Because the total amount 
collected will continue to be the statutory maximum, the participating 
States will not be impacted by this rule. The primary impact of this 
rule will be a reduction in fees paid by individual motor carriers, 
motor private carriers of property, brokers, freight forwarders, and 
leasing companies. The reduction will range from approximately $7 to 
$6,700 per entity in the first year, and from approximately $3 to 
$3,400 per entity in subsequent years, depending on the number of 
vehicles owned and/or operated by the affected entities.

B. E.O. 13771 Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs

    E.O. 13771 requires that for ``every one new [E.O. 13771 regulatory 
action] issued, at least two prior regulations be identified for 
elimination, and that the cost of planned regulations be prudently 
managed and controlled through a budgeting process.'' \2\ 
Implementation guidance for E.O. 13771 issued by the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) on April 5, 2017, defines two different 
types of E.O. 13771 actions: An E.O. 13771 deregulatory action, and an 
E.O. 13771 regulatory action.\3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \2\ Executive Office of the President. Executive Order 13771 of 
January 30, 2017. Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory 
Costs. 82 FR 9339-9341. February 3, 2017.
    \3\ Executive Office of the President. Office of Management and 
Budget. Guidance Implementing Executive Order 13771, Titled 
``Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs.'' Memorandum 
M-17-21. April 5, 2017.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    An E.O. 13771 deregulatory action is defined as ``an action that 
has been finalized and has total costs less than zero.'' As this is a 
zero total cost rulemaking and consequently does not have total costs 
less than zero, it therefore is not an E.O. 13771 deregulatory action.
    An E.O. 13771 regulatory action is defined as:
    (i) a significant action as defined in Section 3(f) of E.O. 12866 
that has been finalized, and that imposes total costs greater than 
zero; or
    (ii) a significant guidance document (e.g., significant 
interpretive guidance) reviewed by Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs under the procedures of E.O. 12866 that has been finalized and 
that imposes total costs greater than zero.
    The Agency action, in this case a rulemaking, must meet both the 
significance and the total cost criteria to be considered an E.O. 13771 
regulatory action. This rulemaking is not a significant regulatory 
action as defined in Section 3(f) of E.O. 12866, and therefore does not 
meet the significance criterion for being an E.O. 13771 regulatory 
action. Consequently, this rulemaking is not an E.O. 13771 regulatory 
action and no further action under E.O. 13771 is required.

C. Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (RFA) (5 U.S.C. 601 et 
seq.), as amended by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness 
Act of 1996 (SBREFA) (Pub. L. 104-121, 110 Stat. 857), requires Federal 
agencies to consider the impact of their regulatory proposals on small 
entities, analyze effective alternatives that minimize small entity 
impacts, and make their analyses available for public comment. The term 
``small entities'' means small businesses and not-for-profit 
organizations that are independently owned and operated and are not 
dominant in their fields, and governmental jurisdictions with 
populations under 50,000.\4\ Accordingly, DOT policy requires an 
analysis of the impact of all regulations on small entities, and 
mandates that agencies strive to lessen any adverse effects on these 
entities. Section 605 of the RFA allows an agency to certify a rule, in 
lieu of preparing an analysis, if the rulemaking is not expected to 
have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \4\ Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). Available 
at: https://www.sba.gov/advocacy/regulatory-flexibility-act 
(accessed February 13, 2017).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    This rule will directly affect the participating States, motor 
carriers, motor private carriers of property, brokers, freight 
forwarders, and leasing companies. Under the standards of the RFA, as 
amended by the SBREFA, the participating States are not small entities. 
States are not considered small entities because they do not meet the 
definition of a small entity in Section 601 of the RFA. Specifically, 
States are not considered small governmental jurisdictions under 
Section 601(5) of the RFA, both because State government is not 
included among the various levels of government listed in Section 
601(5), and because, even if this were the case, no State nor the 
District of Columbia has a population of less than 50,000, which is the 
criterion by which a governmental jurisdiction is considered small 
under Section 601(5) of the RFA.
    The Small Business Administration (SBA) size standard for a small 
entity (13 CFR 121.201) differs by industry code. The entities affected 
by this rule fall into many different industry codes. In order to 
determine if this rule would have an impact on a significant number of 
small entities, FMCSA examined the 2012 Economic Census \5\ data for 
two different industries; truck transportation (Subsector 484) and 
transit and ground transportation (Subsector 485). According to the 
2012 Economic Census, approximately 99 percent of truck transportation 
firms, and approximately 97 percent of transit and ground 
transportation firms, had annual revenue less than the SBA revenue 
threshold of $27.5 million and $15 million, respectively. Therefore, 
FMCSA has determined that this rule will impact a substantial number of 
small entities.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \5\ U.S. Census Bureau, 2012 US Economic Census. Available at: 
https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ECN_2012_US_48SSSZ4&prodType=table (accessed 
April 27th, 2017).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    However, FMCSA has determined that this rule will not have a 
significant impact on the affected entities. The

[[Page 611]]

effect of this rule will be to reduce the registration fee motor 
carriers, motor private carriers of property, brokers, freight 
forwarders, and leasing companies are currently required to pay. The 
reduction will range from approximately $7 to $6,700 per entity, in the 
first year, and from approximately $3 to $3,400 per entity in 
subsequent years, depending on the number of vehicles owned and/or 
operated by the affected entities. FMCSA asserts that the reduction in 
fees will be entirely beneficial to these entities, and will not have a 
significant impact on the affected small entities. Accordingly, I 
hereby certify that this rule will not have a significant economic 
impact on a substantial number of small entities.

D. Assistance for Small Entities

    In accordance with section 213(a) of the SBREFA, FMCSA wants to 
assist small entities in understanding this final rule so that they can 
better evaluate its effects on themselves and participate in the 
rulemaking initiative. If the final rule would affect your small 
business, organization, or governmental jurisdiction and you have 
questions concerning its provisions or options for compliance, please 
consult the FMCSA point of contact, Gerald Folsom, listed in the For 
Further Information Contact section of this final rule.
    Small businesses may send comments on the actions of Federal 
employees who enforce or otherwise determine compliance with Federal 
regulations to the Small Business Administration's Small Business and 
Agriculture Regulatory Enforcement Ombudsman and the Regional Small 
Business Regulatory Fairness Boards. The Ombudsman evaluates these 
actions annually and rates each agency's responsiveness to small 
business. If you wish to comment on actions by employees of FMCSA, call 
1-888-REG-FAIR (1-888-734-3247). DOT has a policy regarding the rights 
of small entities to regulatory enforcement fairness and an explicit 
policy against retaliation for exercising these rights.

E. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995

    The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1531-1538) 
requires Federal agencies to assess the effects of their discretionary 
regulatory actions. In particular, the Act addresses actions that may 
result in the expenditure by a State, local, or tribal government, in 
the aggregate, or by the private sector of $156 million (which is the 
value equivalent of $100 million in 1995, adjusted for inflation to 
2015 levels) or more in any one year. Though this final rule will not 
result in any such expenditure, the Agency discusses the effects of 
this rule elsewhere in this preamble.

F. Paperwork Reduction Act

    Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501 et 
seq.), Federal agencies must obtain approval from the OMB for each 
collection of information they conduct, sponsor, or require through 
regulations. FMCSA determined that no new information collection 
requirements are associated with this final rule, nor are there any 
revisions to existing, approved collections of information. Therefore, 
the PRA does not apply to this final rule.

G. E.O. 13132 (Federalism)

    A rule has implications for Federalism under Section 1(a) of E.O. 
13132 if it has ``substantial direct effects on the States, on the 
relationship between the national government and the States, or on the 
distribution of power and responsibilities among the various levels of 
government.'' FMCSA has determined that this rule would not have 
substantial direct costs on or for States, nor would it limit the 
policymaking discretion of States. Nothing in this document preempts 
any State law or regulation, imposes substantial direct unreimbursed 
compliance costs on any State, or diminishes the power of any State to 
enforce its own laws. As detailed above, the UCR Board of Directors 
includes substantial State representation. The States have already had 
opportunity for input through their representatives. Accordingly, this 
rulemaking does not have Federalism implications warranting the 
application of E.O. 13132.

H. E.O. 12988 (Civil Justice Reform)

    This final rule meets applicable standards in sections 3(a) and 
3(b)(2) of E.O. 12988, Civil Justice Reform, to minimize litigation, 
eliminate ambiguity, and reduce burden.

I. E.O. 13045 (Protection of Children)

    E.O. 13045, Protection of Children from Environmental Health Risks 
and Safety Risks (62 FR 19885, Apr. 23, 1997), requires agencies 
issuing ``economically significant'' rules, if the regulation also 
concerns an environmental health or safety risk that an agency has 
reason to believe may disproportionately affect children, to include an 
evaluation of the regulation's environmental health and safety effects 
on children. The Agency determined this final rule is not economically 
significant. Therefore, no analysis of the impacts on children is 
required. In any event, the Agency does not anticipate that this 
regulatory action could in any respect present an environmental or 
safety risk that could disproportionately affect children.

J. E.O. 12630 (Taking of Private Property)

    FMCSA reviewed this final rule in accordance with E.O. 12630, 
Governmental Actions and Interference with Constitutionally Protected 
Property Rights, and has determined it will not effect a taking of 
private property or otherwise have taking implications.

K. Privacy Impact Assessment

    Section 522 of title I of division H of the Consolidated 
Appropriations Act, 2005, enacted December 8, 2004 (Pub. L. 108-447, 
118 Stat. 2809, 3268, 5 U.S.C. 552a note), requires the Agency to 
conduct a privacy impact assessment (PIA) of a regulation that will 
affect the privacy of individuals. This rule does not require the 
collection of personally identifiable information.

L. E.O. 12372 (Intergovernmental Review)

    The regulations implementing E.O. 12372 regarding intergovernmental 
consultation on Federal programs and activities do not apply to this 
program.

M. E.O. 13211 (Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use)

    FMCSA has analyzed this final rule under E.O. 13211, Actions 
Concerning Regulations That Significantly Affect Energy Supply, 
Distribution, or Use. The Agency has determined that this rule is not a 
``significant energy action'' under that order because it is not a 
``significant regulatory action'' likely to have a significant adverse 
effect on the supply, distribution, or use of energy. Therefore, it 
does not require a Statement of Energy Effects under E.O. 13211.

N. E.O. 13175 (Indian Tribal Governments)

    This rule does not have tribal implications under E.O. 13175, 
Consultation and Coordination with Indian Tribal Governments, because 
it does not have a substantial direct effect on one or more Indian 
tribes, on the relationship between the Federal Government and Indian 
tribes, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities between 
the Federal Government and Indian tribes.

[[Page 612]]

O. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (Technical 
Standards)

    The National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (15 U.S.C. 272 
note) directs agencies to use voluntary consensus standards in their 
regulatory activities unless the agency provides Congress, through OMB, 
with an explanation of why using these standards would be inconsistent 
with applicable law or otherwise impractical. Voluntary consensus 
standards (e.g., specifications of materials, performance, design, or 
operation; test methods; sampling procedures; and related management 
systems practices) are standards that are developed or adopted by 
voluntary consensus standards bodies. This rule does not use technical 
standards. Therefore, FMCSA did not consider the use of voluntary 
consensus standards.

P. Environment (National Environmental Policy Act, Clean Air Act, 
Environmental Justice)

    FMCSA analyzed this rule for the purpose of the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and 
determined this action is categorically excluded from further analysis 
and documentation in an environmental assessment or environmental 
impact statement under FMCSA Order 5610.1 (69 FR 9680, March 1, 2004), 
Appendix 2, paragraph 6.(h). The Categorical Exclusion (CE) in 
paragraph 6.(h) covers regulations and actions taken pursuant to the 
regulations implementing procedures to collect fees that will be 
charged for motor carrier registrations. The content in this rule is 
covered by this CE and the final action does not have any effect on the 
quality of the environment. The CE determination is available for 
inspection or copying in the Regulations.gov.
    FMCSA also analyzed this rule under the Clean Air Act, as amended 
(CAA), section 176(c) (42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.), and implementing 
regulations promulgated by the Environmental Protection Agency. 
Approval of this action is exempt from the CAA's general conformity 
requirement since it does not affect direct or indirect emissions of 
criteria pollutants.
    Under E.O. 12898, Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice 
in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations, each Federal agency 
must identify and address, as appropriate, ``disproportionately high 
and adverse human health or environmental effects of its programs, 
policies, and activities on minority populations and low-income 
populations'' in the United States, its possessions, and territories. 
FMCSA evaluated the environmental justice effects of this final rule in 
accordance with the E.O. 12898, and has determined that no 
environmental justice issue is associated with this final rule, nor is 
there any collective environmental impact that would result from its 
promulgation.

List of Subjects in 49 CFR Part 367

    Insurance, Intergovernmental relations, Motor carriers, Surety 
bonds.

    For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Federal Motor 
Carrier Safety Administration is amending title 49 CFR chapter III, 
part 367 as follows:

PART 367--STANDARDS FOR REGISTRATION WITH STATES

0
1. The authority citation for part 367 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 49 U.S.C. 13301, 14504a; and 49 CFR 1.87.

0
2. Revise Sec.  367.30 to read as follows:


Sec.  367.30   Fees under the Unified Carrier Registration Plan and 
Agreement for registration years beginning in 2010 and ending in 2017.

 Table 1 to Sec.   367.30--Fees Under the Unified Carrier Registration Plan and Agreement for Each Registration
                                                 Year 2010-2017
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                Number of commercial
                               motor vehicles owned or   Fee per entity for exempt
                                operated by exempt or       or non-exempt motor
           Bracket                non-exempt motor         carrier, motor private     Fee per entity for broker
                               carrier, motor private       carrier, or freight           or leasing company
                                 carrier, or freight             forwarder
                                      forwarder
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
B1..........................  0-2.....................                          $76                          $76
B2..........................  3-5.....................                          227  ...........................
B3..........................  6-20....................                          452  ...........................
B4..........................  21-100..................                        1,576  ...........................
B5..........................  101-1,000...............                        7,511  ...........................
B6..........................  1,001 and above.........                       73,346  ...........................
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


0
3. Add new Sec. Sec.  367.40 and 367.50 to subpart B to read as 
follows:


Sec.  367.40   Fees under the Unified Carrier Registration Plan and 
Agreement for registration year 2018.

 Table 1 to Sec.   367.40--Fees Under the Unified Carrier Registration Plan and Agreement for Registration Year
                                                      2018
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                Number of commercial
                               motor vehicles owned or   Fee per entity for exempt
                                operated by exempt or       or non-exempt motor
           Bracket                non-exempt motor         carrier, motor private     Fee per entity for broker
                               carrier, motor private       carrier, or freight           or leasing company
                                 carrier, or freight             forwarder
                                      forwarder
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
B1..........................  0-2.....................                          $69                          $69
B2..........................  3-5.....................                          206  ...........................
B3..........................  6-20....................                          410  ...........................
B4..........................  21-100..................                        1,431  ...........................
B5..........................  101-1,000...............                        6,820  ...........................
B6..........................  1,001 and above.........                       66,597  ...........................
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


[[Page 613]]

Sec.  367.50   Fees under the Unified Carrier Registration Plan and 
Agreement for registration years beginning in 2019.

 Table 1 to Sec.   367.50--Fees Under the Unified Carrier Registration Plan and Agreement for Registration Year
                              2019 and Each Subsequent Registration Year Thereafter
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                Number of commercial
                               motor vehicles owned or   Fee per entity for exempt
                                operated by exempt or       or non-exempt motor
           Bracket                non-exempt motor         carrier, motor private     Fee per entity for broker
                               carrier, motor private       carrier, or freight           or leasing company
                                 carrier, or freight             forwarder
                                      forwarder
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
B1..........................  0-2.....................                          $73                          $73
B2..........................  3-5.....................                          217  ...........................
B3..........................  6-20....................                          431  ...........................
B4..........................  21-100..................                        1,503  ...........................
B5..........................  101-1,000...............                        7,165  ...........................
B6..........................  1,001 and above.........                       69,971  ...........................
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


    Issued under authority delegated in 49 CFR 1.87 on: December 29, 
2017.
 Cathy F. Gautreaux,
 Deputy Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2017-28509 Filed 1-2-18; 4:15 pm]
 BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P
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