Extension of Compliance Date for Entry-Level Driver Training, 6088-6101 [2020-01548]

Download as PDF 6088 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 23 / Tuesday, February 4, 2020 / Rules and Regulations DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration 49 CFR Parts 380, 383, and 384 [Docket No. FMCSA–2007–27748] RIN 2126–AC25 Extension of Compliance Date for Entry-Level Driver Training Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT. ACTION: Interim final rule with request for comment. AGENCY: FMCSA is amending its December 8, 2016, final rule, ‘‘Minimum Training Requirements for Entry-Level Commercial Motor Vehicle Operators’’ (ELDT final rule), by extending the compliance date for the rule from February 7, 2020, to February 7, 2022. This action will provide FMCSA additional time to complete development of the Training Provider Registry (TPR). The TPR will allow training providers to self-certify that they meet the training requirements and will provide the electronic interface that will receive and store entry-level driver training (ELDT) certification information from training providers and transmit that information to the State Driver Licensing Agencies (SDLAs). The extension also provides SDLAs with time to modify their information technology (IT) systems and procedures, as necessary, to accommodate their receipt of driver-specific ELDT data from the TPR. FMCSA is delaying the entire ELDT final rule, as opposed to a partial delay as proposed, due to delays in implementation of the TPR that were not foreseen when the proposed rule was published. DATES: This interim final rule is effective February 4, 2020. Comments on this interim final rule must be received on or before March 20, 2020. Petitions for Reconsideration of this interim final rule must be submitted to the FMCSA Administrator no later than March 5, 2020. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Richard Clemente, Driver and Carrier Operations Division, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590–0001, (202) 366–4325, MCPSD@ dot.gov. If you have questions on viewing or submitting material to the docket, contact Docket Operations, (202) 366–9826. ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Docket Number FMCSA– khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES SUMMARY: VerDate Sep<11>2014 19:30 Feb 03, 2020 Jkt 250001 2007–27748 using any of the following methods: • Federal eRulemaking Portal: https:// www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting comments. • Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, Ground Floor, Room W12–140, Washington, DC 20590–0001. • Hand Delivery or Courier: West Building, Ground Floor, Room W12– 140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. • Fax: (202) 493–2251. To avoid duplication, please use only one of these four methods. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This interim final rule is organized as follows: I. Rulemaking Documents A. Availability of Rulemaking Documents B. Privacy Act II. Executive Summary A. Purpose and Summary of the Interim Final Rule B. Costs and Benefits III. Abbreviations IV. Legal Basis V. Regulatory History VI. Discussion of Proposed Rule VII. Discussion of Comments and Responses VIII. Discussion of Interim Final Rule IX. International Impacts X. Section-by-Section XI. Regulatory Analyses A. 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 Regulatory Costs) C. Congressional Review Act D. Regulatory Flexibility Act (Small Entities) E. Assistance for Small Entities F. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 G. Paperwork Reduction Act (Collection of Information) H. E.O. 13132 (Federalism) I. E.O. 12988 (Civil Justice Reform) J. E.O. 13045 (Protection of Children) K. E.O. 12630 (Taking of Private Property) L. Privacy M. E.O. 12372 (Intergovernmental Review) N. E.O. 13211 (Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use) O. E.O. 13175 (Indian Tribal Governments) P. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (Technical Standards) Q. Environment R. E.O. 13783 (Promoting Energy Independence and Economic Growth) I. Rulemaking Documents A. Submitting Comments If you submit a comment, please include the docket number for this PO 00000 Frm 00066 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 interim final rule (Docket No. FMCSA– 2007–27748), indicate the specific section of this document to which each section applies, and provide a reason for each suggestion or recommendation. You may submit your comments and material online or by fax, mail, or hand delivery, but please use only one of these means. FMCSA recommends that you include your name and a mailing address, an email address, or a phone number in the body of your document so that FMCSA can contact you if there are questions regarding your submission. To submit your comment online, go to https://www.regulations.gov/ #!docketDetail;D=FMCSA-2007-27748, click on the ‘‘Comment Now!’’ button and type your comment into the text box on the following screen. Choose whether you are submitting your comment as an individual or on behalf of a third party and then submit. If you submit your comments by mail or hand delivery, submit them in an unbound format, no larger than 81⁄2 by 11 inches, suitable for copying and electronic filing. If you submit comments by mail and would like to know that they reached the facility, please enclose a stamped, self-addressed postcard or envelope. FMCSA will consider all comments and material received during the comment period and may change this interim final rule based on your comments. FMCSA may issue a final rule at any time after the close of the comment period. Confidential Business Information Confidential business information (CBI) is commercial or financial information that is both customarily and actually treated as private by its owner. Under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (5 U.S.C. 552), CBI is exempt from public disclosure. If your comments responsive to the interim final rule contain commercial or financial information that is customarily treated as private, that you actually treat as private, and that is relevant or responsive to this interim final rule, it is important that you clearly designate the submitted comments as CBI. Please mark each page of your submission that constitutes CBI as ‘‘PROPIN’’ to indicate it contains proprietary information. FMCSA will treat such marked submissions as confidential under the FOIA, and they will not be placed in the public docket of this interim final rule. E:\FR\FM\04FER1.SGM 04FER1 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 23 / Tuesday, February 4, 2020 / Rules and Regulations Submissions containing CBI should be sent to Mr. Brian Dahlin, Chief, Regulatory Analysis Division, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590. Any comments FMCSA receives which are not specifically designated as CBI will be placed in the public docket for this rulemaking. FMCSA will consider all comments and material received during the comment period. B. Viewing Comments and Documents To view comments, as well as any documents mentioned in this preamble as being available in the docket, go to https://www.regulations.gov/ #!docketDetail;D=FMCSA-2007-27748 and choose the document to review. If you do not have access to the internet, you may view the docket online by visiting Docket Operations in Room W12–140 on the ground floor of the DOT West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. C. Privacy Act In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits comments from the public to better inform its rulemaking process. DOT posts these comments, without edit, including any personal information the commenter provides, to www.regulations.gov, as described in the system of records notice (DOT/ALL– 14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at www.dot.gov/privacy. II. Executive Summary khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES A. Purpose and Summary of the Interim Final Rule FMCSA extends the compliance date for the 2016 final rule, ‘‘Minimum Training Requirements for Entry-Level Commercial Motor Vehicle Operators’’ (81 FR 88732, December 8, 2016), from February 7, 2020, to February 7, 2022. The two-year extension applies to all requirements established by the ELDT final rule, including: 1. The date by which training providers must begin uploading driverspecific training certification information into the TPR, an electronic database that will contain ELDT information; VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:16 Feb 03, 2020 Jkt 250001 6089 2. The date by which SDLAs must confirm that applicants for a commercial driver’s license (CDL) have complied with ELDT requirements prior to taking a specified knowledge or skills test; 3. The date by which training providers wishing to provide ELDT must be listed on the TPR; and 4. The date by which drivers seeking a CDL or endorsement must complete the required training, as set forth in the ELDT final rule. This extension is necessary so that FMCSA can complete the IT infrastructure to support the TPR, which will allow training providers to selfcertify, request listing on the TPR, and upload the driver-specific ELDT completion information to the TPR. Completion of the TPR technology platform is also necessary before driverspecific ELDT completion information can be transmitted from the TPR to the SDLAs. This delay also provides SDLAs time to make changes, as necessary, to their IT systems and internal procedures to allow them to receive the driver ELDT completion information transmitted from the TPR. In addition to providing for this delay, FMCSA is also making clarifying and conforming changes to the regulations established by the ELDT final rule, as proposed. FMCSA does not make any other substantive changes to the requirements established by the ELDT final rule. 2021, as well as the temporal shift of the 2016 and 2019 final rules’ costs and benefits to years 2022 and beyond. Because FMCSA estimated the net impact of the 2016 and 2019 final rules to include both costs and benefits, we estimate the delay to result in cost savings and disbenefits. Updated to 2018 dollars,1 the 2016 final rule resulted in annualized costs of $390 million at a 3 percent discount rate and $391 million at a 7 percent discount rate. The 2016 final rule resulted in annualized benefits of $251 million at a 3 percent discount rate and $252 million at a 7 percent discount rate, also updated to 2018 dollars. The 2019 final rule reduced those annualized costs by $19 million (in 2018 dollars) at both 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates, and did not have an impact on benefits. The Agency estimates this final rule will result in annualized cost savings of $179 million and $196 million at 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates, respectively, over a 4-year period from 2020 through 2023.2 The Agency estimates this final rule will result in annualized forgone benefits of $108 million at a 3 percent discount rate and $112 million at a 7 percent discount rate. In the summary table below, FMCSA presents the changes in total costs and benefits that will result from this rule relative to the baseline. B. Costs and Benefits 1 All estimates in this analysis have been updated from 2014 dollars to 2018 dollars using a multiplier of 1.065. The GDP deflator for 2014 is 103.680 and the deflator for 2018 is 110.389. 110.389/103.680 = 1.065. This is based on Implicit Price Deflators for Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from on the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) archive of National Accounts (NIPA) data that were initially published on March 1, 2019 in connection with the Initial estimates for 2018 Q4. Accessed April 2019 at https://apps.bea.gov/histdata/fileStruct Display.cfm?HMI=7&DY=2018& DQ=Q4&DV=Initial&dNRD=March-1-2019. 2 In the previous ELDT RIAs, the Agency annualized impacts across a 10-year period. FMCSA annualizes the costs and benefits of this final rule across 4 years as, compared to the baseline, there will be no change in costs or benefits under this NPRM for years 5 through 10 (2024–2029). While FMCSA did not use the following values in the analysis, for comparison with the previous rules, the cost savings of this final rule annualized across 10 years would be $78 million at a 3% discount rate and $95 million at a 7% discount rate. The forgone benefits annualized over 10 years would be $47 million at a 3% discount rate and $54 million at a 7% discount rate. In the 2016 ELDT final regulatory impact analysis (RIA), entry-level drivers, motor carriers, training providers, SDLAs, and the Federal government were estimated to incur costs for compliance and implementation. In 2019, FMCSA published a separate final rule that amended the existing ELDT regulations by adopting a new Class A CDL theory instruction upgrade curriculum to reduce the training time and costs incurred by Class B CDL holders upgrading to a Class A CDL. In the 2016 and 2019 final rules, FMCSA projected costs and benefits beginning in 2020. Because FMCSA is delaying ELDT implementation to 2022, this regulatory evaluation accounts for the costs and benefits that will therefore not be realized in years 2020 through PO 00000 Frm 00067 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 E:\FR\FM\04FER1.SGM 04FER1 6090 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 23 / Tuesday, February 4, 2020 / Rules and Regulations TOTAL COSTS AND BENEFITS OF THE FINAL RULE [In millions of 2018 dollars] Year Costs Benefits Discount rate Discount rate Undiscounted 2020 2021 2022 2023 7% Undiscounted 3% 7% ......................................................... ......................................................... ......................................................... ......................................................... ($420) (343) 87 9 ($420) (333) 79 9 ($420) (320) 68 8 ($86) (146) (120) (62) ($86) (142) (113) (61) ($86) (137) (105) (50) Total .................................................. (666) (664) (664) (414) (403) (378) Annualized ............................................... ........................ (179) (196) ........................ (108) (112) III. Abbreviations and Acronyms AAMVA American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators ANPRM Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking BTW Behind the Wheel CDL Commercial Driver’s License CDLIS Commercial Driver’s License Information System CFR Code of Federal Regulations CMV Commercial Motor Vehicle CMVSA Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act DOT U.S. Department of Transportation ELDT Entry-Level Driver Training E.O. Executive Order FMCSA Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration FMCSRs Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations FR Federal Register FRFA Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis IT Information Technology NEPA National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 NPRM Notice of Proposed Rulemaking OMB Office of Management and Budget PIA Privacy Impact Assessment PII Personally Identifiable Information PRA Paperwork Reduction Act RIA Regulatory Impact Analysis RIN Regulation Identifier Number SDLA State Driver Licensing Agency SORN Systems of Records Notice § Section symbol TPR Training Provider Registry U.S.C. United States Code khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES 3% IV. Legal Basis The legal basis of the ELDT final rule, set forth at 81 FR 88738–88739, also serves as the legal basis for this interim final rule. A summary of the statutory authorities identified in that discussion follows. FMCSA’s authority to amend the ELDT final rule by extending the compliance date and making other necessary clarifying and conforming changes is derived from several concurrent statutory sources. The Motor Carrier Act of 1935, as amended, codified at 49 U.S.C. 31502(b), authorizes the Secretary of VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:16 Feb 03, 2020 Jkt 250001 Transportation (the Secretary) to prescribe requirements for the safety of motor carrier operations. The rule also relies on the Motor Carrier Safety Act of 1984, as amended, codified at 49 U.S.C. 31136(a)(1) and (2), requiring the Secretary to establish regulations to ensure that CMVs are operated safely, and that responsibilities placed on CMV drivers do not impair their ability to safely operate CMVs. The rule does not address medical standards for drivers or physical effects related to CMV driving (49 U.S.C. 31136(a)(3) and (4)). The Agency does not anticipate that drivers will be coerced as a result of this rule (49 U.S.C. 31136(5)). The Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1986 (CMVSA), as amended, codified generally in 49 U.S.C. chapter 313, established the CDL program and required the Secretary to promulgate implementing regulations, including minimum standards for testing and ensuring the fitness of an individual operating a commercial motor vehicle (49 U.S.C. 31305(a)). The specific statutory provision underlying the ELDT final rule, enacted as part of The Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act and codified at 49 U.S.C. 31305(c), required the Secretary to establish minimum entry-level driver training standards for certain individuals required to hold a CDL. The Administrator of FMCSA is delegated authority under 49 CFR 1.87 to carry out the functions vested in the Secretary by 49 U.S.C. chapters 311, 313, and 315, as they relate to CMV operators, programs, and safety. V. Regulatory History ELDT Final Rule The ELDT 2016 final rule established minimum training standards for individuals applying for a Class A or Class B CDL for the first time; individuals upgrading their CDL to a Class B or Class A; and individuals PO 00000 Frm 00068 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 obtaining the following endorsements for the first time: Hazardous materials (H), passenger (P), and school bus (S). The final rule also defined curriculum standards for theory and behind-thewheel (BTW) instruction for Class A and B CDLs and the P and S endorsements, and theory instruction requirements for the H endorsement. Additionally, the rule required that SDLAs verify ELDT completion before allowing the applicant to take a skills test for a Class A or Class B CDL, or a P or S endorsement; or a knowledge test prior to obtaining the H endorsement. The final rule also established the TPR, an online database which would allow ELDT providers to electronically register with FMCSA and certify that individual driver-trainees completed the required training. The rule set forth eligibility requirements for training providers to be listed on the TPR, including a certification, under penalty of perjury, that their training programs meet those requirements. The final rule, when fully implemented, will require training providers to enter driverspecific ELDT information, which FMCSA will then verify before transmitting to the SDLA. The process is designed to deliver a finished ‘‘product’’ (i.e., verified driver-specific ELDT information) to the end user, the SDLA. NPRM to Partially Extend the ELDT Compliance Date On July 18, 2019, FMCSA published a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) titled ‘‘Partial Extension of Compliance Date for Entry-Level Driver Training’’ (84 FR 34324). That NPRM proposed delaying, from February 7, 2020 to February 7, 2022, two provisions from the ELDT final rule published on December 8, 2016 (81 FR 88732). The NPRM is discussed further below. E:\FR\FM\04FER1.SGM 04FER1 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 23 / Tuesday, February 4, 2020 / Rules and Regulations VI. Discussion of Proposed Rule The NPRM proposed a new compliance date of February 7, 2022, for two provisions of the ELDT final rule: The requirement that training providers upload driver-specific training certification information to the TPR, and the requirement that SDLAs confirm driver applicants are in compliance with the ELDT requirements prior to taking a skills test for a Class A or Class B CDL, or a P or S endorsement, or prior to taking the knowledge test to obtain the H endorsement. In the NPRM, FMCSA explained that the proposed delay was necessary to allow both the Agency and SDLAs to complete the requisite IT infrastructure to accommodate the two requirements. The NPRM, which did not propose extending the compliance date for any other ELDT requirement, also proposed several clarifying and conforming changes to the ELDT final rule. FMCSA received 56 comments on the NPRM. No public meeting was requested and none was held. khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES VII. Discussion of Comments And Changes to the Proposed Rule FMCSA received 56 comments on the proposed rule. Of these, 40 commenters requested that FMCSA delay all provisions of the ELDT final rule. These comments endorsing a delay of the rule in its entirety were filed by individuals, State organizations, and several industry organizations. Commenters noted that a partial delay would cause confusion, particularly regarding how SDLAs should verify driver applicant compliance with the training requirements without being able to check using the electronic system envisioned by the ELDT final rule. Commenters questioned the effectiveness of enforcement if the SDLAs were not verifying training completion prior to administering required tests. They also argued that the partial extension would place an undue burden on the driver applicants, who would incur the costs of taking the new training even though there would not be ‘‘proof’’ of that training in the TPR for another two years. Several of these commenters went on to argue that the partial delay could make it harder to recruit drivers, particularly in rural areas. Six additional commenters opposed the proposed partial delay, with two of these commenters specifically stating the ELDT final rule should be implemented on the original compliance date of February 7, 2020. The commenters opposing the partial delay included the Commercial Vehicle VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:16 Feb 03, 2020 Jkt 250001 Training Association (CVTA) and the National Association of Publicly Funded Truck Driving Schools (NAPFTDS), as well as individual commenters. CVTA and NAPFTDS stated that FMCSA must take into consideration how the partial delay could impact motor carrier liability, and one individual noted that the partial delay would make enforcement ineffective. One individual noted that the States have had plenty of notice, and another cited the need for full implementation as soon as possible to improve highway safety. Five commenters expressed support for the proposed partial delay, with two of these commenters (Instructional Technologies, Inc. and the SAGE Truck Driving Schools Corporation) specifically commenting on the IT issues discussed in the NPRM. Two of these commenters (Power and Communications Contractors Association and American Truck Dealers/National Automobile Dealers Association) offered lukewarm support, stating that they preferred full implementation of the ELDT final rule as originally intended, but that in light of the IT issues discussed in the NPRM they agreed a partial delay was necessary. Two commenters, the American Trucking Associations, Inc. and OwnerOperator Independent Drivers’ Association, requested that FMCSA answer questions prior to implementing a partial delay. These questions related to the actions SDLAs would be expected to take in order to verify that driver applicants had received the required ELDT prior to administering testing, in the absence of being able to receive ELDT verification from the TPR. Three commenters offered no position on the NPRM, and offered no substantive comments. The Agency agrees with the enforcement concerns raised by commenters, noting that the partial delay proposed in the NPRM would have placed SDLAs in an unfavorable position of having to take applicants’ word, or create a new paperwork burden, that they completed their required training prior to appearing at an SDLA for required testing. FMCSA also recognizes the potential impacts on motor carrier’s liability, as noted by CVTA and NAPFTDS. Given the delay in developing the IT infrastructure, however, FMCSA is not making a determination whether these concerns, alone, would have been enough to warrant a full delay. FMCSA is issuing this interim final rule to delay all of the ELDT final rule’s requirements by 2 years, to February 7, PO 00000 Frm 00069 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 6091 2022. As discussed below in section VIII., FMCSA cannot complete the development of the IT system required to implement the ELDT final rule in full by the original compliance date of February 7, 2020. FMCSA acknowledges that delaying the implementation for the entire ELDT final rule addresses many of the implementation questions presented by commenters, and that the majority of commenters requested the full delay of the ELDT final rule. As discussed above in Section II. B., ‘‘Costs and Benefits,’’ delaying the full ELDT final rule will also delay the qualitative safety benefits associated with that rule, which would not have occurred with a partial delay, as proposed. However, due to the fact that FMCSA cannot complete development of the TPR in time for the February 2, 2020, compliance date, the Agency must extend the compliance date for all requirements set forth in the ELDT final rule to February 7, 2022. The specific impacts of the full two-year delay are discussed below in Section XI, ‘‘Regulatory Analyses.’’ VIII. Discussion of Interim Final Rule FMCSA extends the compliance date for the 2016 final rule, ‘‘Minimum Training Requirements for Entry-Level Commercial Motor Vehicle Operators’’ (81 FR 88732, December 8, 2016), from February 7, 2020, to February 7, 2022. The 2-year extension applies to all requirements established by the ELDT final rule, including: 1. The date by which training providers must begin uploading driverspecific training certification information into the TPR, an electronic database that will contain ELDT information; 2. The date by which SDLAs must confirm that applicants for a CDL have complied with ELDT requirements prior to taking a specified knowledge or skills test; 3. The date by which training providers wishing to provide ELDT must be listed on the TPR; and 4. The date by which drivers seeking a CDL or endorsement must complete the required training, as set forth in the ELDT final rule. This extension is necessary so that FMCSA can complete the IT infrastructure to support the TPR, which will allow training providers to selfcertify, request listing on the TPR, and upload the driver-specific ELDT completion information to the TPR. Despite the Agency’s best efforts, due to IT development issues largely beyond its control, FMCSA cannot complete any portion of the TPR in time for the February 7, 2020, compliance date E:\FR\FM\04FER1.SGM 04FER1 6092 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 23 / Tuesday, February 4, 2020 / Rules and Regulations established by the ELDT final rule. These issues include changes in Department of Transportation (DOT) internal requirements for cloud-based IT systems, which added time to the development process, which in turn made it impossible for FMCSA to implement a TPR that would be able to accept training provider registrations by February 7, 2020. Completion of the TPR technology platform is also necessary before driverspecific ELDT completion information can be transmitted from the TPR to the SDLAs. FMCSA has determined that two years will provide sufficient time for the Agency to develop and complete this infrastructure, as well as for the SDLAs to make changes, as necessary, to their IT systems and internal procedures to allow them to receive the driver’s ELDT completion information transmitted from the TPR. In addition to providing for this delay, FMCSA is also making clarifying and conforming changes to the regulations established by the ELDT final rule, as proposed. FMCSA does not make any other substantive changes to the requirements established by the ELDT final rule. khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES Administrative Procedure Act—‘‘Good Cause’’ Exception FMCSA has good cause to proceed with the immediate delay of the compliance date for the entire rule, including the two regulatory provisions not included in the NPRM proposing a partial delay.3 The Administrative Procedure Act (APA) provides that notice and public comment procedures are not required when an Agency finds there is ‘‘good cause’’ to dispense with such procedures and incorporates the finding and a brief statement of reasons to support the finding in the rule issued. Good cause exists when the agency determines that notice and public comment procedures are impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to the public interest (5 U.S.C. 553(b)(3)(B)). In this case, FMCSA finds that allowing for notice and comment on delaying the training provider curriculum and registration requirements and the driver applicant training portions of the ELDT final rule is impracticable and contrary to the public interest. Despite the Agency’s best efforts, due to IT 3 Good cause need not be claimed for the two provisions that were part of the proposed partial delay, namely the training provider upload of driver-specific training completion information and the SDLA verification of driver-applicant training completion prior to conducting a skills test or, in the case of an H endorsement, a knowledge test. VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:16 Feb 03, 2020 Jkt 250001 development issues largely beyond its control, FMCSA cannot complete any portion of the TPR in time for the February 7, 2020, compliance date established by the ELDT final rule. These issues include changes in Department of Transportation (DOT) internal requirements for cloud-based IT systems, which added time to the development process, which in turn made it impossible for FMCSA to implement a TPR that would be able to accept training provider registrations by February 7, 2020. In addition to being impracticable to provide prior notice and comment on extending the compliance date for the final rule, it would also be contrary to the public interest by prolonging uncertainty among individuals seeking to obtain the impacted CDLs and endorsements as to what training provisions will apply to them. Additionally, questions regarding a firm compliance date could potentially delay motor carriers from hiring or otherwise utilizing those drivers until the uncertainty is lifted. FMCSA therefore finds that good cause exists to forgo prior notice and comment before extending the compliance date. Nonetheless, this interim final rule includes a 45-day comment period. FMCSA will consider and address any submitted comments in the final rule that will follow this interim final rule. For the same reasons discussed above, FMCSA finds good cause for making this final rule effective less than 30 days after publication, in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(d). IX. International Impacts The FMCSRs, and any exceptions to the FMCSRs, apply only within the United States (and, in some cases, United States territories). Motor carriers and drivers are subject to the laws and regulations of the countries in which they operate, unless an international agreement states otherwise. Drivers and carriers should be aware of the regulatory differences among nations. X. Section-by-Section Analysis FMCSA revises the headings for Subparts E and F in part 380, as well as sections 380.600 and 380.603, by changing the compliance date for entrylevel drivers to obtain the training found in Subpart F. In all places where it appears, the date is changed from February 7, 2020, to February 7, 2022. In section 383.71, paragraphs (a)(3), (b)(11), and (e)(5), FMCSA changes the individual drivers’ compliance date from February 7, 2020, to February 7, PO 00000 Frm 00070 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 2022. This delays by two years the date by which individuals seeking a Class A or B CDL for the first time, a passenger endorsement for the first time, a school bus endorsement for the first time, or a hazardous materials endorsement for the first time must complete the training prescribed in 49 CFR part 380, subpart F, prior to taking the skills test (for all but the hazardous materials endorsement) or knowledge test (for the hazardous materials endorsement). In section 383.73, paragraphs (b)(11), (e)(9), and (p), FMCSA changes the States’ compliance date from February 7, 2020, to February 7, 2022. This delays by two years the date by which a State must verify the applicant has completed the required ELDT, and also delays the date when a State must begin complying with the requirement to notify FMCSA if a training provider in that State does not meet the minimum requirements for CMV instruction. The Agency also revises the States’ compliance date in section 384.230, from February 7, 2020, to February 7, 2022. In paragraph (a), this date identifies when a State must comply with the requirements of sections 383.73(b)(11) and (e)(9). In paragraphs (b)(1) and (b)(2), this date identifies when States must come into substantial compliance with the ELDTrelated requirements of sections 383.73 and 384.230. Unrelated to the changes made to delay the compliance date wherever it appears, FMCSA is making clarifying changes to existing ELDT-related requirements in section 383.73. In paragraphs (b)(3) and (b)(3)(ii), FMCSA removes references to the State performing a check for whether the applicant has completed required training prior to initial issuance of the CDL. This change reflects that, as intended by the ELDT final rule, the threshold for the SDLA’s verification that an applicant completed the required ELDT is at the point of skills testing or, in the case of the H endorsement, knowledge testing. This change eliminates what would otherwise be a duplicative requirement inadvertently imposed on the States; the requirement that States verify the applicant received ELDT training before conducting skills testing is already set forth in section 383.73(b)(11). Similarly, FMCSA revises paragraph (e)(9) to clarify that the State must verify an applicant’s completion of required ELDT at the point of testing, not issuance. E:\FR\FM\04FER1.SGM 04FER1 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 23 / Tuesday, February 4, 2020 / Rules and Regulations XI. 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 The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs has determined that this interim final rule is an economically significant regulatory action under E.O. 12866,4 Regulatory Planning and Review, as supplemented by E.O. 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21, 2011). It also is significant under DOT regulatory policies and procedures because the economic costs and benefits of the rule exceed the $100 million annual threshold. As discussed above, this interim final rule will delay, until February 7, 2022, the compliance date of the provisions in the 2016 Minimum Training Requirements for Entry-Level Commercial Motor Vehicle Operators Final Rule (81 FR 88732) and the 2019 ELDT Commercial Driver’s License Upgrade from Class B to Class A final rule (84 FR 8029), henceforth referred to as the ‘‘2016 final rule’’ and ‘‘2019 final rule,’’ respectively. FMCSA did not propose any substantive changes to the existing regulatory text in 49 CFR part 380, 383, or 384 in the NPRM. In the 2016 ELDT final RIA, entrylevel drivers, motor carriers, training providers, SDLAs, and the Federal government were estimated to incur costs for compliance and implementation starting in 2020. In 2019, FMCSA published a separate final rule that amended the existing ELDT regulations by adopting a new Class A CDL theory instruction upgrade curriculum to reduce the training time and costs incurred by Class B CDL holders upgrading to a Class A CDL. In the 2016 and 2019 final rules, FMCSA projected costs and benefits beginning in 2020. Because FMCSA is delaying ELDT implementation by 2 years to 2022, this regulatory evaluation accounts for the costs and benefits that will therefore not be realized in years 2020 through 2021, as well as the temporal shift of the 2016 and 2019 final rules’ costs and benefits to years 2022 and beyond. Because FMCSA estimated the net impact of the 2016 and 2019 final rules to include both costs and benefits, we estimate the delay to result in cost savings and disbenefits. Updated to 2018 dollars,5 the 2016 final rule resulted in annualized costs of $390 million at a 3 percent discount rate and $391 million at a 7 percent discount rate. The 2019 final rule reduced those annualized costs by $19 million (in 2018 dollars) at both 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates. FMCSA estimates this final rule will result in annualized cost savings of $179 million and $196 million at 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates, respectively, over a 4-year period from 2020 through 2023.6 History of ELDT Rulemakings’ Regulatory Impacts The costs of the 2016 final rule included tuition expenses, the opportunity cost of time while in training, compliance audit costs, and implementation and monitoring of the TPR. The 2019 ELDT final rule established a new theory instruction upgrade curriculum that removed eight instructional units involving ‘‘NonDriving Activities’’ for Class B CDL holders upgrading to a Class A CDL because Class B CDL holders have previous training or experience in the CMV industry. The 2019 final rule did not change the BTW training requirements set forth in the 2016 final rule. FMCSA estimated that the new theory curriculum resulted in cost savings by taking less time to complete, without impacting the benefits of the 2016 ELDT final rule. Costs of the Interim Final Rule In this regulatory evaluation, FMCSA estimates the impacts of this rule for 6093 years 2020 through 2023, and uses the 2016 and 2019 ELDT final rules as the baseline for its estimates. This rule will delay implementation of the ELDT final rules to 2022, making 2022 the first year in which regulatory impacts of the previous final rules will be realized. Accordingly, this final rule will result in net cost savings using the previous final rules as the baseline. The Agency presents the costs and cost savings of this rule below. Entry-Level Driver Costs The cost savings of this rule to entrylevel drivers include costs that would have been incurred in 2020 through 2021 for identifying a training provider on the registry, the cost of tuition, and the opportunity cost of time spent in training. In Table 1 below, FMCSA presents the change in costs to entrylevel drivers that will result from the rule relative to the baseline. To illustrate the logic behind the cost impacts of this rule to entry-level drivers, the following example discusses those impacts that will occur in year 2020. In the 2016 final rule, FMCSA estimated that drivers would incur costs of $345 million 7 (at both 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates) in 2020. In the 2019 final rule, FMCSA estimated drivers would incur $8 million in cost savings (at both 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates) in 2020. Thus, FMCSA estimates that this rule will result in a net savings of $337 million in 2020 ($337 million = $345 million¥$8 million), at both 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates, with a similar magnitude of savings in 2021. FMCSA estimates the annualized cost savings of this rule to entry-level drivers will be $179 million over four years at a 3 percent discount rate and $193 million at a 7 percent discount rate as shown in Table 1. TABLE 1—TOTAL COST OF FINAL RULE TO DRIVERS [In millions of 2018 dollars] Year Undiscounted khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES 2020 ........................................................................................................................... 2021 ........................................................................................................................... 4 58 FR 51735–51744 (Sept. 30, 1993). estimates in this analysis have been updated from 2014 dollars to 2018 dollars using a multiplier of 1.065. The GDP deflator for 2014 is 103.680 and the deflator for 2018 is 110.389. 110.389/103.680 = 1.065. This is based on Implicit Price Deflators for Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from on the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) archive of National 5 All VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:16 Feb 03, 2020 Jkt 250001 ($337) (339) Accounts (NIPA) data that were initially published on March-1-2019 in connection with the Initial estimates for 2018 Q4. Accessed April 2019 at https://apps.bea.gov/histdata/fileStructDisplay.cfm ?HMI=7&DY=2018&DQ=Q4&DV=Initial&dNRD =March-1-2019. 6 In the previous ELDT RIAs, the Agency annualized impacts across a 10-year period. FMCSA PO 00000 Frm 00071 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 Discounted at 3% ($337) (329) Discounted at 7% ($337) (317) annualizes the costs and benefits of this final rule across 4 years as, compared to the baseline, there will be no change in costs or benefits under this NPRM for years 5–10 (2024–2029). 7 All estimates in this analysis have been updated from 2014 dollars to 2018 dollars using a multiplier of 1.065 based on BEA NIPA data. E:\FR\FM\04FER1.SGM 04FER1 6094 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 23 / Tuesday, February 4, 2020 / Rules and Regulations TABLE 1—TOTAL COST OF FINAL RULE TO DRIVERS—Continued [In millions of 2018 dollars] Year Undiscounted Discounted at 3% Discounted at 7% Total .................................................................................................................... (675) (666) (653) Annualized ................................................................................................................. .............................. (179) (193) Motor Carrier Costs In the 2016 final RIA, FMCSA valued the opportunity cost to motor carriers as represented by the forgone profit resulting from the amount of time drivers spend in training rather than driving.8 In Table 2 below, FMCSA presents the change in costs to motor carriers that will result from this rule relative to the baseline. To illustrate the logic behind the cost impacts of this rule to motor carriers, the following example discusses those impacts that would occur in year 2020. FMCSA estimated that the 2016 final rule would result in $21 million in costs to motor carriers in 2020 (at both 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates), and that the 2019 final rule would result in $1 million in cost savings (at both 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates). FMCSA estimates that this rule will result in $20 million in cost savings to motor carriers in 2020 (at both 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates), with a similar magnitude of savings in 2021. As this final rule only defers the compliance date to 2022, it will not impact motor carrier costs in 2022 through 2029 relative to the baseline. FMCSA estimates that the annualized cost savings over four years to motor carriers will be $11 million at both 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates as presented in Table 2. TABLE 2—TOTAL COST OF THE PROPOSED RULE TO MOTOR CARRIERS [In millions of 2018 dollars] Year Undiscounted Discounted at 7% 2020 ........................................................................................................................... 2021 ........................................................................................................................... ($20) (20) ($20) (19) ($20) (19) Total .................................................................................................................... (40) (39) (39) Annualized ................................................................................................................. .............................. (11) (11) Training Provider Costs In the 2016 final RIA, FMCSA estimated that training providers would incur costs starting in 2020 for submitting documentation to the TPR and for preparing for and being subject to compliance audits. The 2019 final rule did not result in cost savings to training providers. FMCSA estimates that this rule, by deferring training provider costs to 2022, will result in cost savings of $4 million at both 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates on an annualized basis over 4 years. State Driver Licensing Agency (SDLA) Costs: Delayed Information Technology (IT) System Upgrades khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES Discounted at 3% In the 2016 final rule, FMCSA assumed that SDLAs would upgrade their IT systems so that they can receive training completion information through the Commercial Driver’s License Information System (CDLIS) and store the information in their State systems. That upgrade required States to create new fields in their State driver 8 Please see 2016 RIA page 76 for further details on motor carrier costs. VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:16 Feb 03, 2020 Jkt 250001 record databases by 2020. Because this rule will shift by 2 years the date by which this requirement must be satisfied, SDLAs will incur these costs in 2022 rather than 2020. This change is merely a temporal shift of a cost of the 2016 final rule. FMCSA estimated in the 2016 final RIA that in 2020 this IT system upgrade would cost $1.2 million per SDLA, and therefore $60 million,9 across all 51 SDLAs. FMCSA acknowledged in the 2016 final RIA that while some of these costs may be incurred prior to the effective date of the rule, FMCSA applied this entire cost to the first year of the analysis (2020). As noted above, this rule shifts these costs from 2020 to 2022, which will result in a cost savings to SDLAs of $1 million annualized over 4 years at a 3 percent discount rate and $2 million at a 7 percent discount rate. These estimates of cost savings represent the sum across all 51 SDLAs. Federal Government Costs This rule will delay by 2 years the Federal government’s incurrence of administrative costs related to the TPR as well as compliance audit costs. FMCSA estimates annualized cost savings across 4 years of $554,000 and $715,000 at 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates, respectively. The rule will not delay or alter the Federal government’s incurrence of IT costs related to the development of the TPR. Maintenance and Repair Costs In the 2016 final rule, FMCSA estimated there would be a cost savings for maintenance and repair of commercial motor vehicles operated by entry-level drivers. The 2016 final RIA considered those savings to be a benefit of that rule. This rule will defer the realization of those benefits by 2 years— 9 Using estimates updated to 2018 dollars, 51 SDLAs x $1,171,180 = $59,730,159. PO 00000 Frm 00072 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 E:\FR\FM\04FER1.SGM 04FER1 6095 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 23 / Tuesday, February 4, 2020 / Rules and Regulations that is, from 2020 to 2022. While consistency with the 2016 final RIA would argue for accounting for this change as a disbenefit, the Agency recognizes that repair and maintenance expenses are borne directly by drivers and carriers (rather than an externality) and that it is therefore more appropriate to consider this impact of this rule as a cost rather than a disbenefit. Consequently, the Agency estimates the forgone cost savings of the rule as costs. To estimate these costs, FMCSA applies the same methodology used in the analysis of the other cost impacts of this rule by applying an implicit gross domestic product (GDP) price deflator to the yearly estimates used in the 2016 final RIA and then discounting and annualizing those adjusted figures over 4 years. As established in the 2016 final RIA, the maintenance and repair cost savings were affected by an assumed 3year period of knowledge retention of driver training.10 In short, in both the 2016 final RIA and the analysis of this rule, the Agency assumes that driver behavior reverts linearly over a 3-year period (that is, in the first year of driving following pre-CDL training, a driver experiences the full amount of maintenance and repair cost savings; in year two (the second year of driving following pre-CDL training), he or she experiences 66.67 percent of that amount; in year three (the third year of driving following pre-CDL training), 33.33 percent of that amount and after three years of driving no cost savings remains). Accordingly, under this rule, while none of the 2016 final rule’s maintenance and repair cost savings will be realized in 2020 through 2021, 33.33 percent of that rule’s cost savings will be realized in 2022, 66.67 percent in 2023, and 100 percent in 2024. These impacts are reflected in Table 3 (year 2024 is excluded from Table 3 as there are no delta in 2024 relative to the baseline). On an annualized basis across 4 years, this rule will result in costs resulting from forgone maintenance and repair cost savings of $17 million at both 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates, as shown in Table 3. TABLE 3—DISCOUNTED AND ANNUALIZED FORGONE MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR SAVINGS @$0.0034/VMT [In millions of 2018 dollars] Year 2020 2021 2022 2023 Undiscounted 3% Discount rate 7% Discount rate ........................................................................................................................... ........................................................................................................................... ........................................................................................................................... ........................................................................................................................... $14 23 19 9 $14 22 17 9 $14 21 16 8 Total .................................................................................................................... 64 62 59 Annualized ................................................................................................................. .............................. 17 17 (over 4 years, from 2020 through 2023). FMCSA estimates the annualized cost savings of this rule to be $179 million Total Costs of the Interim Final Rule In Table 4 below, we show the annualized cost savings of this rule at a 3 percent discount rate and $196 million at a 7 percent discount rate. TABLE 4—TOTAL COST OF THE FINAL RULE [In millions of 2018 dollars] Year khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES 2020 2021 2022 2023 Undiscounted 3% Discount rate 7% Discount rate ........................................................................................................................... ........................................................................................................................... ........................................................................................................................... ........................................................................................................................... ($420) (343) 87 9 ($420) (333) 79 9 ($420) (320) 68 8 Total .................................................................................................................... (666) (664) (664) Annualized ................................................................................................................. .............................. (179) (196) Benefits of the Interim Final Rule FMCSA estimated the 2016 final rule to result in benefits to CMV operators, the transportation industry, the traveling public, and the environment. The Agency estimated benefits in two broad categories: Safety benefits and non-safety benefits. Training related to the performance of complex tasks was expected to improve performance; in the context of the training required by the 10 Please see 2016 RIA page 97 for further details on knowledge retention methodology. VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:16 Feb 03, 2020 Jkt 250001 2016 final rule, improvement in task performance constitutes adoption of safer driving practices that the Agency expected to reduce the frequency and severity of crashes, thereby resulting in safer roadways for all. The Agency estimated training related to fuel efficient driving practices taught under the ‘‘speed management’’ and ‘‘space management’’ sections of the curriculum to reduce fuel consumption and consequently lower environmental impacts associated with carbon dioxide emissions. Similarly, safer driving and better-informed drivers were estimated to reduce maintenance and repair costs.11 In this analysis, FMCSA estimates the forgone benefits resulting from this rule for years 2020 through 2023, and uses the 2016 and 2019 ELDT final rules as the baseline for its estimates. As 11 While maintenance and repair cost savings were analyzed as a benefit in the 2016 final RIA, today’s analysis of the rule considers the deferral of those savings to be a cost rather than a disbenefit. Therefore, impacts of this rule to maintenance and repair expenses are discussed in the costs section only. PO 00000 Frm 00073 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 E:\FR\FM\04FER1.SGM 04FER1 6096 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 23 / Tuesday, February 4, 2020 / Rules and Regulations mentioned above, this rule will delay implementation of the ELDT final rules to 2022, making 2022 the first year in which benefits of the previous final rules will be realized, accounting for the assumptions made in the 2016 analysis around knowledge retention.12 Fuel Consumption In the 2016 final rule, FMCSA projected there would be an increase in fuel economy attributable to the rule. The 2016 final RIA monetized fuel savings benefits beginning in 2020. This rule will defer the realization of those benefits to 2022. As per the discussion of the knowledge retention assumption in relation to the costs associated with maintenance and repair (presented earlier in this analysis), under this rule only 33.33 percent of the fuel savings benefits of the 2016 final rule will be realized in 2022. Likewise, 66.67 percent of the fuel savings benefits of the 2016 final rule will be realized in 2023, and 100 percent of those benefits will be realized in 2024. Therefore, as shown in Table 5, the value of forgone fuel savings that will result from this rule is equal to 100 percent of the 2016 final rule’s fuel savings for years 2020 and 2021, 66.67 percent of the corresponding value for 2022, 33.33 percent for 2023, and zero for 2024. TABLE 5—UNDISCOUNTED VALUE OF FORGONE FUEL SAVINGS [In millions of 2018 dollars] Year 2020 2021 2022 2023 Total Forgone Savings .................................................................. ($84) ($142) ($117) ($60) ($403) Discounting and annualizing (across 4 years 13) the above disbenefits at the 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates produces the following, shown below. TABLE 6—DISCOUNTED AND ANNUALIZED VALUE OF FORGONE FUEL SAVINGS [3 percent discount rate, in millions of 2018 dollars] Year 2020 2021 2022 2023 Total Annualized Forgone Savings ...................................... ($84) ($138) ($110) ($60) ($392) ($106) TABLE 7—DISCOUNTED AND ANNUALIZED VALUE OF FORGONE FUEL SAVINGS [7 percent discount rate, in millions of 2018 dollars] Year 2020 2021 2022 2023 Total Annualized Forgone Savings ...................................... ($84) ($133) ($102) ($49) ($368) ($109) Monetized CO2 Impacts—Social Cost of Carbon Dioxide Emissions marginal changes in CO2 emissions in a given year. FMCSA included an analysis of the climate benefits in the 2016 final rule using the SC-CO2, therefore we are also including this analysis here. The SC-CO2 estimates used in this regulatory evaluation focus on the direct impacts of climate change that are anticipated to occur within U.S. borders.15 The SC- CO2 estimates presented in Table 8 16 below are interim values developed under E.O. 13783 17 for use in regulatory analyses until an improved estimate of the impacts of climate change to the U.S. can be developed based on the best available science and economics. across 4 years as, compared to the baseline, there is no change in costs or benefits under this NPRM for years 5 through 10 (2024–2029). 14 For the estimates and methodology used in analyzing SC-CO2 disbenefits, FMCSA relied on the Regulatory Impact Analysis for the Review of the Clean Power Plan by the Environmental Protection Agency, EPA–HQ–OAR–2017–0355–0110. 15 FMCSA follows established precedent set forth in the aforementioned 2017 EPA RIA in focusing on domestic impacts. Circular A–4 states that analysis of economically significant proposed and final regulations ‘‘should focus on benefits and costs that accrue to citizens and residents of the United States.’’ EPA followed this guidance by adopting a domestic perspective in the RIA. 16 These estimates were adjusted from 2011$ to 2018$ using a GDP deflator of 1.125 and then extrapolated. The aforementioned EPA RIA provided SC-CO2 values in 5 year intervals from 2020–2050. FMCSA linearly extrapolated those figures to fill in the missing years needed for our analysis. 17 E.O. 13783 directed agencies to ensure that estimates of the social cost of greenhouse gases used in regulatory analyses ‘‘are based on the best available science and economics’’ and are consistent with the guidance contained in OMB Circular A–4, ‘‘including with respect to the consideration of domestic versus international impacts and the consideration of appropriate discount rates’’ (E.O. 13783, Section 5(c)). khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES FMCSA estimates the forgone climate benefits from this interim final rule using a measure of the domestic social cost of carbon (SC-CO2).14 The SC-CO2 is a metric that estimates the monetary value of impacts associated with 12 As established in the 2016 final RIA, the benefits of the 2016 final rule were affected by an assumed 3-year period of knowledge retention of driver training. In short, FMCSA assumed that driver behavior reverts linearly over a 3-year period (that is, in the first year of driving following preCDL training, a driver experiences the full benefit of training; in year two, he or she experiences 66.67 percent of the initial benefit; in year three, 33.33 percent of the initial benefit, and after year three no benefit remains). Thus, in today’s analysis of the final rule, the estimated impacts to benefits for years 2022–2023 were adjusted to account for this assumption. 13 In the previous ELDT RIAs, the Agency annualized impacts across a 10-year period. FMCSA annualizes the costs and benefits of this final rule VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:16 Feb 03, 2020 Jkt 250001 PO 00000 Frm 00074 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 E:\FR\FM\04FER1.SGM 04FER1 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 23 / Tuesday, February 4, 2020 / Rules and Regulations TABLE 8—INTERIM DOMESTIC SOCIAL COST OF CO2 2020–2023 IN 2018 DOLLARS PER METRIC TON Year 2020 .......................... 2021 .......................... 2022 .......................... 3 percent average discount rate 7 percent average discount rate $6.75 7.03 7.31 $1.13 1.13 1.13 6097 In Table 9 below, the Agency TABLE 8—INTERIM DOMESTIC SOCIAL COST OF CO2 2020–2023 IN 2018 estimates the forgone reduction, in DOLLARS PER METRIC TON—Contin- metric tons, of CO2 emissions per year. ued Year 3 percent average discount rate 7 percent average discount rate 7.59 1.13 2023 .......................... TABLE 9—CHANGE IN CO2 EMISSIONS OF THE FINAL RULE [In metric tons] Scenario 2020 2021 2022 2023 Reference Case ............................................................................................... 325,754 541,599 432,936 216,288 Applying the interim domestic SCCO2 estimates presented in Table 8 to the estimated forgone reduction in CO2 emissions attributable to this rule (as shown in Table 9), FMCSA monetizes the value of the forgone reduction. The resulting values are presented below in Tables 10, 11, and 12. TABLE 10—VALUE OF FORGONE CO2 EMISSIONS REDUCTIONS, BY YEAR [In millions of 2018 dollars, undiscounted] Discount rate and statistic 2020 3 percent Avg ....................................................................... 7 percent Avg ....................................................................... 2021 ($2) (0.4) 2022 ($4) (1) 2023 ($3) (0.5) Total ($2) (0.2) ($11) (2) TABLE 11—VALUE OF FORGONE CO2 EMISSIONS REDUCTIONS, BY YEAR [3% discount rate, in millions of 2018 dollars] Discount rate and statistic 2020 3 percent Avg ........................................... 7 percent Avg ........................................... 2021 ($2) (0.4) 2022 ($4) (1) 2023 ($3) (0.5) Total ($2) (0.2) ($10) (2) Annualized ($3) (0.4) TABLE 12—VALUE OF FORGONE CO2 EMISSIONS REDUCTIONS, BY YEAR [7 percent discount rate, in millions of 2018 dollars] Discount rate and statistic 2020 khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES 3 percent Avg ........................................... 7 percent Avg ........................................... VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:16 Feb 03, 2020 Jkt 250001 2021 ($2) (0.4) PO 00000 Frm 00075 2022 ($4) (1) Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 2023 ($3) (0.4) E:\FR\FM\04FER1.SGM Total ($1) (0.2) 04FER1 ($10) (2) Annualized ($3) (0.5) 6098 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 23 / Tuesday, February 4, 2020 / Rules and Regulations Total Benefits of the Interim Final Rule In Table 13 below, we show the annualized (over 4 years, from 2020 to 2023) benefits of this rule. FMCSA estimates the annualized forgone benefits for this rule to be $108 million at a 3 percent discount rate and $112 million at a 7 percent discount rate.18 TABLE 13—TOTAL BENEFITS OF THE FINAL RULE [In millions of 2018 dollars] Undiscounted total Year 2020 2021 2022 2023 7 percent discount rate ........................................................................................................................... ........................................................................................................................... ........................................................................................................................... ........................................................................................................................... ($86) (146) (120) (62) ($86) (142) (113) (61) ($86) (137) (105) (50) Total .................................................................................................................... (414) (403) (378) Annualized ................................................................................................................. .............................. (108) (112) B. E.O. 13771 (Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs) This rule will result in total costs less than zero, and qualifies as an E.O. 13771 deregulatory action. The present value of the cost savings of this rule, measured on an infinite time horizon at a 7 percent discount rate, expressed in 2016 dollars, and discounted to 2020 (the year the rule goes into effect and cost savings will first be realized), is $627 million. On an annualized basis, these cost savings are $44 million. For the purpose of E.O. 13771 accounting, the April 5, 2017, OMB guidance requires that agencies also calculate the costs and cost savings discounted to year 2016. In accordance with this requirement, the present value of the cost savings of this rule, measured on an infinite time horizon at a 7 percent discount rate, expressed in 2016 dollars, and discounted to 2016, is $478 million. On an annualized basis, these cost savings are $33 million. to consider the effects of the regulatory action on small business and other small entities and to minimize any significant economic impact. The term ‘‘small entities’’ comprises 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 of less than 50,000.20Accordingly, 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 businesses. FMCSA is not required to complete a regulatory flexibility analysis, because, as discussed earlier in the ‘‘Administrative Procedure Act—‘‘Good Cause’’ Exception’’ section, this action is not subject to notice and comment under section 553(b) of the APA. CONTACT section of this interim 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. Assistance for Small Entities D. Regulatory Flexibility Act (Small Entities) The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), as amended by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 (Pub. L. 104–121, 110 Stat. 857), requires Federal agencies In accordance with section 213(a) of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, 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 will 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, Mr. Richard Clemente, listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 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. 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 $165 million (which is the value equivalent of $100,000,000 in 1995, adjusted for inflation to 2018 levels) or more in any one year. Though this final rule will not result in such an expenditure, the Agency does discuss the effects of this rule in section XI, subsections A. and B., above. 18 When aggregating total benefits for both 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates (Table 13), the Agency utilized the 3 percent average rate SC-CO2 model (as seen in Table 8) for the forgone CO2 emissions reductions inputs (Tables 11 and 12). Had we used the 7 percent average rate, the annualized values would have been $106 million at a 3 percent discount rate and $109 at a 7 percent discount rate. 19 A ‘‘major rule’’ means any rule that the Administrator of Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs at the Office of Management and Budget finds has resulted in or is likely to result in (a) an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more; (b) a major increase in costs or prices for consumers, individual industries, Federal agencies, State agencies, local government agencies, or geographic regions; or (c) significant adverse effects on competition, employment, investment, productivity, innovation, or on the ability of United States-based enterprises to compete with foreignbased enterprises in domestic and export markets (5 U.S.C. 804(2)). 20 Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) see National Archives at https://www.archives.gov/ federal-register/laws/regulaotry-flexibility/601.html. C. Congressional Review Act Pursuant to the Congressional Review Act (5 U.S.C. 801, et seq.), the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs designated this rule as a ‘‘major rule,’’ as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).19 khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES 3 percent discount rate VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:16 Feb 03, 2020 Jkt 250001 PO 00000 Frm 00076 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 F. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 E:\FR\FM\04FER1.SGM 04FER1 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 23 / Tuesday, February 4, 2020 / Rules and Regulations G. Paperwork Reduction Act This rule calls for a collection of information under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501– 3520) (PRA). As defined in 5 CFR 1320.3(c), ‘‘collection of information’’ comprises reporting, recordkeeping, monitoring, posting, labeling, and other, similar actions. The 2016 ELDT final rule discussed the changes to the approved collection of information, but did not revise the supporting statement for that collection at that time, because the changes from the final rule would not take effect until after the expiration date of that approved collection (see PRA discussion at 81 FR 88732, 88788). This collection is currently being revised as part of its renewal cycle, and as required by the PRA (44 U.S.C. 3507(d)), FMCSA will submit its estimate of the burden of the proposal contained in this interim final rule to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for its review of the collection of information renewal. FMCSA published the 60-day notice in the Federal Register on July 3, 2019 (84 FR 31982). FMCSA will publish the 30-day notice in the Federal Register, reflecting the changes made by this IFR. It is the agency’s intent to obtain OMB approval for the revised collection of information in advance of the new compliance date so that training providers may complete the TPR registration process and begin uploading student certificates as soon as the TPR is available, even if prior to the new compliance date of February 7, 2022. You are not required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES H. E.O. 13132 (Federalism) A rule has implications for Federalism under Section 1(a) of Executive Order 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 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. Therefore, this rule does not have sufficient Federalism implications to warrant the preparation of a Federalism Impact Statement. I. E.O. 12988 (Civil Justice Reform) This interim final rule meets applicable standards in sections 3(a) VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:16 Feb 03, 2020 Jkt 250001 and 3(b)(2) of E.O. 12988, Civil Justice Reform, to minimize litigation, eliminates ambiguity, and reduce burden. J. 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. While this interim final rule is economically significant, the Agency does not anticipate that this regulatory action could in any respect present an environmental or safety risk that could disproportionately affect children. K. E.O. 12630 (Taking of Private Property) FMCSA reviewed this interim 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. L. Privacy The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2005, (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 change the collection of personally identifiable information (PII) as set forth in the 2016 ELDT final rule. The supporting PIA, available for review on the DOT website, https:// www.transportation.gov/privacy, gives a full and complete explanation of FMCSA practices for protecting PII in general and specifically in relation to the ELDT final rule, which would also apply to this final rule. As required by the Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a), FMCSA and DOT will publish, with request for comment, a system of records notice (SORN) that will describe FMCSA’s maintenance and electronic transmission of information affected by the requirements of the ELDT final rule that are covered by the Privacy Act. This SORN will be published in the Federal Register not less than 30 days before the Agency is authorized to collect or use PII retrieved by unique identifier. PO 00000 Frm 00077 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 6099 M. 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. N. E.O. 13211 (Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use) FMCSA has analyzed this interim final rule under E.O. 13211, Actions Concerning Regulations That Significantly Affect Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use. The Agency has determined that it is not a ‘‘significant energy action’’ under that order because, though it is a ‘‘significant regulatory action,’’ it is not likely to have a significant adverse effect on the supply, distribution, or use of energy. The Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs has not designated it as a significant energy action. Therefore, it does not require a Statement of Energy Effects under Executive Order 13211. O. 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. P. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (Technical Standards) The National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (NTTAA) (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. Q. Environment The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) requires Federal agencies to E:\FR\FM\04FER1.SGM 04FER1 6100 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 23 / Tuesday, February 4, 2020 / Rules and Regulations khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES integrate environmental values into their decision-making processes by considering the potential environmental impacts of their actions. In accordance with NEPA, FMCSA’s NEPA Order 5610.1 (NEPA Implementing Procedures and Policy for Considering Environmental Impacts), and other applicable requirements, FMCSA prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) to review the potential impacts of the ELDT final rule. That EA is available for inspection or copying in the Regulations.gov website listed under ADDRESSES. Because this interim final rule will only delay the compliance date of the ELDT final rule without any other substantive change to the regulations, FMCSA continues to rely upon the previously published EA to support this interim final rule. As noted in that EA, implementation of the 2016 ELDT final rule imposed new training standards for certain individuals applying for their CDL, an upgrade of their CDL, or hazardous materials, passenger, or school bus endorsement for their license. FMCSA found that noise, endangered species, cultural resources protected under the National Historic Preservation Act, wetlands, and resources protected under Section 4(f) of the Department of Transportation Act of 1966, 49 U.S.C. 303, as amended by Public Law 109–59, would not be impacted. The impact areas that may be affected and were evaluated in the EA included air quality, hazardous materials transportation, solid waste, and public safety. Specifically, as outlined in the 2016 RIA for the ELDT final rule, FMCSA anticipated that an increase in driver training would result in improved fuel economy based on changes to driver behavior, such as smoother acceleration and braking practices. Such improved fuel economy is anticipated to result in lower air emissions and improved air quality for gases, including carbon dioxide. For today’s final rule, FMCSA estimates the forgone environmental benefits for years 2020 through 2023. As mentioned above, today’s final rule temporally shifts the benefits of the 2016 final rule by two years but otherwise retains the overall environmental impacts of the 2016 final rule. R. E.O. 13783 (Promoting Energy Independence and Economic Growth) E.O. 13783 directs executive departments and agencies to review existing regulations that potentially burden the development or use of domestically produced energy resources, and to appropriately suspend, revise, or rescind those that unduly VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:16 Feb 03, 2020 Jkt 250001 burden the development of domestic energy resources. In accordance with E.O. 13783, DOT prepared and submitted a report to the Director of OMB that provides specific recommendations that, to the extent permitted by law, could alleviate or eliminate aspects of agency action that burden domestic energy production. This interim final rule has not been identified by DOT under E.O. 13783 as potentially alleviating unnecessary burdens on domestic energy production. List of Subjects 49 CFR Part 380 Administrative practice and procedure, Highway safety, Motor carriers, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements. Administrative practice and procedure, Alcohol abuse, Drug abuse, Highway safety, Motor carriers. 49 CFR Part 384 Administrative practice and procedure, Alcohol abuse, Drug abuse, Highway safety, Motor carriers. For the reasons set forth in the preamble, FMCSA amends 49 CFR parts 380, 383, and 384 as follows: PART 380—SPECIAL TRAINING REQUIREMENTS 1. The authority citation for part 380 continues to read as follows: ■ Authority: 49 U.S.C. 31133, 31136, 31305, 31307, 31308, 31502; sec. 4007(a) and (b), Pub. L. 102–240, 105 Stat. 1914, 2151; sec. 32304, Pub. L. 112–141, 126 Stat. 405, 791; and 49 CFR 1.87. [Amended] 2. Amend § 380.600 by removing the year ‘‘2020’’ and adding in its place the year ‘‘2022’’. ■ § 380.603 § 383.71 [Amended] 3. In § 380.603, amend paragraphs (b) and (c)(1) and (2) by removing the year ‘‘2020’’ and adding in its place the year ‘‘2022’’. ■ PART 383—COMMERCIAL DRIVER’S LICENSE STANDARDS; REQUIREMENTS AND PENALTIES [Amended] 5. In § 383.71, amend paragraphs (a)(3), (b)(11), and (e)(5) by removing the year ‘‘2020’’ and adding in its place the year ‘‘2022’’. ■ 6. Amend § 383.73: ■ a. By revising paragraphs (b)(3) introductory text and (b)(3)(ii); ■ b. In paragraph (b)(11) by removing the year ‘‘2020’’ and adding in its place the year ‘‘2022’’; ■ c. By revising paragraph (e)(9); and ■ d. In paragraph (p) by removing the year ‘‘2020’’ and adding in its place the year ‘‘2022’’. The revisions read as follows: ■ § 383.73 49 CFR Part 383 § 380.600 94, 129 Stat. 1312, 1546, 1593; and 49 CFR 1.87. State procedures. * * * * * (b) * * * (3) Initiate and complete a check of the applicant’s driving record to ensure that the person is not subject to any disqualification under § 383.51, or any license disqualification under State law, and does not have a driver’s license from more than one State or jurisdiction. The record check must include, but is not limited to, the following: * * * * * (ii) A check with the CDLIS to determine whether the driver applicant already has been issued a CDL, whether the applicant’s license has been disqualified, or if the applicant has been disqualified from operating a commercial motor vehicle; * * * * * (e) * * * (9) Beginning on February 7, 2022, not conduct a skills test of an applicant for an upgrade to a Class A or Class B CDL, or a passenger (P), school bus (S) endorsement, or administer the knowledge test to an applicant for the hazardous materials (H) endorsement, unless the applicant has completed the training required by subpart F of part 380 of this subchapter. * * * * * PART 384—STATE COMPLIANCE WITH COMMERCIAL DRIVER’S LICENSE PROGRAM 4. The authority citation for part 383 continues to read as follows: ■ Authority: 49 U.S.C. 521, 31136, 31301 et seq., and 31502; secs. 214 and 215 of Pub. L 106–159, 113 Stat. 1748, 1766, 1767; sec. 1012(b) of Pub. L. 107–56; 115 Stat. 272, 297, sec. 4140 of Pub. L. 109–59, 119 Stat. 1144, 1746; sec. 32934 of Pub. L. 112–141, 126 Stat. 405, 830; secs. 5401 and 7208 of Pub. L. 114- Authority: 49 U.S.C. 31136, 31301 et seq., and 31502; secs. 103 and 215 of Pub. L. 106– 59, 113 Stat. 1753, 1767; sec. 32934 of Pub. L. 112–141, 126 Stat. 405, 830; sec. 5401 and 7208 of Pub. L. 114–94, 129 Stat. 1312, 1546, 1593; and 49 CFR 1.87. ■ PO 00000 Frm 00078 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 7. The authority citation for part 384 continues to read as follows: E:\FR\FM\04FER1.SGM 04FER1 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 23 / Tuesday, February 4, 2020 / Rules and Regulations § 384.230 [Amended] 8. Amend § 384.230 by removing the year ‘‘2020’’ and adding in its place the year ‘‘2022’’ wherever it appears. ■ § 384.301 [Amended] 9. In § 384.301, amend paragraph (k) by removing the year ‘‘2020’’ and adding in its place the year ‘‘2022’’. ■ Issued under the authority of delegation in 49 CFR 1.87. Dated: January 23, 2020. Jim Mullen, Acting Administrator. [FR Doc. 2020–01548 Filed 2–3–20; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 50 CFR Part 300 [Docket No. 180716667–9383–02; RTID 0648–XW017] International Fisheries; Pacific Fisheries; 2019 Commercial Pacific Bluefin Tuna Inseason Actions; Notice of Commercial Pacific Bluefin Tuna 2020 Catch Limit National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce. ACTION: Announcements of 2019 trip limit modifications and 2020 catch limit. AGENCY: NMFS took two inseason actions in the commercial Pacific bluefin tuna fishery in 2019. On August 4, 2019, the commercial Pacific bluefin tuna trip limit was reduced to two metric tons (mt). On August 11, the commercial Pacific bluefin tuna trip limit was increased to 15 mt. Additionally, NMFS is using this notice to announce the Pacific bluefin tuna catch limit for U.S. commercial fishing vessels for 2020, which is 356 mt. DATES: Inseason Action #1 was effective at 6 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time (PDT) on August 4, 2019. Inseason Action #2 was effective at 12 a.m. PDT on August 11, khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES SUMMARY: VerDate Sep<11>2014 18:16 Feb 03, 2020 Jkt 250001 6101 2019. The 2020 catch limit is effective January 1, 2020, through December 31, 2020. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Celia Barroso, NMFS, West Coast Region, 562–432–1850. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: caught Pacific bluefin tuna had been caught to date; consequently, NMFS determined Inseason Action #1 to reduce the trip limit was premature. In accordance with the 2019–2020 regulations, NMFS increased the trip limit again. Background On May 1, 2019, NMFS published a final rule establishing trip and catch limits for the commercial Pacific bluefin tuna fishery (84 FR 18409). The rule established a 630 mt biennial limit for 2019 and 2020, combined, not to exceed 425 mt in a single year. NMFS estimates that 274 mt was caught in 2019; consequently, the commercial Pacific bluefin tuna catch limit for 2020 is 356 mt. The rule also established a 15-mt trip limit until catch was within or expected to be within 50 mt of the annual limit, at which time the trip limit would be reduced, through inseason action, to two mt. In other words, the trip limit is reduced to two mt when NMFS anticipates that the Pacific bluefin tuna harvest level reaches 375 mt (based on rules and assumptions set forth in the final rulemaking, including pre-trip notifications and catch information). Any inseason action would be in effect on the date and time posted on the NMFS website, immediately followed up by a notice to mariners by the U.S. Coast Guard, and when practicable, publication in the Federal Register. If inseason action was taken prematurely, NMFS could reverse the action using the same inseason action process described above. This Federal Register notice announces two inseason actions taken in 2019 and the 2020 catch limit. 2020 Catch Limit Inseason Actions Inseason Action #1: At 6 a.m. PDT on August 4, 2019, in anticipation of the Pacific bluefin tuna harvest level reaching 375 mt, the commercial Pacific bluefin tuna trip limit was reduced to two mt. Inseason Action #2: At 12 a.m. PDT on August 11, 2019, NMFS increased the commercial Pacific bluefin tuna trip limit to 15 mt. NMFS evaluated all available information on catches and estimated that 236 mt of commercially- PO 00000 Frm 00079 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 9990 The commercial Pacific bluefin tuna catch limit for 2020 is 356 mt based on the factors described under Background. Classification NOAA’s Assistant Administrator (AA) for NMFS finds that good cause exists for this notification to be issued without affording prior notice and opportunity for public comment under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) because such notification would be impracticable. As previously noted, actual notice of the regulatory action was provided to fishermen through posting on the website, and followed up with radio notification. This action complies with the requirements of the annual management measures for the commercial Pacific bluefin tuna fishery (84 FR 18409, May 1, 2019) and implementing regulations under 50 CFR 300.25. Prior notice and opportunity for public comment was impracticable because NMFS had insufficient time to provide for prior notice and the opportunity for public comment between the time catch was estimated and the time the fishery modifications had to be implemented in order to ensure that the catch limits were not exceeded. The AA also finds good cause to waive the 30-day delay in effectiveness required under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3), as a delay in effectiveness of this action would allow fishing at levels inconsistent with the goals of the current management measures. This action is authorized by 50 CFR 300.25 and is exempt from review under Executive Order 12866. Authority: 16 U.S.C. 951 et seq. Dated: January 22, 2020. Karyl K. Brewster-Geisz, Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. [FR Doc. 2020–01329 Filed 2–3–20; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 3510–22–P E:\FR\FM\04FER1.SGM 04FER1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 23 (Tuesday, February 4, 2020)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 6088-6101]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-01548]



[[Page 6088]]

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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

49 CFR Parts 380, 383, and 384

[Docket No. FMCSA-2007-27748]
RIN 2126-AC25


Extension of Compliance Date for Entry-Level Driver Training

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

ACTION: Interim final rule with request for comment.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: FMCSA is amending its December 8, 2016, final rule, ``Minimum 
Training Requirements for Entry-Level Commercial Motor Vehicle 
Operators'' (ELDT final rule), by extending the compliance date for the 
rule from February 7, 2020, to February 7, 2022. This action will 
provide FMCSA additional time to complete development of the Training 
Provider Registry (TPR). The TPR will allow training providers to self-
certify that they meet the training requirements and will provide the 
electronic interface that will receive and store entry-level driver 
training (ELDT) certification information from training providers and 
transmit that information to the State Driver Licensing Agencies 
(SDLAs). The extension also provides SDLAs with time to modify their 
information technology (IT) systems and procedures, as necessary, to 
accommodate their receipt of driver-specific ELDT data from the TPR. 
FMCSA is delaying the entire ELDT final rule, as opposed to a partial 
delay as proposed, due to delays in implementation of the TPR that were 
not foreseen when the proposed rule was published.

DATES: This interim final rule is effective February 4, 2020. Comments 
on this interim final rule must be received on or before March 20, 
2020.
    Petitions for Reconsideration of this interim final rule must be 
submitted to the FMCSA Administrator no later than March 5, 2020.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Richard Clemente, Driver and 
Carrier Operations Division, Federal Motor Carrier Safety 
Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590-0001, 
(202) 366-4325, [email protected]. If you have questions on viewing or 
submitting material to the docket, contact Docket Operations, (202) 
366-9826.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Docket Number FMCSA-
2007-27748 using any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, Ground Floor, 
Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
     Hand Delivery or Courier: West Building, Ground Floor, 
Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. 
and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
     Fax: (202) 493-2251.
    To avoid duplication, please use only one of these four methods.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    This interim final rule is organized as follows:

I. Rulemaking Documents
    A. Availability of Rulemaking Documents
    B. Privacy Act
II. Executive Summary
    A. Purpose and Summary of the Interim Final Rule
    B. Costs and Benefits
III. Abbreviations
IV. Legal Basis
V. Regulatory History
VI. Discussion of Proposed Rule
VII. Discussion of Comments and Responses
VIII. Discussion of Interim Final Rule
IX. International Impacts
X. Section-by-Section
XI. Regulatory Analyses
    A. 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 Regulatory 
Costs)
    C. Congressional Review Act
    D. Regulatory Flexibility Act (Small Entities)
    E. Assistance for Small Entities
    F. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995
    G. Paperwork Reduction Act (Collection of Information)
    H. E.O. 13132 (Federalism)
    I. E.O. 12988 (Civil Justice Reform)
    J. E.O. 13045 (Protection of Children)
    K. E.O. 12630 (Taking of Private Property)
    L. Privacy
    M. E.O. 12372 (Intergovernmental Review)
    N. E.O. 13211 (Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use)
    O. E.O. 13175 (Indian Tribal Governments)
    P. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (Technical 
Standards)
    Q. Environment
    R. E.O. 13783 (Promoting Energy Independence and Economic 
Growth)

I. Rulemaking Documents

A. Submitting Comments

    If you submit a comment, please include the docket number for this 
interim final rule (Docket No. FMCSA-2007-27748), indicate the specific 
section of this document to which each section applies, and provide a 
reason for each suggestion or recommendation. You may submit your 
comments and material online or by fax, mail, or hand delivery, but 
please use only one of these means. FMCSA recommends that you include 
your name and a mailing address, an email address, or a phone number in 
the body of your document so that FMCSA can contact you if there are 
questions regarding your submission.
    To submit your comment online, go to https://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=FMCSA-2007-27748, click on the ``Comment Now!'' button 
and type your comment into the text box on the following screen. Choose 
whether you are submitting your comment as an individual or on behalf 
of a third party and then submit.
    If you submit your comments by mail or hand delivery, submit them 
in an unbound format, no larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable for 
copying and electronic filing. If you submit comments by mail and would 
like to know that they reached the facility, please enclose a stamped, 
self-addressed postcard or envelope.
    FMCSA will consider all comments and material received during the 
comment period and may change this interim final rule based on your 
comments. FMCSA may issue a final rule at any time after the close of 
the comment period.
Confidential Business Information
    Confidential business information (CBI) is commercial or financial 
information that is both customarily and actually treated as private by 
its owner. Under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (5 U.S.C. 552), 
CBI is exempt from public disclosure. If your comments responsive to 
the interim final rule contain commercial or financial information that 
is customarily treated as private, that you actually treat as private, 
and that is relevant or responsive to this interim final rule, it is 
important that you clearly designate the submitted comments as CBI. 
Please mark each page of your submission that constitutes CBI as 
``PROPIN'' to indicate it contains proprietary information. FMCSA will 
treat such marked submissions as confidential under the FOIA, and they 
will not be placed in the public docket of this interim final rule.

[[Page 6089]]

Submissions containing CBI should be sent to Mr. Brian Dahlin, Chief, 
Regulatory Analysis Division, Federal Motor Carrier Safety 
Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590. Any 
comments FMCSA receives which are not specifically designated as CBI 
will be placed in the public docket for this rulemaking.
    FMCSA will consider all comments and material received during the 
comment period.

B. Viewing Comments and Documents

    To view comments, as well as any documents mentioned in this 
preamble as being available in the docket, go to https://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=FMCSA-2007-27748 and choose the 
document to review. If you do not have access to the internet, you may 
view the docket online by visiting Docket Operations in Room W12-140 on 
the ground floor of the DOT West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, 
Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays.

C. Privacy Act

    In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits comments from the 
public to better inform its rulemaking process. DOT posts these 
comments, without edit, including any personal information the 
commenter provides, to www.regulations.gov, as described in the system 
of records notice (DOT/ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at 
www.dot.gov/privacy.

II. Executive Summary

A. Purpose and Summary of the Interim Final Rule

    FMCSA extends the compliance date for the 2016 final rule, 
``Minimum Training Requirements for Entry-Level Commercial Motor 
Vehicle Operators'' (81 FR 88732, December 8, 2016), from February 7, 
2020, to February 7, 2022. The two-year extension applies to all 
requirements established by the ELDT final rule, including:
    1. The date by which training providers must begin uploading 
driver-specific training certification information into the TPR, an 
electronic database that will contain ELDT information;
    2. The date by which SDLAs must confirm that applicants for a 
commercial driver's license (CDL) have complied with ELDT requirements 
prior to taking a specified knowledge or skills test;
    3. The date by which training providers wishing to provide ELDT 
must be listed on the TPR; and
    4. The date by which drivers seeking a CDL or endorsement must 
complete the required training, as set forth in the ELDT final rule.
    This extension is necessary so that FMCSA can complete the IT 
infrastructure to support the TPR, which will allow training providers 
to self-certify, request listing on the TPR, and upload the driver-
specific ELDT completion information to the TPR. Completion of the TPR 
technology platform is also necessary before driver-specific ELDT 
completion information can be transmitted from the TPR to the SDLAs. 
This delay also provides SDLAs time to make changes, as necessary, to 
their IT systems and internal procedures to allow them to receive the 
driver ELDT completion information transmitted from the TPR.
    In addition to providing for this delay, FMCSA is also making 
clarifying and conforming changes to the regulations established by the 
ELDT final rule, as proposed. FMCSA does not make any other substantive 
changes to the requirements established by the ELDT final rule.

B. Costs and Benefits

    In the 2016 ELDT final regulatory impact analysis (RIA), entry-
level drivers, motor carriers, training providers, SDLAs, and the 
Federal government were estimated to incur costs for compliance and 
implementation. In 2019, FMCSA published a separate final rule that 
amended the existing ELDT regulations by adopting a new Class A CDL 
theory instruction upgrade curriculum to reduce the training time and 
costs incurred by Class B CDL holders upgrading to a Class A CDL.
    In the 2016 and 2019 final rules, FMCSA projected costs and 
benefits beginning in 2020. Because FMCSA is delaying ELDT 
implementation to 2022, this regulatory evaluation accounts for the 
costs and benefits that will therefore not be realized in years 2020 
through 2021, as well as the temporal shift of the 2016 and 2019 final 
rules' costs and benefits to years 2022 and beyond. Because FMCSA 
estimated the net impact of the 2016 and 2019 final rules to include 
both costs and benefits, we estimate the delay to result in cost 
savings and disbenefits. Updated to 2018 dollars,\1\ the 2016 final 
rule resulted in annualized costs of $390 million at a 3 percent 
discount rate and $391 million at a 7 percent discount rate. The 2016 
final rule resulted in annualized benefits of $251 million at a 3 
percent discount rate and $252 million at a 7 percent discount rate, 
also updated to 2018 dollars. The 2019 final rule reduced those 
annualized costs by $19 million (in 2018 dollars) at both 3 percent and 
7 percent discount rates, and did not have an impact on benefits. The 
Agency estimates this final rule will result in annualized cost savings 
of $179 million and $196 million at 3 percent and 7 percent discount 
rates, respectively, over a 4-year period from 2020 through 2023.\2\ 
The Agency estimates this final rule will result in annualized forgone 
benefits of $108 million at a 3 percent discount rate and $112 million 
at a 7 percent discount rate. In the summary table below, FMCSA 
presents the changes in total costs and benefits that will result from 
this rule relative to the baseline.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ All estimates in this analysis have been updated from 2014 
dollars to 2018 dollars using a multiplier of 1.065. The GDP 
deflator for 2014 is 103.680 and the deflator for 2018 is 110.389. 
110.389/103.680 = 1.065. This is based on Implicit Price Deflators 
for Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from on the Bureau of Economic 
Analysis (BEA) archive of National Accounts (NIPA) data that were 
initially published on March 1, 2019 in connection with the Initial 
estimates for 2018 Q4. Accessed April 2019 at https://apps.bea.gov/histdata/fileStructDisplay.cfm?HMI=7&DY=2018&DQ=Q4&DV=Initial&dNRD=March-1-2019.
    \2\ In the previous ELDT RIAs, the Agency annualized impacts 
across a 10-year period. FMCSA annualizes the costs and benefits of 
this final rule across 4 years as, compared to the baseline, there 
will be no change in costs or benefits under this NPRM for years 5 
through 10 (2024-2029). While FMCSA did not use the following values 
in the analysis, for comparison with the previous rules, the cost 
savings of this final rule annualized across 10 years would be $78 
million at a 3% discount rate and $95 million at a 7% discount rate. 
The forgone benefits annualized over 10 years would be $47 million 
at a 3% discount rate and $54 million at a 7% discount rate.

[[Page 6090]]



                                                       Total Costs and Benefits of the Final Rule
                                                              [In millions of 2018 dollars]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                               Costs                                         Benefits
                                                         -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                          Year                                             Discount rate                                   Discount rate
                                                         -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                           Undiscounted         3%              7%         Undiscounted         3%              7%
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2020....................................................          ($420)          ($420)          ($420)           ($86)           ($86)           ($86)
2021....................................................           (343)           (333)           (320)           (146)           (142)           (137)
2022....................................................              87              79              68           (120)           (113)           (105)
2023....................................................               9               9               8            (62)            (61)            (50)
                                                         -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total...............................................           (666)           (664)           (664)           (414)           (403)           (378)
                                                         -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Annualized..............................................  ..............           (179)           (196)  ..............           (108)           (112)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

III. Abbreviations and Acronyms

AAMVA American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators
ANPRM Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
BTW Behind the Wheel
CDL Commercial Driver's License
CDLIS Commercial Driver's License Information System
CFR Code of Federal Regulations
CMV Commercial Motor Vehicle
CMVSA Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act
DOT U.S. Department of Transportation
ELDT Entry-Level Driver Training
E.O. Executive Order
FMCSA Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
FMCSRs Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations
FR Federal Register
FRFA Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis
IT Information Technology
NEPA National Environmental Policy Act of 1969
NPRM Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
OMB Office of Management and Budget
PIA Privacy Impact Assessment
PII Personally Identifiable Information
PRA Paperwork Reduction Act
RIA Regulatory Impact Analysis
RIN Regulation Identifier Number
SDLA State Driver Licensing Agency
SORN Systems of Records Notice
Sec.  Section symbol
TPR Training Provider Registry
U.S.C. United States Code

IV. Legal Basis

    The legal basis of the ELDT final rule, set forth at 81 FR 88738-
88739, also serves as the legal basis for this interim final rule. A 
summary of the statutory authorities identified in that discussion 
follows.
    FMCSA's authority to amend the ELDT final rule by extending the 
compliance date and making other necessary clarifying and conforming 
changes is derived from several concurrent statutory sources. The Motor 
Carrier Act of 1935, as amended, codified at 49 U.S.C. 31502(b), 
authorizes the Secretary of Transportation (the Secretary) to prescribe 
requirements for the safety of motor carrier operations. The rule also 
relies on the Motor Carrier Safety Act of 1984, as amended, codified at 
49 U.S.C. 31136(a)(1) and (2), requiring the Secretary to establish 
regulations to ensure that CMVs are operated safely, and that 
responsibilities placed on CMV drivers do not impair their ability to 
safely operate CMVs. The rule does not address medical standards for 
drivers or physical effects related to CMV driving (49 U.S.C. 
31136(a)(3) and (4)). The Agency does not anticipate that drivers will 
be coerced as a result of this rule (49 U.S.C. 31136(5)). The 
Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1986 (CMVSA), as amended, 
codified generally in 49 U.S.C. chapter 313, established the CDL 
program and required the Secretary to promulgate implementing 
regulations, including minimum standards for testing and ensuring the 
fitness of an individual operating a commercial motor vehicle (49 
U.S.C. 31305(a)). The specific statutory provision underlying the ELDT 
final rule, enacted as part of The Moving Ahead for Progress in the 
21st Century Act and codified at 49 U.S.C. 31305(c), required the 
Secretary to establish minimum entry-level driver training standards 
for certain individuals required to hold a CDL.
    The Administrator of FMCSA is delegated authority under 49 CFR 1.87 
to carry out the functions vested in the Secretary by 49 U.S.C. 
chapters 311, 313, and 315, as they relate to CMV operators, programs, 
and safety.

V. Regulatory History

ELDT Final Rule

    The ELDT 2016 final rule established minimum training standards for 
individuals applying for a Class A or Class B CDL for the first time; 
individuals upgrading their CDL to a Class B or Class A; and 
individuals obtaining the following endorsements for the first time: 
Hazardous materials (H), passenger (P), and school bus (S). The final 
rule also defined curriculum standards for theory and behind-the-wheel 
(BTW) instruction for Class A and B CDLs and the P and S endorsements, 
and theory instruction requirements for the H endorsement. 
Additionally, the rule required that SDLAs verify ELDT completion 
before allowing the applicant to take a skills test for a Class A or 
Class B CDL, or a P or S endorsement; or a knowledge test prior to 
obtaining the H endorsement.
    The final rule also established the TPR, an online database which 
would allow ELDT providers to electronically register with FMCSA and 
certify that individual driver-trainees completed the required 
training. The rule set forth eligibility requirements for training 
providers to be listed on the TPR, including a certification, under 
penalty of perjury, that their training programs meet those 
requirements. The final rule, when fully implemented, will require 
training providers to enter driver-specific ELDT information, which 
FMCSA will then verify before transmitting to the SDLA. The process is 
designed to deliver a finished ``product'' (i.e., verified driver-
specific ELDT information) to the end user, the SDLA.

NPRM to Partially Extend the ELDT Compliance Date

    On July 18, 2019, FMCSA published a notice of proposed rulemaking 
(NPRM) titled ``Partial Extension of Compliance Date for Entry-Level 
Driver Training'' (84 FR 34324). That NPRM proposed delaying, from 
February 7, 2020 to February 7, 2022, two provisions from the ELDT 
final rule published on December 8, 2016 (81 FR 88732). The NPRM is 
discussed further below.

[[Page 6091]]

VI. Discussion of Proposed Rule

    The NPRM proposed a new compliance date of February 7, 2022, for 
two provisions of the ELDT final rule: The requirement that training 
providers upload driver-specific training certification information to 
the TPR, and the requirement that SDLAs confirm driver applicants are 
in compliance with the ELDT requirements prior to taking a skills test 
for a Class A or Class B CDL, or a P or S endorsement, or prior to 
taking the knowledge test to obtain the H endorsement. In the NPRM, 
FMCSA explained that the proposed delay was necessary to allow both the 
Agency and SDLAs to complete the requisite IT infrastructure to 
accommodate the two requirements. The NPRM, which did not propose 
extending the compliance date for any other ELDT requirement, also 
proposed several clarifying and conforming changes to the ELDT final 
rule. FMCSA received 56 comments on the NPRM. No public meeting was 
requested and none was held.

VII. Discussion of Comments And Changes to the Proposed Rule

    FMCSA received 56 comments on the proposed rule. Of these, 40 
commenters requested that FMCSA delay all provisions of the ELDT final 
rule. These comments endorsing a delay of the rule in its entirety were 
filed by individuals, State organizations, and several industry 
organizations. Commenters noted that a partial delay would cause 
confusion, particularly regarding how SDLAs should verify driver 
applicant compliance with the training requirements without being able 
to check using the electronic system envisioned by the ELDT final rule. 
Commenters questioned the effectiveness of enforcement if the SDLAs 
were not verifying training completion prior to administering required 
tests. They also argued that the partial extension would place an undue 
burden on the driver applicants, who would incur the costs of taking 
the new training even though there would not be ``proof'' of that 
training in the TPR for another two years. Several of these commenters 
went on to argue that the partial delay could make it harder to recruit 
drivers, particularly in rural areas.
    Six additional commenters opposed the proposed partial delay, with 
two of these commenters specifically stating the ELDT final rule should 
be implemented on the original compliance date of February 7, 2020. The 
commenters opposing the partial delay included the Commercial Vehicle 
Training Association (CVTA) and the National Association of Publicly 
Funded Truck Driving Schools (NAPFTDS), as well as individual 
commenters. CVTA and NAPFTDS stated that FMCSA must take into 
consideration how the partial delay could impact motor carrier 
liability, and one individual noted that the partial delay would make 
enforcement ineffective. One individual noted that the States have had 
plenty of notice, and another cited the need for full implementation as 
soon as possible to improve highway safety.
    Five commenters expressed support for the proposed partial delay, 
with two of these commenters (Instructional Technologies, Inc. and the 
SAGE Truck Driving Schools Corporation) specifically commenting on the 
IT issues discussed in the NPRM. Two of these commenters (Power and 
Communications Contractors Association and American Truck Dealers/
National Automobile Dealers Association) offered lukewarm support, 
stating that they preferred full implementation of the ELDT final rule 
as originally intended, but that in light of the IT issues discussed in 
the NPRM they agreed a partial delay was necessary.
    Two commenters, the American Trucking Associations, Inc. and Owner-
Operator Independent Drivers' Association, requested that FMCSA answer 
questions prior to implementing a partial delay. These questions 
related to the actions SDLAs would be expected to take in order to 
verify that driver applicants had received the required ELDT prior to 
administering testing, in the absence of being able to receive ELDT 
verification from the TPR.
    Three commenters offered no position on the NPRM, and offered no 
substantive comments.
    The Agency agrees with the enforcement concerns raised by 
commenters, noting that the partial delay proposed in the NPRM would 
have placed SDLAs in an unfavorable position of having to take 
applicants' word, or create a new paperwork burden, that they completed 
their required training prior to appearing at an SDLA for required 
testing. FMCSA also recognizes the potential impacts on motor carrier's 
liability, as noted by CVTA and NAPFTDS. Given the delay in developing 
the IT infrastructure, however, FMCSA is not making a determination 
whether these concerns, alone, would have been enough to warrant a full 
delay.
    FMCSA is issuing this interim final rule to delay all of the ELDT 
final rule's requirements by 2 years, to February 7, 2022. As discussed 
below in section VIII., FMCSA cannot complete the development of the IT 
system required to implement the ELDT final rule in full by the 
original compliance date of February 7, 2020. FMCSA acknowledges that 
delaying the implementation for the entire ELDT final rule addresses 
many of the implementation questions presented by commenters, and that 
the majority of commenters requested the full delay of the ELDT final 
rule.
    As discussed above in Section II. B., ``Costs and Benefits,'' 
delaying the full ELDT final rule will also delay the qualitative 
safety benefits associated with that rule, which would not have 
occurred with a partial delay, as proposed. However, due to the fact 
that FMCSA cannot complete development of the TPR in time for the 
February 2, 2020, compliance date, the Agency must extend the 
compliance date for all requirements set forth in the ELDT final rule 
to February 7, 2022. The specific impacts of the full two-year delay 
are discussed below in Section XI, ``Regulatory Analyses.''

VIII. Discussion of Interim Final Rule

    FMCSA extends the compliance date for the 2016 final rule, 
``Minimum Training Requirements for Entry-Level Commercial Motor 
Vehicle Operators'' (81 FR 88732, December 8, 2016), from February 7, 
2020, to February 7, 2022. The 2-year extension applies to all 
requirements established by the ELDT final rule, including:
    1. The date by which training providers must begin uploading 
driver-specific training certification information into the TPR, an 
electronic database that will contain ELDT information;
    2. The date by which SDLAs must confirm that applicants for a CDL 
have complied with ELDT requirements prior to taking a specified 
knowledge or skills test;
    3. The date by which training providers wishing to provide ELDT 
must be listed on the TPR; and
    4. The date by which drivers seeking a CDL or endorsement must 
complete the required training, as set forth in the ELDT final rule.
    This extension is necessary so that FMCSA can complete the IT 
infrastructure to support the TPR, which will allow training providers 
to self-certify, request listing on the TPR, and upload the driver-
specific ELDT completion information to the TPR. Despite the Agency's 
best efforts, due to IT development issues largely beyond its control, 
FMCSA cannot complete any portion of the TPR in time for the February 
7, 2020, compliance date

[[Page 6092]]

established by the ELDT final rule. These issues include changes in 
Department of Transportation (DOT) internal requirements for cloud-
based IT systems, which added time to the development process, which in 
turn made it impossible for FMCSA to implement a TPR that would be able 
to accept training provider registrations by February 7, 2020.
    Completion of the TPR technology platform is also necessary before 
driver-specific ELDT completion information can be transmitted from the 
TPR to the SDLAs. FMCSA has determined that two years will provide 
sufficient time for the Agency to develop and complete this 
infrastructure, as well as for the SDLAs to make changes, as necessary, 
to their IT systems and internal procedures to allow them to receive 
the driver's ELDT completion information transmitted from the TPR.
    In addition to providing for this delay, FMCSA is also making 
clarifying and conforming changes to the regulations established by the 
ELDT final rule, as proposed. FMCSA does not make any other substantive 
changes to the requirements established by the ELDT final rule.

Administrative Procedure Act--``Good Cause'' Exception

    FMCSA has good cause to proceed with the immediate delay of the 
compliance date for the entire rule, including the two regulatory 
provisions not included in the NPRM proposing a partial delay.\3\ The 
Administrative Procedure Act (APA) provides that notice and public 
comment procedures are not required when an Agency finds there is 
``good cause'' to dispense with such procedures and incorporates the 
finding and a brief statement of reasons to support the finding in the 
rule issued. Good cause exists when the agency determines that notice 
and public comment procedures are impracticable, unnecessary, or 
contrary to the public interest (5 U.S.C. 553(b)(3)(B)). In this case, 
FMCSA finds that allowing for notice and comment on delaying the 
training provider curriculum and registration requirements and the 
driver applicant training portions of the ELDT final rule is 
impracticable and contrary to the public interest. Despite the Agency's 
best efforts, due to IT development issues largely beyond its control, 
FMCSA cannot complete any portion of the TPR in time for the February 
7, 2020, compliance date established by the ELDT final rule. These 
issues include changes in Department of Transportation (DOT) internal 
requirements for cloud-based IT systems, which added time to the 
development process, which in turn made it impossible for FMCSA to 
implement a TPR that would be able to accept training provider 
registrations by February 7, 2020.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ Good cause need not be claimed for the two provisions that 
were part of the proposed partial delay, namely the training 
provider upload of driver-specific training completion information 
and the SDLA verification of driver-applicant training completion 
prior to conducting a skills test or, in the case of an H 
endorsement, a knowledge test.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    In addition to being impracticable to provide prior notice and 
comment on extending the compliance date for the final rule, it would 
also be contrary to the public interest by prolonging uncertainty among 
individuals seeking to obtain the impacted CDLs and endorsements as to 
what training provisions will apply to them. Additionally, questions 
regarding a firm compliance date could potentially delay motor carriers 
from hiring or otherwise utilizing those drivers until the uncertainty 
is lifted. FMCSA therefore finds that good cause exists to forgo prior 
notice and comment before extending the compliance date. Nonetheless, 
this interim final rule includes a 45-day comment period. FMCSA will 
consider and address any submitted comments in the final rule that will 
follow this interim final rule.
    For the same reasons discussed above, FMCSA finds good cause for 
making this final rule effective less than 30 days after publication, 
in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(d).

IX. International Impacts

    The FMCSRs, and any exceptions to the FMCSRs, apply only within the 
United States (and, in some cases, United States territories). Motor 
carriers and drivers are subject to the laws and regulations of the 
countries in which they operate, unless an international agreement 
states otherwise. Drivers and carriers should be aware of the 
regulatory differences among nations.

X. Section-by-Section Analysis

    FMCSA revises the headings for Subparts E and F in part 380, as 
well as sections 380.600 and 380.603, by changing the compliance date 
for entry-level drivers to obtain the training found in Subpart F. In 
all places where it appears, the date is changed from February 7, 2020, 
to February 7, 2022.
    In section 383.71, paragraphs (a)(3), (b)(11), and (e)(5), FMCSA 
changes the individual drivers' compliance date from February 7, 2020, 
to February 7, 2022. This delays by two years the date by which 
individuals seeking a Class A or B CDL for the first time, a passenger 
endorsement for the first time, a school bus endorsement for the first 
time, or a hazardous materials endorsement for the first time must 
complete the training prescribed in 49 CFR part 380, subpart F, prior 
to taking the skills test (for all but the hazardous materials 
endorsement) or knowledge test (for the hazardous materials 
endorsement).
    In section 383.73, paragraphs (b)(11), (e)(9), and (p), FMCSA 
changes the States' compliance date from February 7, 2020, to February 
7, 2022. This delays by two years the date by which a State must verify 
the applicant has completed the required ELDT, and also delays the date 
when a State must begin complying with the requirement to notify FMCSA 
if a training provider in that State does not meet the minimum 
requirements for CMV instruction. The Agency also revises the States' 
compliance date in section 384.230, from February 7, 2020, to February 
7, 2022. In paragraph (a), this date identifies when a State must 
comply with the requirements of sections 383.73(b)(11) and (e)(9). In 
paragraphs (b)(1) and (b)(2), this date identifies when States must 
come into substantial compliance with the ELDT-related requirements of 
sections 383.73 and 384.230.
    Unrelated to the changes made to delay the compliance date wherever 
it appears, FMCSA is making clarifying changes to existing ELDT-related 
requirements in section 383.73. In paragraphs (b)(3) and (b)(3)(ii), 
FMCSA removes references to the State performing a check for whether 
the applicant has completed required training prior to initial issuance 
of the CDL. This change reflects that, as intended by the ELDT final 
rule, the threshold for the SDLA's verification that an applicant 
completed the required ELDT is at the point of skills testing or, in 
the case of the H endorsement, knowledge testing. This change 
eliminates what would otherwise be a duplicative requirement 
inadvertently imposed on the States; the requirement that States verify 
the applicant received ELDT training before conducting skills testing 
is already set forth in section 383.73(b)(11). Similarly, FMCSA revises 
paragraph (e)(9) to clarify that the State must verify an applicant's 
completion of required ELDT at the point of testing, not issuance.

[[Page 6093]]

XI. 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

    The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs has determined 
that this interim final rule is an economically significant regulatory 
action under E.O. 12866,\4\ Regulatory Planning and Review, as 
supplemented by E.O. 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21, 2011). It also is 
significant under DOT regulatory policies and procedures because the 
economic costs and benefits of the rule exceed the $100 million annual 
threshold.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \4\ 58 FR 51735-51744 (Sept. 30, 1993).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    As discussed above, this interim final rule will delay, until 
February 7, 2022, the compliance date of the provisions in the 2016 
Minimum Training Requirements for Entry-Level Commercial Motor Vehicle 
Operators Final Rule (81 FR 88732) and the 2019 ELDT Commercial 
Driver's License Upgrade from Class B to Class A final rule (84 FR 
8029), henceforth referred to as the ``2016 final rule'' and ``2019 
final rule,'' respectively. FMCSA did not propose any substantive 
changes to the existing regulatory text in 49 CFR part 380, 383, or 384 
in the NPRM.
    In the 2016 ELDT final RIA, entry-level drivers, motor carriers, 
training providers, SDLAs, and the Federal government were estimated to 
incur costs for compliance and implementation starting in 2020. In 
2019, FMCSA published a separate final rule that amended the existing 
ELDT regulations by adopting a new Class A CDL theory instruction 
upgrade curriculum to reduce the training time and costs incurred by 
Class B CDL holders upgrading to a Class A CDL.
    In the 2016 and 2019 final rules, FMCSA projected costs and 
benefits beginning in 2020. Because FMCSA is delaying ELDT 
implementation by 2 years to 2022, this regulatory evaluation accounts 
for the costs and benefits that will therefore not be realized in years 
2020 through 2021, as well as the temporal shift of the 2016 and 2019 
final rules' costs and benefits to years 2022 and beyond. Because FMCSA 
estimated the net impact of the 2016 and 2019 final rules to include 
both costs and benefits, we estimate the delay to result in cost 
savings and disbenefits. Updated to 2018 dollars,\5\ the 2016 final 
rule resulted in annualized costs of $390 million at a 3 percent 
discount rate and $391 million at a 7 percent discount rate. The 2019 
final rule reduced those annualized costs by $19 million (in 2018 
dollars) at both 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates. FMCSA 
estimates this final rule will result in annualized cost savings of 
$179 million and $196 million at 3 percent and 7 percent discount 
rates, respectively, over a 4-year period from 2020 through 2023.\6\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \5\ All estimates in this analysis have been updated from 2014 
dollars to 2018 dollars using a multiplier of 1.065. The GDP 
deflator for 2014 is 103.680 and the deflator for 2018 is 110.389. 
110.389/103.680 = 1.065. This is based on Implicit Price Deflators 
for Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from on the Bureau of Economic 
Analysis (BEA) archive of National Accounts (NIPA) data that were 
initially published on March-1-2019 in connection with the Initial 
estimates for 2018 Q4. Accessed April 2019 at https://apps.bea.gov/histdata/fileStructDisplay.cfm?HMI=7&DY=2018&DQ=Q4&DV=Initial&dNRD=March-1-2019.
    \6\ In the previous ELDT RIAs, the Agency annualized impacts 
across a 10-year period. FMCSA annualizes the costs and benefits of 
this final rule across 4 years as, compared to the baseline, there 
will be no change in costs or benefits under this NPRM for years 5-
10 (2024-2029).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

History of ELDT Rulemakings' Regulatory Impacts
    The costs of the 2016 final rule included tuition expenses, the 
opportunity cost of time while in training, compliance audit costs, and 
implementation and monitoring of the TPR. The 2019 ELDT final rule 
established a new theory instruction upgrade curriculum that removed 
eight instructional units involving ``Non-Driving Activities'' for 
Class B CDL holders upgrading to a Class A CDL because Class B CDL 
holders have previous training or experience in the CMV industry. The 
2019 final rule did not change the BTW training requirements set forth 
in the 2016 final rule. FMCSA estimated that the new theory curriculum 
resulted in cost savings by taking less time to complete, without 
impacting the benefits of the 2016 ELDT final rule.
Costs of the Interim Final Rule
    In this regulatory evaluation, FMCSA estimates the impacts of this 
rule for years 2020 through 2023, and uses the 2016 and 2019 ELDT final 
rules as the baseline for its estimates. This rule will delay 
implementation of the ELDT final rules to 2022, making 2022 the first 
year in which regulatory impacts of the previous final rules will be 
realized. Accordingly, this final rule will result in net cost savings 
using the previous final rules as the baseline. The Agency presents the 
costs and cost savings of this rule below.
Entry-Level Driver Costs
    The cost savings of this rule to entry-level drivers include costs 
that would have been incurred in 2020 through 2021 for identifying a 
training provider on the registry, the cost of tuition, and the 
opportunity cost of time spent in training. In Table 1 below, FMCSA 
presents the change in costs to entry-level drivers that will result 
from the rule relative to the baseline.
    To illustrate the logic behind the cost impacts of this rule to 
entry-level drivers, the following example discusses those impacts that 
will occur in year 2020. In the 2016 final rule, FMCSA estimated that 
drivers would incur costs of $345 million \7\ (at both 3 percent and 7 
percent discount rates) in 2020. In the 2019 final rule, FMCSA 
estimated drivers would incur $8 million in cost savings (at both 3 
percent and 7 percent discount rates) in 2020. Thus, FMCSA estimates 
that this rule will result in a net savings of $337 million in 2020 
($337 million = $345 million-$8 million), at both 3 percent and 7 
percent discount rates, with a similar magnitude of savings in 2021.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \7\ All estimates in this analysis have been updated from 2014 
dollars to 2018 dollars using a multiplier of 1.065 based on BEA 
NIPA data.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    FMCSA estimates the annualized cost savings of this rule to entry-
level drivers will be $179 million over four years at a 3 percent 
discount rate and $193 million at a 7 percent discount rate as shown in 
Table 1.

                                  Table 1--Total Cost of Final Rule to Drivers
                                          [In millions of 2018 dollars]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                          Year                              Undiscounted    Discounted at  3%  Discounted at  7%
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2020...................................................             ($337)             ($337)             ($337)
2021...................................................              (339)              (329)              (317)
                                                        --------------------------------------------------------

[[Page 6094]]

 
    Total..............................................              (675)              (666)              (653)
                                                        --------------------------------------------------------
Annualized.............................................  .................              (179)              (193)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Motor Carrier Costs
    In the 2016 final RIA, FMCSA valued the opportunity cost to motor 
carriers as represented by the forgone profit resulting from the amount 
of time drivers spend in training rather than driving.\8\ In Table 2 
below, FMCSA presents the change in costs to motor carriers that will 
result from this rule relative to the baseline.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \8\ Please see 2016 RIA page 76 for further details on motor 
carrier costs.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    To illustrate the logic behind the cost impacts of this rule to 
motor carriers, the following example discusses those impacts that 
would occur in year 2020. FMCSA estimated that the 2016 final rule 
would result in $21 million in costs to motor carriers in 2020 (at both 
3 percent and 7 percent discount rates), and that the 2019 final rule 
would result in $1 million in cost savings (at both 3 percent and 7 
percent discount rates). FMCSA estimates that this rule will result in 
$20 million in cost savings to motor carriers in 2020 (at both 3 
percent and 7 percent discount rates), with a similar magnitude of 
savings in 2021. As this final rule only defers the compliance date to 
2022, it will not impact motor carrier costs in 2022 through 2029 
relative to the baseline.
    FMCSA estimates that the annualized cost savings over four years to 
motor carriers will be $11 million at both 3 percent and 7 percent 
discount rates as presented in Table 2.

                           Table 2--Total Cost of the Proposed Rule to Motor Carriers
                                          [In millions of 2018 dollars]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                          Year                              Undiscounted    Discounted at  3%  Discounted at  7%
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2020...................................................              ($20)              ($20)              ($20)
2021...................................................               (20)               (19)               (19)
                                                        --------------------------------------------------------
    Total..............................................               (40)               (39)               (39)
                                                        --------------------------------------------------------
Annualized.............................................  .................               (11)               (11)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Training Provider Costs
    In the 2016 final RIA, FMCSA estimated that training providers 
would incur costs starting in 2020 for submitting documentation to the 
TPR and for preparing for and being subject to compliance audits. The 
2019 final rule did not result in cost savings to training providers. 
FMCSA estimates that this rule, by deferring training provider costs to 
2022, will result in cost savings of $4 million at both 3 percent and 7 
percent discount rates on an annualized basis over 4 years.
State Driver Licensing Agency (SDLA) Costs: Delayed Information 
Technology (IT) System Upgrades
    In the 2016 final rule, FMCSA assumed that SDLAs would upgrade 
their IT systems so that they can receive training completion 
information through the Commercial Driver's License Information System 
(CDLIS) and store the information in their State systems. That upgrade 
required States to create new fields in their State driver record 
databases by 2020. Because this rule will shift by 2 years the date by 
which this requirement must be satisfied, SDLAs will incur these costs 
in 2022 rather than 2020. This change is merely a temporal shift of a 
cost of the 2016 final rule.
    FMCSA estimated in the 2016 final RIA that in 2020 this IT system 
upgrade would cost $1.2 million per SDLA, and therefore $60 million,\9\ 
across all 51 SDLAs. FMCSA acknowledged in the 2016 final RIA that 
while some of these costs may be incurred prior to the effective date 
of the rule, FMCSA applied this entire cost to the first year of the 
analysis (2020). As noted above, this rule shifts these costs from 2020 
to 2022, which will result in a cost savings to SDLAs of $1 million 
annualized over 4 years at a 3 percent discount rate and $2 million at 
a 7 percent discount rate. These estimates of cost savings represent 
the sum across all 51 SDLAs.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \9\ Using estimates updated to 2018 dollars, 51 SDLAs x 
$1,171,180 = $59,730,159.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Federal Government Costs
    This rule will delay by 2 years the Federal government's incurrence 
of administrative costs related to the TPR as well as compliance audit 
costs. FMCSA estimates annualized cost savings across 4 years of 
$554,000 and $715,000 at 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates, 
respectively. The rule will not delay or alter the Federal government's 
incurrence of IT costs related to the development of the TPR.
Maintenance and Repair Costs
    In the 2016 final rule, FMCSA estimated there would be a cost 
savings for maintenance and repair of commercial motor vehicles 
operated by entry-level drivers. The 2016 final RIA considered those 
savings to be a benefit of that rule. This rule will defer the 
realization of those benefits by 2 years--

[[Page 6095]]

that is, from 2020 to 2022. While consistency with the 2016 final RIA 
would argue for accounting for this change as a disbenefit, the Agency 
recognizes that repair and maintenance expenses are borne directly by 
drivers and carriers (rather than an externality) and that it is 
therefore more appropriate to consider this impact of this rule as a 
cost rather than a disbenefit. Consequently, the Agency estimates the 
forgone cost savings of the rule as costs.
    To estimate these costs, FMCSA applies the same methodology used in 
the analysis of the other cost impacts of this rule by applying an 
implicit gross domestic product (GDP) price deflator to the yearly 
estimates used in the 2016 final RIA and then discounting and 
annualizing those adjusted figures over 4 years. As established in the 
2016 final RIA, the maintenance and repair cost savings were affected 
by an assumed 3-year period of knowledge retention of driver 
training.\10\ In short, in both the 2016 final RIA and the analysis of 
this rule, the Agency assumes that driver behavior reverts linearly 
over a 3-year period (that is, in the first year of driving following 
pre-CDL training, a driver experiences the full amount of maintenance 
and repair cost savings; in year two (the second year of driving 
following pre-CDL training), he or she experiences 66.67 percent of 
that amount; in year three (the third year of driving following pre-CDL 
training), 33.33 percent of that amount and after three years of 
driving no cost savings remains). Accordingly, under this rule, while 
none of the 2016 final rule's maintenance and repair cost savings will 
be realized in 2020 through 2021, 33.33 percent of that rule's cost 
savings will be realized in 2022, 66.67 percent in 2023, and 100 
percent in 2024. These impacts are reflected in Table 3 (year 2024 is 
excluded from Table 3 as there are no delta in 2024 relative to the 
baseline). On an annualized basis across 4 years, this rule will result 
in costs resulting from forgone maintenance and repair cost savings of 
$17 million at both 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates, as shown in 
Table 3.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \10\ Please see 2016 RIA page 97 for further details on 
knowledge retention methodology.

             Table 3--Discounted and Annualized Forgone Maintenance and Repair Savings @$0.0034/VMT
                                          [In millions of 2018 dollars]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                          Year                              Undiscounted     3% Discount rate   7% Discount rate
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2020...................................................                $14                $14                $14
2021...................................................                 23                 22                 21
2022...................................................                 19                 17                 16
2023...................................................                  9                  9                  8
                                                        --------------------------------------------------------
    Total..............................................                 64                 62                 59
                                                        --------------------------------------------------------
Annualized.............................................  .................                 17                 17
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Total Costs of the Interim Final Rule
    In Table 4 below, we show the annualized cost savings of this rule 
(over 4 years, from 2020 through 2023). FMCSA estimates the annualized 
cost savings of this rule to be $179 million at a 3 percent discount 
rate and $196 million at a 7 percent discount rate.

                                      Table 4--Total Cost of the Final Rule
                                          [In millions of 2018 dollars]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                          Year                              Undiscounted    3%  Discount rate  7%  Discount rate
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2020...................................................             ($420)             ($420)             ($420)
2021...................................................              (343)              (333)              (320)
2022...................................................                 87                 79                 68
2023...................................................                  9                  9                  8
                                                        --------------------------------------------------------
    Total..............................................              (666)              (664)              (664)
                                                        --------------------------------------------------------
Annualized.............................................  .................              (179)              (196)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Benefits of the Interim Final Rule
    FMCSA estimated the 2016 final rule to result in benefits to CMV 
operators, the transportation industry, the traveling public, and the 
environment. The Agency estimated benefits in two broad categories: 
Safety benefits and non-safety benefits. Training related to the 
performance of complex tasks was expected to improve performance; in 
the context of the training required by the 2016 final rule, 
improvement in task performance constitutes adoption of safer driving 
practices that the Agency expected to reduce the frequency and severity 
of crashes, thereby resulting in safer roadways for all. The Agency 
estimated training related to fuel efficient driving practices taught 
under the ``speed management'' and ``space management'' sections of the 
curriculum to reduce fuel consumption and consequently lower 
environmental impacts associated with carbon dioxide emissions. 
Similarly, safer driving and better-informed drivers were estimated to 
reduce maintenance and repair costs.\11\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \11\ While maintenance and repair cost savings were analyzed as 
a benefit in the 2016 final RIA, today's analysis of the rule 
considers the deferral of those savings to be a cost rather than a 
disbenefit. Therefore, impacts of this rule to maintenance and 
repair expenses are discussed in the costs section only.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    In this analysis, FMCSA estimates the forgone benefits resulting 
from this rule for years 2020 through 2023, and uses the 2016 and 2019 
ELDT final rules as the baseline for its estimates. As

[[Page 6096]]

mentioned above, this rule will delay implementation of the ELDT final 
rules to 2022, making 2022 the first year in which benefits of the 
previous final rules will be realized, accounting for the assumptions 
made in the 2016 analysis around knowledge retention.\12\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \12\ As established in the 2016 final RIA, the benefits of the 
2016 final rule were affected by an assumed 3-year period of 
knowledge retention of driver training. In short, FMCSA assumed that 
driver behavior reverts linearly over a 3-year period (that is, in 
the first year of driving following pre-CDL training, a driver 
experiences the full benefit of training; in year two, he or she 
experiences 66.67 percent of the initial benefit; in year three, 
33.33 percent of the initial benefit, and after year three no 
benefit remains). Thus, in today's analysis of the final rule, the 
estimated impacts to benefits for years 2022-2023 were adjusted to 
account for this assumption.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fuel Consumption
    In the 2016 final rule, FMCSA projected there would be an increase 
in fuel economy attributable to the rule. The 2016 final RIA monetized 
fuel savings benefits beginning in 2020. This rule will defer the 
realization of those benefits to 2022. As per the discussion of the 
knowledge retention assumption in relation to the costs associated with 
maintenance and repair (presented earlier in this analysis), under this 
rule only 33.33 percent of the fuel savings benefits of the 2016 final 
rule will be realized in 2022. Likewise, 66.67 percent of the fuel 
savings benefits of the 2016 final rule will be realized in 2023, and 
100 percent of those benefits will be realized in 2024. Therefore, as 
shown in Table 5, the value of forgone fuel savings that will result 
from this rule is equal to 100 percent of the 2016 final rule's fuel 
savings for years 2020 and 2021, 66.67 percent of the corresponding 
value for 2022, 33.33 percent for 2023, and zero for 2024.

                                                   Table 5--Undiscounted Value of Forgone Fuel Savings
                                                              [In millions of 2018 dollars]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                Year                                       2020             2021             2022             2023            Total
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Forgone Savings....................................................           ($84)           ($142)           ($117)            ($60)           ($403)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Discounting and annualizing (across 4 years \13\) the above 
disbenefits at the 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates produces the 
following, shown below.

                                            Table 6--Discounted and Annualized Value of Forgone Fuel Savings
                                                 [3 percent discount rate, in millions of 2018 dollars]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                       Year                               2020             2021             2022             2023            Total          Annualized
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Forgone Savings...................................           ($84)           ($138)           ($110)            ($60)           ($392)           ($106)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


                                            Table 7--Discounted and Annualized Value of Forgone Fuel Savings
                                                 [7 percent discount rate, in millions of 2018 dollars]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                       Year                               2020             2021             2022             2023            Total          Annualized
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Forgone Savings...................................           ($84)           ($133)           ($102)            ($49)           ($368)           ($109)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Monetized CO2 Impacts--Social Cost of Carbon Dioxide 
Emissions
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \13\ In the previous ELDT RIAs, the Agency annualized impacts 
across a 10-year period. FMCSA annualizes the costs and benefits of 
this final rule across 4 years as, compared to the baseline, there 
is no change in costs or benefits under this NPRM for years 5 
through 10 (2024-2029).
    \14\ For the estimates and methodology used in analyzing SC-
CO2 disbenefits, FMCSA relied on the Regulatory Impact 
Analysis for the Review of the Clean Power Plan by the Environmental 
Protection Agency, EPA-HQ-OAR-2017-0355-0110.
    \15\ FMCSA follows established precedent set forth in the 
aforementioned 2017 EPA RIA in focusing on domestic impacts. 
Circular A-4 states that analysis of economically significant 
proposed and final regulations ``should focus on benefits and costs 
that accrue to citizens and residents of the United States.'' EPA 
followed this guidance by adopting a domestic perspective in the 
RIA.
    \16\ These estimates were adjusted from 2011$ to 2018$ using a 
GDP deflator of 1.125 and then extrapolated. The aforementioned EPA 
RIA provided SC-CO2 values in 5 year intervals from 2020-
2050. FMCSA linearly extrapolated those figures to fill in the 
missing years needed for our analysis.
    \17\ E.O. 13783 directed agencies to ensure that estimates of 
the social cost of greenhouse gases used in regulatory analyses 
``are based on the best available science and economics'' and are 
consistent with the guidance contained in OMB Circular A-4, 
``including with respect to the consideration of domestic versus 
international impacts and the consideration of appropriate discount 
rates'' (E.O. 13783, Section 5(c)).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    FMCSA estimates the forgone climate benefits from this interim 
final rule using a measure of the domestic social cost of carbon (SC-
CO2).\14\ The SC-CO2 is a metric that estimates 
the monetary value of impacts associated with marginal changes in 
CO2 emissions in a given year. FMCSA included an analysis of 
the climate benefits in the 2016 final rule using the SC-
CO2, therefore we are also including this analysis here. The 
SC-CO2 estimates used in this regulatory evaluation focus on 
the direct impacts of climate change that are anticipated to occur 
within U.S. borders.\15\ The SC-CO2 estimates presented in 
Table 8 \16\ below are interim values developed under E.O. 13783 \17\ 
for use in regulatory analyses until an improved estimate of the 
impacts of climate change to the U.S. can be developed based on the 
best available science and economics.

[[Page 6097]]



 Table 8--Interim Domestic Social Cost of CO2 2020-2023 in 2018 Dollars
                             per Metric ton
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                    3 percent  7 percent
                                                      average    average
                       Year                          discount   discount
                                                       rate       rate
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2020..............................................      $6.75      $1.13
2021..............................................       7.03       1.13
2022..............................................       7.31       1.13
2023..............................................       7.59       1.13
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    In Table 9 below, the Agency estimates the forgone reduction, in 
metric tons, of CO2 emissions per year.

                               Table 9--Change in CO2 Emissions of the Final Rule
                                                [In metric tons]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                  Scenario                          2020             2021             2022             2023
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reference Case..............................         325,754          541,599          432,936          216,288
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Applying the interim domestic SC-CO2 estimates presented 
in Table 8 to the estimated forgone reduction in CO2 
emissions attributable to this rule (as shown in Table 9), FMCSA 
monetizes the value of the forgone reduction. The resulting values are 
presented below in Tables 10, 11, and 12.

                          Table 10--Value of Forgone CO2 Emissions Reductions, by Year
                                   [In millions of 2018 dollars, undiscounted]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
   Discount rate and statistic         2020            2021            2022            2023            Total
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3 percent Avg...................            ($2)            ($4)            ($3)            ($2)           ($11)
7 percent Avg...................           (0.4)             (1)           (0.5)           (0.2)             (2)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


                                              Table 11--Value of Forgone CO2 Emissions Reductions, by Year
                                                     [3% discount rate, in millions of 2018 dollars]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
               Discount rate and statistic                     2020            2021            2022            2023            Total        Annualized
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3 percent Avg...........................................            ($2)            ($4)            ($3)            ($2)           ($10)            ($3)
7 percent Avg...........................................           (0.4)             (1)           (0.5)           (0.2)             (2)           (0.4)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


                                              Table 12--Value of Forgone CO2 Emissions Reductions, by Year
                                                 [7 percent discount rate, in millions of 2018 dollars]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
               Discount rate and statistic                     2020            2021            2022            2023            Total        Annualized
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3 percent Avg...........................................            ($2)            ($4)            ($3)            ($1)           ($10)            ($3)
7 percent Avg...........................................           (0.4)             (1)           (0.4)           (0.2)             (2)           (0.5)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


[[Page 6098]]

    Total Benefits of the Interim Final Rule

    In Table 13 below, we show the annualized (over 4 years, from 2020 
to 2023) benefits of this rule. FMCSA estimates the annualized forgone 
benefits for this rule to be $108 million at a 3 percent discount rate 
and $112 million at a 7 percent discount rate.\18\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \18\ When aggregating total benefits for both 3 percent and 7 
percent discount rates (Table 13), the Agency utilized the 3 percent 
average rate SC-CO2 model (as seen in Table 8) for the 
forgone CO2 emissions reductions inputs (Tables 11 and 
12). Had we used the 7 percent average rate, the annualized values 
would have been $106 million at a 3 percent discount rate and $109 
at a 7 percent discount rate.

                                   Table 13--Total Benefits of the Final Rule
                                          [In millions of 2018 dollars]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                            Undiscounted        3 percent          7 percent
                          Year                                 total          discount rate      discount rate
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2020...................................................              ($86)              ($86)              ($86)
2021...................................................              (146)              (142)              (137)
2022...................................................              (120)              (113)              (105)
2023...................................................               (62)               (61)               (50)
                                                        --------------------------------------------------------
    Total..............................................              (414)              (403)              (378)
                                                        --------------------------------------------------------
Annualized.............................................  .................              (108)              (112)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

    This rule will result in total costs less than zero, and qualifies 
as an E.O. 13771 deregulatory action. The present value of the cost 
savings of this rule, measured on an infinite time horizon at a 7 
percent discount rate, expressed in 2016 dollars, and discounted to 
2020 (the year the rule goes into effect and cost savings will first be 
realized), is $627 million. On an annualized basis, these cost savings 
are $44 million.
    For the purpose of E.O. 13771 accounting, the April 5, 2017, OMB 
guidance requires that agencies also calculate the costs and cost 
savings discounted to year 2016. In accordance with this requirement, 
the present value of the cost savings of this rule, measured on an 
infinite time horizon at a 7 percent discount rate, expressed in 2016 
dollars, and discounted to 2016, is $478 million. On an annualized 
basis, these cost savings are $33 million.

C. Congressional Review Act

    Pursuant to the Congressional Review Act (5 U.S.C. 801, et seq.), 
the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs designated this rule 
as a ``major rule,'' as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).\19\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \19\ A ``major rule'' means any rule that the Administrator of 
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs at the Office of 
Management and Budget finds has resulted in or is likely to result 
in (a) an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more; (b) 
a major increase in costs or prices for consumers, individual 
industries, Federal agencies, State agencies, local government 
agencies, or geographic regions; or (c) significant adverse effects 
on competition, employment, investment, productivity, innovation, or 
on the ability of United States-based enterprises to compete with 
foreign-based enterprises in domestic and export markets (5 U.S.C. 
804(2)).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

D. Regulatory Flexibility Act (Small Entities)

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), as 
amended by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 
1996 (Pub. L. 104-121, 110 Stat. 857), requires Federal agencies to 
consider the effects of the regulatory action on small business and 
other small entities and to minimize any significant economic impact. 
The term ``small entities'' comprises 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 of less than 50,000.\20\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 
businesses.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \20\ Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) see 
National Archives at https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/laws/regulaotry-flexibility/601.html.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    FMCSA is not required to complete a regulatory flexibility 
analysis, because, as discussed earlier in the ``Administrative 
Procedure Act--``Good Cause'' Exception'' section, this action is not 
subject to notice and comment under section 553(b) of the APA.

E. Assistance for Small Entities

    In accordance with section 213(a) of the Small Business Regulatory 
Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, 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 will 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, Mr. Richard Clemente, listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT section of this interim 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.

F. 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. 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 $165 million (which is the value equivalent 
of $100,000,000 in 1995, adjusted for inflation to 2018 levels) or more 
in any one year. Though this final rule will not result in such an 
expenditure, the Agency does discuss the effects of this rule in 
section XI, subsections A. and B., above.

[[Page 6099]]

G. Paperwork Reduction Act

    This rule calls for a collection of information under the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520) (PRA). As defined in 5 CFR 
1320.3(c), ``collection of information'' comprises reporting, 
recordkeeping, monitoring, posting, labeling, and other, similar 
actions. The 2016 ELDT final rule discussed the changes to the approved 
collection of information, but did not revise the supporting statement 
for that collection at that time, because the changes from the final 
rule would not take effect until after the expiration date of that 
approved collection (see PRA discussion at 81 FR 88732, 88788). This 
collection is currently being revised as part of its renewal cycle, and 
as required by the PRA (44 U.S.C. 3507(d)), FMCSA will submit its 
estimate of the burden of the proposal contained in this interim final 
rule to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for its review of the 
collection of information renewal. FMCSA published the 60-day notice in 
the Federal Register on July 3, 2019 (84 FR 31982). FMCSA will publish 
the 30-day notice in the Federal Register, reflecting the changes made 
by this IFR.
    It is the agency's intent to obtain OMB approval for the revised 
collection of information in advance of the new compliance date so that 
training providers may complete the TPR registration process and begin 
uploading student certificates as soon as the TPR is available, even if 
prior to the new compliance date of February 7, 2022.
    You are not required to respond to a collection of information 
unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.

H. E.O. 13132 (Federalism)

    A rule has implications for Federalism under Section 1(a) of 
Executive Order 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 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. Therefore, this rule does not 
have sufficient Federalism implications to warrant the preparation of a 
Federalism Impact Statement.

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

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

J. 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. While this interim final rule is economically significant, 
the Agency does not anticipate that this regulatory action could in any 
respect present an environmental or safety risk that could 
disproportionately affect children.

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

    FMCSA reviewed this interim 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.

L. Privacy

    The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2005, (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 change the collection of 
personally identifiable information (PII) as set forth in the 2016 ELDT 
final rule. The supporting PIA, available for review on the DOT 
website, https://www.transportation.gov/privacy, gives a full and 
complete explanation of FMCSA practices for protecting PII in general 
and specifically in relation to the ELDT final rule, which would also 
apply to this final rule.
    As required by the Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a), FMCSA and DOT will 
publish, with request for comment, a system of records notice (SORN) 
that will describe FMCSA's maintenance and electronic transmission of 
information affected by the requirements of the ELDT final rule that 
are covered by the Privacy Act. This SORN will be published in the 
Federal Register not less than 30 days before the Agency is authorized 
to collect or use PII retrieved by unique identifier.

M. 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.

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

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

O. 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.

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

    The National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (NTTAA) (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.

Q. Environment

    The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 
4321 et seq.) requires Federal agencies to

[[Page 6100]]

integrate environmental values into their decision-making processes by 
considering the potential environmental impacts of their actions. In 
accordance with NEPA, FMCSA's NEPA Order 5610.1 (NEPA Implementing 
Procedures and Policy for Considering Environmental Impacts), and other 
applicable requirements, FMCSA prepared an Environmental Assessment 
(EA) to review the potential impacts of the ELDT final rule. That EA is 
available for inspection or copying in the Regulations.gov website 
listed under ADDRESSES.
    Because this interim final rule will only delay the compliance date 
of the ELDT final rule without any other substantive change to the 
regulations, FMCSA continues to rely upon the previously published EA 
to support this interim final rule. As noted in that EA, implementation 
of the 2016 ELDT final rule imposed new training standards for certain 
individuals applying for their CDL, an upgrade of their CDL, or 
hazardous materials, passenger, or school bus endorsement for their 
license. FMCSA found that noise, endangered species, cultural resources 
protected under the National Historic Preservation Act, wetlands, and 
resources protected under Section 4(f) of the Department of 
Transportation Act of 1966, 49 U.S.C. 303, as amended by Public Law 
109-59, would not be impacted. The impact areas that may be affected 
and were evaluated in the EA included air quality, hazardous materials 
transportation, solid waste, and public safety. Specifically, as 
outlined in the 2016 RIA for the ELDT final rule, FMCSA anticipated 
that an increase in driver training would result in improved fuel 
economy based on changes to driver behavior, such as smoother 
acceleration and braking practices. Such improved fuel economy is 
anticipated to result in lower air emissions and improved air quality 
for gases, including carbon dioxide. For today's final rule, FMCSA 
estimates the forgone environmental benefits for years 2020 through 
2023. As mentioned above, today's final rule temporally shifts the 
benefits of the 2016 final rule by two years but otherwise retains the 
overall environmental impacts of the 2016 final rule.

R. E.O. 13783 (Promoting Energy Independence and Economic Growth)

    E.O. 13783 directs executive departments and agencies to review 
existing regulations that potentially burden the development or use of 
domestically produced energy resources, and to appropriately suspend, 
revise, or rescind those that unduly burden the development of domestic 
energy resources. In accordance with E.O. 13783, DOT prepared and 
submitted a report to the Director of OMB that provides specific 
recommendations that, to the extent permitted by law, could alleviate 
or eliminate aspects of agency action that burden domestic energy 
production. This interim final rule has not been identified by DOT 
under E.O. 13783 as potentially alleviating unnecessary burdens on 
domestic energy production.

List of Subjects

49 CFR Part 380

    Administrative practice and procedure, Highway safety, Motor 
carriers, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

49 CFR Part 383

    Administrative practice and procedure, Alcohol abuse, Drug abuse, 
Highway safety, Motor carriers.

49 CFR Part 384

    Administrative practice and procedure, Alcohol abuse, Drug abuse, 
Highway safety, Motor carriers.

    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, FMCSA amends 49 CFR 
parts 380, 383, and 384 as follows:

PART 380--SPECIAL TRAINING REQUIREMENTS

0
 1. The authority citation for part 380 continues to read as follows:

     Authority:  49 U.S.C. 31133, 31136, 31305, 31307, 31308, 31502; 
sec. 4007(a) and (b), Pub. L. 102-240, 105 Stat. 1914, 2151; sec. 
32304, Pub. L. 112-141, 126 Stat. 405, 791; and 49 CFR 1.87.


Sec.  380.600  [Amended]

0
 2. Amend Sec.  380.600 by removing the year ``2020'' and adding in its 
place the year ``2022''.


Sec.  380.603  [Amended]

0
 3. In Sec.  380.603, amend paragraphs (b) and (c)(1) and (2) by 
removing the year ``2020'' and adding in its place the year ``2022''.

PART 383--COMMERCIAL DRIVER'S LICENSE STANDARDS; REQUIREMENTS AND 
PENALTIES

0
4. The authority citation for part 383 continues to read as follows:

     Authority: 49 U.S.C. 521, 31136, 31301 et seq., and 31502; 
secs. 214 and 215 of Pub. L 106-159, 113 Stat. 1748, 1766, 1767; 
sec. 1012(b) of Pub. L. 107-56; 115 Stat. 272, 297, sec. 4140 of 
Pub. L. 109-59, 119 Stat. 1144, 1746; sec. 32934 of Pub. L. 112-141, 
126 Stat. 405, 830; secs. 5401 and 7208 of Pub. L. 114- 94, 129 
Stat. 1312, 1546, 1593; and 49 CFR 1.87.


Sec.  383.71  [Amended]

0
 5. In Sec.  383.71, amend paragraphs (a)(3), (b)(11), and (e)(5) by 
removing the year ``2020'' and adding in its place the year ``2022''.

0
6. Amend Sec.  383.73:
0
 a. By revising paragraphs (b)(3) introductory text and (b)(3)(ii);
0
 b. In paragraph (b)(11) by removing the year ``2020'' and adding in 
its place the year ``2022'';
0
 c. By revising paragraph (e)(9); and
0
 d. In paragraph (p) by removing the year ``2020'' and adding in its 
place the year ``2022''.
    The revisions read as follows:


Sec.  383.73  State procedures.

* * * * *
    (b) * * *
    (3) Initiate and complete a check of the applicant's driving record 
to ensure that the person is not subject to any disqualification under 
Sec.  383.51, or any license disqualification under State law, and does 
not have a driver's license from more than one State or jurisdiction. 
The record check must include, but is not limited to, the following:
* * * * *
    (ii) A check with the CDLIS to determine whether the driver 
applicant already has been issued a CDL, whether the applicant's 
license has been disqualified, or if the applicant has been 
disqualified from operating a commercial motor vehicle;
* * * * *
    (e) * * *
    (9) Beginning on February 7, 2022, not conduct a skills test of an 
applicant for an upgrade to a Class A or Class B CDL, or a passenger 
(P), school bus (S) endorsement, or administer the knowledge test to an 
applicant for the hazardous materials (H) endorsement, unless the 
applicant has completed the training required by subpart F of part 380 
of this subchapter.
* * * * *

PART 384--STATE COMPLIANCE WITH COMMERCIAL DRIVER'S LICENSE PROGRAM

0
 7. The authority citation for part 384 continues to read as follows:

     Authority:  49 U.S.C. 31136, 31301 et seq., and 31502; secs. 
103 and 215 of Pub. L. 106-59, 113 Stat. 1753, 1767; sec. 32934 of 
Pub. L. 112-141, 126 Stat. 405, 830; sec. 5401 and 7208 of Pub. L. 
114-94, 129 Stat. 1312, 1546, 1593; and 49 CFR 1.87.

[[Page 6101]]

Sec.  384.230  [Amended]

0
 8. Amend Sec.  384.230 by removing the year ``2020'' and adding in its 
place the year ``2022'' wherever it appears.


Sec.  384.301  [Amended]

0
 9. In Sec.  384.301, amend paragraph (k) by removing the year ``2020'' 
and adding in its place the year ``2022''.

    Issued under the authority of delegation in 49 CFR 1.87.

    Dated: January 23, 2020.
Jim Mullen,
Acting Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2020-01548 Filed 2-3-20; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P


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