Department of Transportation June 30, 2005 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

As authorized by Pub. L. 105-383 and Pub. L. 107-295, the Secretary of Transportation, as represented by the Maritime Administration (MARAD), is authorized to grant waivers of the U.S.- build requirement of the coastwise laws under certain circumstances. A request for such a waiver has been received by MARAD. The vessel, and a brief description of the proposed service, is listed below. The complete application is given in DOT docket 2005-21688 at https:// dms.dot.gov. Interested parties may comment on the effect this action may have on U.S. vessel builders or businesses in the U.S. that use U.S.-flag vessels. If MARAD determines, in accordance with Pub. L. 105- 383 and MARAD's regulations at 46 CFR Part 388 (68 FR 23084; April 30, 2003), that the issuance of the waiver will have an unduly adverse effect on a U.S.-vessel builder or a business that uses U.S.-flag vessels in that business, a waiver will not be granted. Comments should refer to the docket number of this notice and the vessel name in order for MARAD to properly consider the comments. Comments should also state the commenter's interest in the waiver application, and address the waiver criteria given in Sec. 388.4 of MARAD's regulations at 46 CFR Part 388.

As authorized by Pub. L. 105-383 and Pub. L. 107-295, the Secretary of Transportation, as represented by the Maritime Administration (MARAD), is authorized to grant waivers of the U.S.- build requirement of the coastwise laws under certain circumstances. A request for such a waiver has been received by MARAD. The vessel, and a brief description of the proposed service, is listed below. The complete application is given in DOT docket 2005-21687 at https:// dms.dot.gov. Interested parties may comment on the effect this action may have on U.S. vessel builders or businesses in the U.S. that use U.S.-flag vessels. If MARAD determines, in accordance with Pub. L. 105- 383 and MARAD's regulations at 46 CFR Part 388 (68 FR 23084; April 30, 2003), that the issuance of the waiver will have an unduly adverse effect on a U.S.-vessel builder or a business that uses U.S.-flag vessels in that business, a waiver will not be granted. Comments should refer to the docket number of this notice and the vessel name in order for MARAD to properly consider the comments. Comments should also state the commenter's interest in the waiver application, and address the waiver criteria given in Sec. 388.4 of MARAD's regulations at 46 CFR Part 388.

The FAA is making available an EA and FONSI/ROD for the evaluation of environmental impacts associated with a proposed extension to runway 10R/28L executed by the FAA, for the Capital City Airport located in Lansing, Michigan. Point of Contact: Mr. Brad Davidson, Environmental Protection Specialist, FAA Great Lakes Region, Detroit Airports District Office, 11677 South Wayne Road, Suite 107, Romulus, MI 48174 (734) 229-2900.

This notice proposes special conditions for the Gulfstream Aerospace Limited Partnership (GALP) Model G150 airplane. This airplane will have a novel or unusual design feature associated with use of a hydrophobic coating, rather than windshield wipers, as the means to maintain a clear portion of the windshield during precipitation conditions, as required by the airworthiness standards for transport category airplanes. The applicable airworthiness regulations do not contain adequate or appropriate safety standards for this design feature. These proposed special conditions contain the additional safety standards that the Administrator considers necessary to establish a level of safety equivalent to that established by the existing airworthiness standards.

This document amends the Federal motor vehicle safety standard on hydraulic and electric brake systems to extend the current minimum performance requirements and associated test procedures for parking brake systems to all multipurpose passenger vehicles (MPVs), buses and trucks with gross vehicle weight ratings (GVWR) greater than 10,000 pounds (4,536 kilograms) equipped with hydraulic or electric brake systems. Currently, the only vehicles with GVWRs greater than 10,000 pounds to which the standard's parking brake requirements apply are school buses. The agency concludes that it is in the interest of safety to require all MPVs, buses and trucks with GVWRs over 10,000 pounds to have parking brakes that meet the performance requirements currently applicable to heavy school buses.

FRA is issuing revisions to the regulations governing locomotive event recorders to improve the crashworthiness of railroad locomotive event recorders and to enhance the quality of information available for post-accident investigations. FRA is amending its existing regulations in four major ways: By requiring that a new locomotive have an event recorder with a ``hardened'' memory module, proven by a requirement that the memory module preserve stored data throughout a sequence of prescribed tests; by requiring that this event recorder on a new locomotive collect certain additional types of information; by simplifying standards for inspecting, testing, and maintaining all event recorders; and by requiring the phasing out, over a four-year period, of event recorders on existing locomotives that use magnetic tape as a data storage medium and their replacement with event recorders with a certified survivable version of its previous event recorder. FRA is also revising the definitions contained in the existing regulation to remove the letter designations so that the defined terms are simply presented in alphabetical order.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for Boeing Model 727 airplanes equipped with an auxiliary fuel tank having a fuel pump installed. This AD requires revising the airplane flight manual to include limitations on operating the fuel pumps for the auxiliary fuel tank. This AD is prompted by a design review of the fuel pump installation, which revealed a potential unsafe condition related to the auxiliary fuel tank(s). We are issuing this AD to prevent dry operation of the fuel pumps for the auxiliary fuel tank, which could create a potential ignition source inside the auxiliary fuel tank that could result in a fire or explosion of the auxiliary fuel tank.