Department of Transportation June 19, 2013 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

As part of a paperwork reduction initiative, FRA is proposing to eliminate the regulatory requirement that each carrier must file with FRA a signal system status report every five years. FRA believes the report is no longer necessary because advances in technology have made it possible for more updated information regarding railroad signal systems to be available to FRA through alternative sources. Separately, FRA is proposing to amend the criminal penalty provision in the Signal System Reporting Requirements by updating an outdated statutory citation.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces that the Information Collection Requirements (ICRs) abstracted below have been forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and comment. The ICRs describes the nature of the information collections and their expected burdens. The Federal Register notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting comments on the following collections of information was published on March 27, 2013 (78 FR 18668).

The Board is granting an exemption under 49 U.S.C. 10502 from the prior approval requirements of 49 U.S.C. 10901 for the California High-Speed Rail Authority (Authority) to construct an approximately 65- mile high-speed passenger rail line between Merced and Fresno, California (the Project). The Project would be the first section of the statewide California High-Speed Train System. This exemption is subject to environmental mitigation conditions and the condition that the Authority build the route designated as environmentally preferable.

In accordance with the procedures governing the application for, and the processing of, special permits from the Department of Transportation's Hazardous Material Regulations (49 CFR part 107, subpart B), notice is hereby given that the Office of Hazardous Materials Safety has received the applications described herein. This notice is abbreviated to expedite docketing and public notice. Because the sections affected, modes of transportation, and the nature of application have been shown in earlier Federal Register publications, they are not repeated here. Requests for modification of special permits (e.g. to provide for additional hazardous materials, packaging design changes, additional mode of transportation, etc.) are described in footnotes to the application number. Application numbers with the suffix ``M'' denote a modification request. These applications have been separated from the new application for special permits to facilitate processing.

In accordance with the requirements of 49 U.S.C. 5117(c), PHMSA is publishing the following list of special permit applications that have been in process for 180 days or more. The reason(s) for delay and the expected completion date for action on each application is provided in association with each identified application.