Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration November 2014 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

FMCSA announces that it is considering a rulemaking that would increase the minimum levels of financial responsibility for motor carriers, including liability coverage for bodily injury or property damage; establish financial responsibility requirements for passenger carrier brokers; implement financial responsibility requirements for brokers and freight forwarders, and revise existing rules concerning self-insurance and trip insurance. FMCSA seeks public comments on these topics.

FMCSA announces its decision to grant requests from five individuals for exemptions from the regulatory requirement that interstate commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers have ``no established medical history or clinical diagnosis of epilepsy or any other condition which is likely to cause loss of consciousness or any loss of ability to control a CMV.'' The regulation and the associated advisory criteria published in the Code of Federal Regulations as the ``Instructions for Performing and Recording Physical Examinations'' have resulted in numerous drivers being prohibited from operating CMVs in interstate commerce based on the fact that they have had one or more seizures and are taking anti-seizure medication, rather than an individual analysis of their circumstances by a qualified medical examiner. The Agency concluded that granting exemptions for these CMV drivers will provide a level of safety that is equivalent to or greater than the level of safety maintained without the exemptions. FMCSA grants exemptions that will allow these five individuals to operate CMVs in interstate commerce for a 2-year period. The exemptions preempt State laws and regulations and may be renewed.

FMCSA announces receipt of applications from 12 individuals for an exemption from the prohibition against persons with a clinical diagnosis of epilepsy or any other condition which is likely to cause a loss of consciousness or any loss of ability to operate a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) from operating CMVs in interstate commerce. The regulation and the associated advisory criteria published in the Code of Federal Regulations as the ``Instructions for Performing and Recording Physical Examinations'' have resulted in numerous drivers being prohibited from operating CMVs in interstate commerce based on the fact that they have had one or more seizures and are taking anti- seizure medication, rather than an individual analysis of their circumstances by a qualified medical examiner. If granted, the exemptions would enable these individuals who have had one or more seizures and are taking anti-seizure medication to operate CMVs for 2 years in interstate commerce.

FMCSA announces that 10 individuals have applied for a medical exemption from the hearing requirement in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs). In accordance with the statutory requirements concerning applications for exemptions, FMCSA requests public comments on these requests. The statute and implementing regulations concerning exemptions require that exemptions must provide an equivalent or greater level of safety than if they were not granted. If the Agency determines the exemptions would satisfy the statutory requirements and decides to grant theses requests after reviewing the public comments submitted in response to this notice, the exemptions would enable 10 individuals to operate CMVs in interstate commerce.

On March 28, 2014, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) published a Supplemental Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (SNPRM) that proposed amendments to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) to establish: Minimum performance and design standards for hours-of-service (HOS) electronic logging devices (ELDs); requirements for the mandatory use of these devices by drivers currently required to prepare HOS records of duty status (RODS); requirements concerning HOS supporting documents; and measures to address concerns about harassment resulting from the mandatory use of ELDs. FMCSA announces the availability of a new report: ``Attitudes of Truck Drivers and Carriers on the Use of Electronic Logging Devices and Driver Harassment.'' This project surveyed drivers on their attitudes regarding carrier harassment and examined whether reported harassment experiences varied due to the hours-of-service logging method used by the driver. The survey is an effort to further address the potential for harassment associated with ELDs and provides results that are consistent with the Agency's discussion of harassment in the ELD SNPRM. A copy of the report has been placed in the docket referenced at the beginning of this notice.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, FMCSA announces its plan to submit the Information Collection Request (ICR) described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The purpose of this ICR is to examine, by a one-time collection of survey data, the relationship of commercial driver license (CDL) entry level driver training (ELDT), as influenced by any subsequent employer training that may have been received, to safety performance of the drivers. The goal of this research is to contribute to other related research being done evaluating the relationship of CDL ELDT to subsequent safety performance of the drivers. The results of this study, along with others, will provide FMCSA with information to support its consideration of the congressionally mandated requirement to establish enhanced minimum training requirements for CDL entry-level drivers from those currently required at 49 CFR 380.503. There is no national database that contains or collects data on the training received by drivers to enable them to qualify for a CDL. Recently licensed freight CDL drivers will be surveyed. (This will contain both drivers without hazardous material endorsements and drives with hazardous materials endorsements.) Motorcoach and bus drivers recently observed to have begun driving such vehicles in the most recent three years, as indicated by data in MCMIS, will be surveyed. The goal is to obtain a better understanding of the amount and type of total training they received, and its composition between that received before obtaining the CDL, and that received after obtaining the CDL. Type of training is divided into hours-based versus performance-based. Data on the amount and type of training received will be collected using a one-time survey effort. The data will be analyzed to describe the details of the driver training reported by the survey participants. Results of the training survey data will be analyzed in relation to the safety performance data of the responding drivers available from two databases: the State-operated Commercial Driver's License Information System (CDLIS) and the Federally-operated Motor Carrier Management Information System (MCMIS).

FMCSA announces its decision to renew the exemptions from the vision requirement in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations for 24 individuals. FMCSA has statutory authority to exempt individuals from the vision requirement if the exemptions granted will not compromise safety. The Agency has concluded that granting these exemption renewals will provide a level of safety that is equivalent to or greater than the level of safety maintained without the exemptions for these commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers.