Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration March 3, 2009 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with the memorandum of January 20, 2009, from the Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff, entitled ``Regulatory Review,'' published in the Federal Register on January 26, 2009, FMCSA is seeking public comment on a contemplated delay of 90 days in the effective date of its January 16, 2009, final rule entitled ``Elimination of Route Designation Requirement for Motor Carriers Transporting Passengers over Regular Routes.'' The final rule announced the discontinuation of the administrative requirement that applicants seeking for-hire authority to transport passengers over regular routes submit a detailed description and a map of the route(s) over which they propose to operate. The effective date of the rule is March 17, 2009, with a compliance date of July 15, 2009. The FMCSA is considering a temporary 90-day extension in the effective date to June 15, 2009, to allow the Agency the opportunity for further review and consideration of the final rule. FMCSA acknowledges that the January 20, 2009, memorandum only recommends 60 days, but is allowing for 90 days to give us enough time to consider and respond to comments.

FMCSA previously announced its decision to renew the exemptions from the vision requirement in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations for 9 individuals. FMCSA has statutory authority to exempt individuals from the vision requirement if the exemptions granted will not compromise safety. The Agency has reviewed the comments submitted in response to the previous announcement and concluded that granting these exemptions will provide a level of safety that will be equivalent to, or greater than, the level of safety maintained without the exemptions for these commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers.