Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 180 / Friday, September 18, 2009 / Proposed Rules 47911 

action of the same title which is located 

in the Rules and Regulations section of 

this Federal Register. 

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq. 

Dated: September 4, 2009. 

Carol Rushin, 

Acting Regional Administrator, Region 8. 

[FR Doc. E9–22281 Filed 9–17–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

49 CFR Part 367 

[Docket No. FMCSA–2009–0231] 

RIN–2126–AB19 

Fees for the Unified Carrier 

Registration Plan and Agreement 

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of Proposed Rulemaking; 

extension of comment period. 

SUMMARY: FMCSA extends the time for 

submitting comments for an additional 

ten days in response to the notice of 

proposed rulemaking (NPRM) proposing 

fees for the Unified Carrier Registration 

Plan and Agreement published on 

September 3, 2009. The FMCSA 

received a request to extend the 

comment period from the five industry 

representatives on the Board of 

Directors of the Unified Carrier 

Registration Agreement (Board), which 

was supported by several other 

interested parties. The extension of the 

comment period will allow all 

interested parties additional time to 

submit comments to the proposed rule. 

DATES: The comment period for the 

proposed rule published September 3, 

2009 (74 FR 45583) is extended. 

Comments must be received on or 

before September 28, 2009. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, 

identified by docket number FMCSA– 

2009–0231 and/or RIN 2126–AB19, by 

any of the following methods—Internet, 

facsimile, regular mail, or hand-deliver. 

Federal eRulemaking Portal: Federal 

Docket Management System (FDMS) 

Web site at http://www.regulations.gov. 

The FDMS is the preferred method for 

submitting comments, and we urge you 

to use it. In the ‘‘Comment’’ or 

‘‘Submission’’ section, type Docket ID 

Number ‘‘FMCSA–2009–0231’’, select 

‘‘Go’’, and then click on ‘‘Send a 

Comment or Submission.’’ You will 

receive a tracking number when you 

submit a comment. 

Fax: 1–202–493–2251. 

Mail, Courier, or Hand-Deliver: U.S. 

Department of Transportation, Docket 

Operations (M–30), West Building 

Ground Floor, Room W12–140, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, 

DC 20590. Office hours are between 9 

a.m. and 5 p.m., ET, Monday through 

Friday, except Federal holidays. 

Docket: Comments and material 

received from the public, as well as 

background information and documents 

mentioned in this preamble, are part of 

docket FMCSA–2009–0231, and are 

available for inspection and copying on 

the Internet at http:// 

www.regulations.gov. You may also 

view and copy documents at the U.S. 

Department of Transportation’s Docket 

Operations Unit, West Building Ground 

Floor, Room W12–140, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue, SE., Washington, DC. 

Privacy Act: All comments will be 

posted without change including any 

personal information provided to the 

FDMS at http://www.regulations.gov. 

Anyone can search the electronic form 

of all our dockets in FDMS, by the name 

of the individual submitting the 

comment (or signing the comment, if 

submitted on behalf of an association, 

business, labor union, etc). The 

Department of Transportation’s (DOT) 

complete Privacy Act Statement was 

published in the Federal Register on 

April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19476), and can 

be viewed at http://docketsinfo.dot.gov. 

Comments received after the comment 

closing date will be included in the 

docket, and we will consider late 

comments to the extent practicable. 

FMCSA may, however, issue a final rule 

at any time after the close of the 

comment period. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. 

Julie Otto, Office of Enforcement and 

Program Delivery, (202) 366–0710, 

FMCSA, Department of Transportation, 

1200 New Jersey Ave., SE., Washington, 

DC 20590 or by e-mail at: 

FMCSAregs@dot.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

On September 8, 2009, the five 

industry representatives on the Board of 

Directors of the Unified Carrier 

Registration Agreement sent a request 

on behalf of themselves and their 

respective organizations including the 

American Trucking Associations, the 

National Private Trucking Council, the 

Owner Operator Independent Drivers 

Association, the Transportation 

Intermediaries Association, and 

Walmart for an extension of the 

comment period in the subject 

rulemaking proceeding. 

Requests for extension of time to 

comment in a rulemaking proceeding 

before FMCSA are governed by the 

provisions of 49 CFR 389.19. Extensions 

require a showing of good cause, and are 

granted if consistent with the public 

interest. 

Petitioners contend that the agency is 

required to provide an extension 

because of the provisions of Executive 

Order No. 12866, 58 FR 51733 (Oct. 4, 

1993), as amended by Executive Order 

No. 13258, 67 FR 9383 (Feb. 28, 2002). 

Section 6 of E.O. 12866 provides that: 

Each agency shall (consistent with its own 

rules, regulations, or procedures) provide the 

public with meaningful participation in the 

regulatory process. In particular, before 

issuing a notice of proposed rulemaking, 

each agency should, where appropriate, seek 

the involvement of those who are intended 

to benefit from and those expected to be 

burdened by any regulation (including, 

specifically, State, local, and tribal officials). 

In addition, each agency should afford the 

public a meaningful opportunity to comment 

on any proposed regulation, which in most 

cases should include a comment period of 

not less than 60 days. 

In this matter, after the Board 

submitted its initial proposal for an 

adjustment of the UCR fees on April 3, 

2009, FMCSA’s designated member of 

the Board responded by conducting a 

telephone conference on April 23 with 

the Board’s chairman and the chairman 

of Board’s revenue and fees 

subcommittee to discuss several issues 

presented by the proposal. Those issues 

were explained in more detail in a 

written set of questions to the Board 

transmitted immediately after the 

conference. 

Over the next few months, in the 

course of public meetings of the board 

of directors in May 14, June 16 and 17, 

and July 9, the issues raised by FMCSA 

were discussed. At its June meeting, the 

Board voted by a majority to reconsider 

the proposal submitted on April 3. The 

revenue and fees subcommittee of the 

Board, which has members from the 

motor carrier industry, met thereafter to 

consider alternative proposals that 

might address the issues raised by 

FMCSA. Two such proposals to replace 

the April 3 proposal were put to a vote 

by the Board at its meeting on July 9; 

both proposals failed to be adopted 

because of a tie vote among the 

members of the Board present and 

voting. On July 15, the Board submitted 

a letter advising the agency of these 

facts and, in effect, requesting FMCSA 

to proceed with the rulemaking 

proceeding contemplated by 49 U.S.C. 

14504a(d)(7). As indicated in that letter, 

the Board and FMCSA both consider 

that the 90-day statutory time period for 

completion of the proceeding 

commenced on July 15. Petitioners’ 


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47912 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 180 / Friday, September 18, 2009 / Proposed Rules 

contention that the statutory time limit 

has already expired is not correct. 

In any case, by seeking the 

involvement of the Board in addressing 

the issues raised by the agency, 

interested and affected members of the 

Board and the public at large have long 

been aware of both the nature of the 

various fee proposals and the issues 

raised by FMCSA. Those issues have 

now been presented for public comment 

in the notice of proposed rulemaking 

issued on September 3. Because the 90- 

day period specified by statute ends on 

October 15, 2009, FMCSA had no option 

other than providing a short time for 

submitting comments, in order to 

provide the agency sufficient time to 

consider the public comments and to 

prepare a final rule. The 15-day 

comment period is the same comment 

period that was provided in 2007, 

without objection by any interested 

person, for consideration of the initial 

fees recommended by the Board. See 72 

FR 29472 (May 29, 2007). 

The provisions of E.O. 12866 quoted 

above do not require a 60-day comment 

period in every rulemaking, but instead 

clearly recognize that, in some cases, a 

shorter comment period is appropriate. 

Petitioners and other interested parties 

have had an opportunity for 

‘‘meaningful participation’’ in the 

regulatory process over the last several 

months. Nonetheless good cause has 

been shown to grant a short extension 

of the comment period in this matter, in 

order to allow petitioners and the 

general public an opportunity to 

provide comprehensive comments on 

the proposed fees and fee bracket 

structure included in the NPRM 

published by FMCSA on September 3, 

2009. 

FMCSA, in the public interest grants 

in part the petitioner’s request to extend 

the comment period. The Agency 

extends the comment period by ten 

days; comments must be received on or 

before September 28, 2009. 

Issued: September 15, 2009. 

Rose A. McMurray, 

Acting Deputy Administrator. 

[FR Doc. E9–22645 Filed 9–17–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 


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