Document Headings

                    Document headings vary by document type but may contain                    the following:                  
                -                       the agency or agencies that issued and signed a document                    
                -                       the number of the CFR title and the number of each part                      the document amends, proposes to amend, or is directly                      related to                    
                -                       the agency docket number / agency internal file number                    
                -                       the RIN which identifies each regulatory action listed in                      the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory                      Actions                    

                    See the                                          Document Drafting Handbook                                        for more details.                  

###### Department of Transportation

###### Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

          - [Docket No. FMCSA-2023-0159]

# AGENCY:

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), Department of Transportation (DOT).

# ACTION:

Notice and request for comments.

# SUMMARY:

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 its review and approval and invites public comment. The information collection concerns records of inspection, repair, and maintenance of commercial motor vehicles (CMVs). FMCSA requests approval to revise an ICR titled, “Inspection, Repair and Maintenance.”

# DATES:

We must receive your comments on or before November 24, 2023.

# ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments identified by Docket Number FMCSA-2023-0159 using any of the following methods:
      -  Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov.                          Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.                    
      -  Mail:                          Dockets Operations; U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, Ground Floor, Washington, DC 20590-0001.                    
      -  Hand Delivery or Courier:                          Dockets Operations, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, Ground Floor, Washington, DC 20590-0001 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET, Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you, please call (202) 366-9317 or (202) 366-9826 before visiting Dockets Operations.                    
      -  Fax:                          1-202-493-2251.                    

                        To avoid duplication, please use only one of these four methods. See the “Public Participation and Request for Comments” portion of the                         **SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION**                         section for instructions on submitting comments.                    

# FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

                        Mr. Jose R. Cestero, Vehicle and Roadside Operations Division, DOT, FMCSA, West Building, 6th Floor, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590; 202-366-5541;                         *jose.cestero@dot.gov.*

# SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

## Instructions

                    All submissions must include the Agency name and docket number. For detailed instructions on submitting comments, see the Public Participation heading below. Note that all comments received will be posted without change to                     *https://www.regulations.gov,*                     including any personal information provided. Please see the Privacy Act heading below.                

## Public Participation and Request for Comments

If you submit a comment, please include the docket number for this notice (FMCSA-2023-0159), indicate the specific section of this document to which your comment applies, and provide a reason for each suggestion or recommendation. You may submit your comments and material online or by fax, mail, or hand delivery, but please use only one of these means. FMCSA recommends that you include your name and a mailing address, an email address, or a phone number in the body of your document so FMCSA can contact you if there are questions regarding your submission. If you want us to notify you that we received your comments, please include a self-addressed, stamped envelope or postcard, or print the acknowledgement page that appears after submitting comments online.

                    To submit your comment online, go to                     *https://www.regulations.gov/​docket/​FMCSA-2023-0159/​document,*                     click on this notice, click “Comment,” and type your comment into the text box on the following screen.                

                    If you submit your comments by mail or hand delivery, submit them in an                           ( print page 65765)                        unbound format, no larger than 8                    1/2                     by 11 inches, suitable for copying and electronic filing.                

Comments received after the comment closing date will be included in the docket and will be considered to the extent practicable.

## Privacy Act

                    In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits comments from the public to better inform its rulemaking process. DOT posts these comments, without edit, including any personal information the commenter provides, to                     *www.regulations.gov,*                     as described in the system of records notice (DOT/ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at                     *www.dot.gov/​privacy.*

## Background

The Secretary of Transportation (Secretary) is authorized under the provisions of 49 U.S.C. 31502 to prescribe requirements for, among other things, safety of operations of equipment of motor carriers that operate CMVs in interstate commerce. Under 49 U.S.C. 31136, the Secretary also has authority to prescribe regulations to ensure that CMVs are maintained, equipped, loaded, and operated safely. Under 49 U.S.C. 31142 the Secretary must establish standards for annual or more frequent inspections of CMVs. The Secretary's authority to establish improved standards or methods to ensure brakes and brake systems of CMVs are inspected by appropriate employees and maintained properly is provided under 49 U.S.C. 31137(g).

                    Motor carriers must maintain, or require maintenance of, records documenting the inspection, repair and maintenance activities performed on their owned and leased vehicles. There are no prescribed forms. Electronic recordkeeping is allowed (see 49 CFR 390.31(d)). Documents requiring a signature must be capable of replication (                    *e.g.,*                     photocopy, facsimile, etc.) in such form that will provide an opportunity for signature verification upon demand. Also, if electronic recordkeeping is used, all of the relevant data on the original documents must be included in the electronic transmission for the records to be valid.                

The motor carrier industry has never questioned the need to keep CMV maintenance records. In fact, most motor carriers would keep some records without any regulatory requirements to do so. Records of inspection, repair, and maintenance; roadside inspection reports; driver vehicle inspection reports; the documentation of periodic inspections; the evidence of the qualifications of individuals performing periodic inspections; and the evidence of brake inspectors' qualifications contain the minimum amount of information necessary to document that a motor carrier has established a system of inspection, repair, and maintenance for its equipment which meets the standards in 49 CFR part 396.

FMCSA and its representatives use these records to verify motor carriers' compliance with the inspection, repair, and maintenance standards in part 396. This ICR supports DOT's strategic goal of safety. The ICR also ensures that motor carriers have adequate records to document the inspection, repair, and maintenance of their CMVs, and to ensure that adequate measures are taken to keep their CMVs in safe and proper operating condition at all times. Compliance with the inspection, repair, and maintenance regulations helps to reduce the likelihood of accidents attributable, in whole or in part, to the mechanical condition of the CMV.

This ICR submittal includes updated data regarding the number of motor carriers subject to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, vehicle counts, inspections, and other underlying data used to estimate the total burden hours. In addition, this revision eliminates the requirement that drivers of passenger-carrying CMVs operating in interstate commerce submit, and motor carriers retain, Driver-Vehicle Inspection Reports (DVIRs) when the driver has neither found nor been made aware of any vehicle defects or deficiencies (no-defect DVIRs).

If the recordkeeping were required to be completed less frequently, it would greatly hinder the ability of FMCSA and State officials and representatives to ascertain that CMVs are satisfactorily maintained. The timely documentation of CMV inspection, repair, and maintenance enables FMCSA and State officials to evaluate the present state of a motor carrier's CMV maintenance program and to check the current level of regulatory compliance at any point in a carrier's maintenance schedule or program.

FMCSA has identified periodic inspection standards of 22 States, the District of Columbia, the Alabama Liquefied Petroleum Gas Board, 10 Canadian Provinces, and one Canadian Territory that are comparable to, or as effective as, the Federal periodic inspection requirements. FMCSA does not require Federal periodic inspections and the related recordkeeping for motor carriers that comply with these equivalent periodic inspection programs. FMCSA is not aware of any other duplicative standards or recordkeeping requirements that apply to motor carriers.

FMCSA does not employ this collection of information for statistical use.

*Title:*                     Inspection, Repair and Maintenance.                

*OMB Control Number:*                     2126-0003.                

*Type of Request:*                     Revision of a currently approved information collection.                

*Respondents:*                     Motor carriers and CMV drivers.                

*Estimated Number of Respondents:*                     757,652 motor carriers and 5,646,722 drivers.                

*Estimated Time per Response:*                     Varies according to the requirements for specific records.                

*Expiration Date:*                     December 31, 2023.                

*Frequency of Response:*                     Varies according to requirements for specific records.                

*Estimated Total Annual Burden:*                     19,103,153 hours [14,602,802 hours for inspection, repair, and maintenance + 3,516,342 hours for driver inspection reports + 161,528 hours for disposition of roadside inspection reports + 777,864 hours for periodic inspections + 23,571 hours for records of inspector qualifications + 21,046 hours for records of brake inspector qualifications].                

*Public Comments Invited:*                     You are asked to comment on any aspect of this information collection, including: (1) whether the proposed collection is necessary for the performance of FMCSA's functions; (2) the accuracy of the estimated burden; (3) ways for FMCSA to enhance the quality, usefulness, and clarity of the collected information; and (4) ways that the burden could be minimized without reducing the quality of the collected information. The Agency will summarize or include your comments in the request for OMB's clearance of this ICR.                

Issued under the authority of 49 CFR 1.87.

Thomas P. Keane,

Associate Administrator, Office of Research and Registration.

[FR Doc. 2023-20641 Filed 9-22-23; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P