Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 43 / Tuesday, March 6, 2007 / Notices 9999 

1The Motor Carrier Safety Improvement Act of 

1999 [Public Law 106–159, 113 Stat. 1748 

(December 9, 1999)] established the FMCSA in the 

Department of Transportation. On January 4, 2000, 

the Office of the Secretary published a final rule 

delegating to the FMCSA Administrator the motor 

carrier safety functions required by MCSIA, which 

included certain motor carrier safety functions 

previously delegated to the FHWA (65 FR 200). 

preemption of the WMTCs is an 

‘‘unintended consequence’’ of Section 

4306. The Agency found no evidence to 

support that position. In fact, one could 

just as easily conclude that the WMTCs 

are exactly the type of display Section 

4306 was enacted to prohibit. 

Furthermore, there is no indication in 

the legislative history of SAFETEA–LU 

that Congress intended to ‘‘grandfather’’

existing display requirements, other 

than those specifically listed in 49 

U.S.C. 14506(b). In consideration of the 

above, the State of Oregon may no 

longer require interstate motor carriers 

to display weight-mile tax credentials 

on CMVs. 

Issued on: February 26, 2007. 

John H. Hill, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. E7–3806 Filed 3–5–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

[Docket No. FMCSA–2005–21323] 

Withdrawal of Regulatory Guidance 

Concerning the Use of Surge Brakes 

on Commercial Motor Vehicles 

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice; withdrawal of regulatory 

guidance. 

SUMMARY: FMCSA withdraws all prior 

regulatory guidance, previously in the 

Federal Register, as well as memoranda 

and letters issued by the Agency, 

indicating that surge brakes do not meet 

certain provisions of the Federal Motor 

Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs). 

Elsewhere in today’s issue of the 

Federal Register, FMCSA amends the 

FMCSRs to allow the use of automatic 

hydraulic inertia brake systems (surge 

brakes) on trailers when the ratios of 

gross vehicle weight ratings for the 

towing-vehicle and trailer are within 

certain limits. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

Luke Loy, Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration, Office of Policy and 

Program Development, Vehicle and 

Roadside Operations Division, 

Washington, DC 20590, phone (202) 

366–0676, fax (202) 366–8842, e-mail 

luke.loy@dot.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On 

November 17, 1993, the Federal 

Highway Administration (FHWA) 1

published ‘‘Regulatory Guidance for the 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Regulations,’’ at 58 FR 60734. The 

publication included interpretations of 

49 CFR 393.48, a rule that requires 

brakes to be operable at all times, and 

49 CFR 393.49, the requirement that the 

braking system on CMVs be designed 

such that one brake application valve 

controls all the brakes on the vehicle. 

The Agency interpreted the regulations 

to prohibit the use of surge brakes on 

Commercial Motor Vehicles (CMVs) 

operated in interstate commerce. The 

regulatory guidance was republished on 

April 4, 1997, at 62 FR 16370. 

The FMCSA subsequently issued an 

Enforcement Policy memorandum on 

September 14, 2004, directing Federal 

enforcement staff, and requesting State 

and local enforcement officials, 

temporarily to allow surge brakes on 

CMVs operated in interstate commerce, 

under certain conditions, pending 

completion of a notice-and-comment 

rulemaking proceeding through which a 

determination would be made whether 

surge brakes should be allowed on a 

permanent basis. A copy of that 

Enforcement Policy memorandum is in 

the docket cited at the beginning of this 

notice. 

A final rule issued by FMCSA, 

published elsewhere in today’s issue of 

the Federal Register, amends the 

FMCSRs to allow the use of surge 

brakes. The final rule defines the term 

‘‘surge brake’’, identifies the 

requirements for a surge brake system, 

and allows the use of automatic 

hydraulic inertia brake systems (surge 

brakes) on trailers when the ratios of 

gross vehicle weight ratings for the 

towing-vehicle and trailer are within 

certain limits. Therefore, in 

consideration of the final rule on surge 

brakes, the Agency withdraws all prior 

interpretations and regulatory guidance, 

issued previously in the Federal 

Register, as well as FMCSA memoranda 

and letters, stating that surge brakes do 

not meet the requirements of 49 CFR 

393.48 and 393.49. 

Issued on: February 26, 2007. 

John H. Hill, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. E7–3813 Filed 3–5–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

National Highway Traffic Safety 

Administration 

[Docket No. NHTSA–2006–26555] 

The New Car Assessment Program; 

Suggested Approaches for 

Enhancements 

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic 

Safety Administration (NHTSA), 

Department of Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Correction of Public Hearing 

Time. 

Correction 

In notice document Volume 72 

Number 16 beginning on page 3473 on 

the issue date of January 25, 2007, make 

the following correction to the meeting 

time posted: 

1. On page 3473, under Public 

Hearing, the beginning time is corrected 

to read as 8:30 a.m. 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 30111, 30168; 

delegation of authority at 49 CFR 1.50 and 

501.8. 

Issued on: February 27, 2007. 

Stephen R. Kratzke, 

Associate Administrator for Rulemaking. 

[FR Doc. E7–3814 Filed 3–5–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–59–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

National Highway Traffic Safety 

Administration 

[Docket No. NHTSA–2007–27376] 

Notice of Receipt of Petition for 

Decision That Nonconforming 2004 

Volkswagen Passat Sedan and Wagon 

Model Passenger Cars Are Eligible for 

Importation 

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic 

Safety Administration, DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of receipt of petition for 

decision that nonconforming 2004 

Volkswagen Passat sedan and wagon 

model passenger cars are eligible for 

importation. 

SUMMARY: This document announces 

receipt by the National Highway Traffic 

Safety Administration (NHTSA) of a 

petition for a decision that 2004 

Volkswagen Passat sedan and wagon 

model passenger cars that were not 

originally manufactured to comply with 

all applicable Federal motor vehicle 

safety standards (FMVSS) are eligible 

for importation into the United States 

because (1) they are substantially 

similar to vehicles that were originally 

manufactured for importation into and 


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