11424 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 48 / Tuesday, March 13, 2007 / Notices 

or to request special assistance at the 

meeting, contact Kaye Kirby at 202–

366–4001. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

The preliminary agenda for the MRB 

meeting: 

0800–0900 Registration (Includes 

Request for Comments). 

0900–0905 Call to Order, Agenda 

Review. 

0905–0925 MRB Actions, (Diabetes & 

Schedule II Medications). 

0925–0945 Cardiovascular Disease. 

0945–1015 Cardiovascular Disease 

Expert Panel Recommendations. 

1015–1100 MRB questions on 

Cardiovascular Disease. 

1100–1130 Deliberations on Evidence 

Report & Panel Comments. 

1130–1200 MRB Recommendations. 

1200–1330 Lunch Break (Attendees 

are responsible for their lunch). 

1330–1530 Public Comment. 

*Breaks will be announced on 

meeting day and may be adjusted 

according to schedule changes, other 

listening session requirements. 

Medical Review Board Meeting 

The U.S. Secretary of Transportation 

announced on March 7, 2006, the five 

medical experts who serve on FMCSA’s 

MRB. Section 4116 of the Safe, 

Accountable, Flexible, Efficient 

Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for 

Users (SAFETEA–LU, Pub. L. 109–59) 

requires the Secretary of Transportation 

with the advice of the MRB to 

‘‘establish, review, and revise medical 

standards for operators of CMVs that 

will ensure that the physical condition 

of operators is adequate to enable them 

to operate the vehicles safely.’’ FMCSA 

is considering updates to the physical 

qualification regulations of CMV 

drivers, and the MRB will provide the 

necessary science-based guidance to 

establish realistic and responsible 

medical standards. 

The MRB operates in accordance with 

FACA as announced in the Federal 

Register (70 FR 57642, October 3, 2005). 

The MRB is charged initially with the 

review of all current FMCSA medical 

standards (49 CFR 391.41), as well as 

proposing new science-based standards 

and guidelines to ensure that drivers 

operating CMVs in interstate commerce, 

as defined in CFR 390.5, are physically 

capable of doing so. 

Meeting Participation 

Attendance is open to the interested 

public, including medical examiners, 

motor carriers, drivers, and 

representatives of medical and scientific 

associations. The public can ask 

relevant questions of the MRB and 

comment about the information 

presented to the MRB during the 

listening session of the program, which 

will be held 1:30 p.m.–3:30 p.m. Written 

comments for the MRB meeting will 

also be accepted beginning on March 27, 

2007, and continuing until May 17, 

2007, and should include the docket 

number that is listed in the ADDRESSES

section. During the MRB meeting, oral 

comments may be limited depending on 

how many persons wish to comment; 

and will be accepted on a first come, 

first serve basis as requestors register at 

the meeting. The comments must 

directly address relevant medical and 

scientific issues on the MRB meeting 

agenda. For more information, view the 

following Web site: http:// 

www.mrb.fmcsa.dot.gov. 

Issued on: March 6, 2007. 

John H. Hill, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. E7–4468 Filed 3–12–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

[Docket Nos. FMCSA–98–3637, FMCSA–00–

7165, FMCSA–00–7363, FMCSA–00–8203, 

FMCSA–02–12844, FMCSA–02–12294, 

FMCSA–04–19477] 

Qualification of Drivers; Exemption 

Renewals; Vision 

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of final disposition. 

SUMMARY: FMCSA previously 

announced its decision to renew the 

exemptions from the vision requirement 

in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Regulations for these 45 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 

announcements 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. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Mary D. Gunnels, Chief, Physical 

Qualifications Division, (202) 366–4001, 

maggi.gunnels@dot.gov, FMCSA, 

Department of Transportation, 400 

Seventh Street, SW., Room 8301, 

Washington, DC 20590–0001. Office 

hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., 

Monday through Friday, except Federal 

holidays. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Electronic Access 

You may see all the comments online 

through the Document Management 

System (DMS) at http://dmses.dot.gov. 

Background 

Under 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 31315, 

FMCSA may grant an exemption for a 2- 

year period if it finds ‘‘such exemption 

would likely achieve a level of safety 

that is equivalent to, or greater than, the 

level that would be achieved absent 

such exemption.’’ The statute also 

allows the Agency to renew exemptions 

at the end of the 2-year period. The 

comment period ended on February 8, 

2007. 

Discussion of Comments 

FMCSA received two comments in 

these proceedings. The comments were 

considered and discussed below. 

Ms. Sachau believes that drivers with 

impaired vision should not be driving 

commercially because it makes the 

roads much more dangerous. 

A review of each record for safety 

while driving with the respective vision 

deficiencies over the past two years 

indicates each applicant continues to 

meet the vision exemption standards. 

To evaluate the effect of these 

exemptions on safety, FMCSA 

considered not only the medical reports 

about the applicants’ vision, but also 

their driving records and experience 

with the vision deficiency. To qualify 

for an exemption from the vision 

standard, FMCSA requires a person to 

present verifiable evidence that he or 

she has driven a commercial vehicle 

safely with the vision deficiency for 3 

years. Recent driving performance is 

especially important in evaluating 

future safety, according to several 

research studies designed to correlate 

past and future driving performance. 

Results of these studies support the 

principle that the best predictor of 

future performance by a driver is his/her 

past record of crashes and traffic 

violations. Copies of the studies may be 

found at docket number FMCSA–98–

3637. 

Advocates for Highway and Auto 

Safety (Advocates) expressed opposition 

to FMCSA’s policy to grant exemptions 

from the FMCSR, including the driver 

qualification standards. Specifically, 

Advocates: (1) Objects to the manner in 

which FMCSA presents driver 

information to the public and makes 

safety determinations; (2) objects to the 

Agency’s reliance on conclusions drawn 

from the vision waiver program; (3) 


cprice-sewell on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 48 / Tuesday, March 13, 2007 / Notices 11425 

claims the Agency has misinterpreted 

statutory language on the granting of 

exemptions (49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 

31315); and finally (4) suggests that a 

1999 Supreme Court decision affects the 

legal validity of vision exemptions. 

The issues raised by Advocates were 

addressed at length in 64 FR 51568 

(September 23, 1999), 64 FR 66962 

(November 30, 1999), 64 FR 69586 

(December 13, 1999), 65 FR 159 (January 

3, 2000), 65 FR 57230 (September 21, 

2000), and 66 FR 13825 (March 7, 2001). 

We will not address these points again 

here, but refer interested parties to those 

earlier discussions. 

Conclusion 

The Agency has not received any 

adverse evidence on any of these drivers 

that indicates that safety is being 

compromised. Based upon its 

evaluation of the 45 renewal 

applications, FMCSA renews the 

Federal vision exemptions for Johnny 

Becerra, Thomas J. Boss, Howard F. 

Breitkreutz, Robert R. Buis, Ross E. 

Burroughs, Lester W. Carter, Larry 

Chinn, Christopher L. DePuy, John B. 

Ethridge, John E. Evenson, Larry J. 

Folkerts, George J. Ghigliotty, Randolph 

D. Hall, Richard T. Hatchel, Steven C. 

Humke, Paul W. Hunter, Leon E. 

Jackson, Neil W. Jennings, Robert J. 

Johnson, Charles R. Kuderer, Robert L. 

LaFollette, Craig M. Landry, Thomas D. 

Laws, Ray P. Lenz, William R. Mayfield, 

Michael B. McClure, Lamont S. McCord, 

Francis M. McMullin, Joe L. Meredith. 

Jr., Norman Mullins, Harold W. 

Mumford, Richard E. Nordhausen, Jr., 

Tony E. Parks, Clifford C. Priesmeyer, 

Clarence H. Redding, Gerald R. 

Rietmann, Andrew H. Rusk, Arthur A. 

Sappington, Richard L. Sheppard, 

William H. Smith, David J. Triplett, 

Kenneth E. Vigue, Jr., Edward C. 

Williams, David G. Williams, and 

Richard A. Winslow. 

In accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) 

and 31315, each renewal exemption will 

be valid for 2 years unless revoked 

earlier by FMCSA. The exemption will 

be revoked if: (1) The person fails to 

comply with the terms and conditions 

of the exemption; (2) the exemption has 

resulted in a lower level of safety than 

was maintained before it was granted; or 

(3) continuation of the exemption would 

not be consistent with the goals and 

objectives of 49 U.S.C. 31136 and 31315. 

Issued on: March 6, 2007. 

Larry W. Minor, 

Office Director, Bus and Truck Standards and 

Operations. 

[FR Doc. E7–4488 Filed 3–12–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

[Docket No. FMCSA–00–8398, FMCSA–02–

12844, FMCSA–04–17984, FMCSA–05–

20027] 

Qualification of Drivers; Exemption 

Applications; Vision 

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of renewal of 

exemptions; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: FMCSA announces its 

decision to renew the exemptions from 

the vision requirement in the Federal 

Motor Carrier Safety Regulations for 15 

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 

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. 

DATES: This decision is effective April 1, 

2007. Comments must be received on or 

before April 12, 2007. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

identified by DOT Docket Management 

System (DMS) Docket Numbers 

FMCSA–00–8398, FMCSA–02–12844, 

FMCSA–04–17984, FMCSA–05–20027, 

using any of the following methods. 

• Web Site: http://dmses.dot.gov. 

Follow the instructions for submitting 

comments on the DOT electronic docket 

site. 

• Fax: 1–202–493–2251. 

• Mail: Docket Management Facility; 

U.S. Department of Transportation, 400 

Seventh Street, SW., Nassif Building, 

Room PL–401, Washington, DC 20590–

0001. 

• Hand Delivery: Room PL–401 on 

the plaza level of the Nassif Building, 

400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, 

DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday 

through Friday, except Federal holidays. 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

online instructions for submitting 

comments. 

Instructions: All submissions must 

include the Agency name and docket 

numbers for this Notice. Note that all 

comments received will be posted 

without change to http://dms.dot.gov, 

including any personal information 

provided. Please see the Privacy Act 

heading for further information. 

Docket: For access to the docket to 

read background documents or 

comments received, go to 

http://dms.dot.gov at any time or Room 

PL–401 on the plaza level of the Nassif 

Building, 400 Seventh Street, SW., 

Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 

p.m., Monday through Friday, except 

Federal holidays. The DMS is available 

24 hours each day, 365 days each year. 

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. 

Privacy Act: Anyone may search the 

electronic form of all comments 

received into any of our dockets by the 

name of the individual submitting the 

comment (or of the person signing the 

comment, if submitted on behalf of an 

association, business, labor union, etc.). 

You may review the Department of 

Transportation’s complete Privacy Act 

Statement in the Federal Register 

published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 

19477; April 11, 2000). This information 

is also available at http://dms.dot.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Mary D. Gunnels, Chief, Physical 

Qualifications Division, (202) 366–4001, 

maggi.gunnels@dot.gov FMCSA, 

Department of Transportation, 400 

Seventh Street, SW., Room 8301, 

Washington, DC 20590–0001. Office 

hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., E.T., 

Monday through Friday, except Federal 

holidays. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Exemption Decision 

Under 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 31315, 

FMCSA may renew an exemption from 

the vision requirements in 49 CFR 

391.41(b)(10), which applies to drivers 

of CMVs in interstate commerce, for a 

two-year period if it finds ‘‘such 

exemption would likely achieve a level 

of safety that is equivalent to, or greater 

than, the level that would be achieved 

absent such exemption.’’ The 

procedures for requesting an exemption 

(including renewals) are set out in 49 

CFR part 381. This notice addresses 15 

individuals who have requested renewal 

of their exemptions in accordance with 

FMCSA procedures. FMCSA has 

evaluated these 15 applications for 

renewal on their merits and decided to 

extend each exemption for a renewable 

two-year period. They are: 

David F. Breuer 

Wilford F. Christian 

Richard S. Cummings 

Joseph D. Dean 

Daniel L. Jacobs 

Jimmy C. Killian 


cprice-sewell on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES