Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 71 / Friday, April 13, 2007 / Notices 18727 

absent such exemption.’’ The 

procedures for requesting an exemption 

(including renewals) are set out in 49 

CFR part 381. This notice addresses 16 

individuals who have requested renewal 

of their exemptions in accordance with 

FMCSA procedures. FMCSA has 

evaluated these 16 applications for 

renewal on their merits and decided to 

extend each exemption for a renewable 

two-year period. They are: 

Rodger B. Anders .............................................. David R. Gross ................................................. William E. Reveal 

John D. Bolding, Jr ............................................ James K. Holmes ............................................. Duane L. Riendeau 

Michael P. Curtin ............................................... Christopher J. Kane ......................................... Daniel J. Schaap 

Richard L. Elyard ............................................... Michael L. Manning .......................................... Janusz Tyrpien 

Michael R. Forschino ......................................... Kirby G. Oathout.

William H. Goss ................................................. James R. Petre.

These exemptions are extended 

subject to the following conditions: (1) 

That each individual have a physical 

examination every year (a) By an 

ophthalmologist or optometrist who 

attests that the vision in the better eye 

continues to meet the standard in 49 

CFR 391.41(b)(10), and (b) by a medical 

examiner who attests that the individual 

is otherwise physically qualified under 

49 CFR 391.41; (2) that each individual 

provide a copy of the ophthalmologist’s 

or optometrist’s report to the medical 

examiner at the time of the annual 

medical examination; and (3) that each 

individual provide a copy of the annual 

medical certification to the employer for 

retention in the driver’s qualification 

file and retain a copy of the certification 

on his/her person while driving for 

presentation to a duly authorized 

Federal, State, or local enforcement 

official. Each exemption will be valid 

for two years unless rescinded earlier by 

FMCSA. The exemption will be 

rescinded if: (1) The person fails to 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(e) and 

31315. 

Basis for Renewing Exemptions 

Under 49 U.S.C. 31315(b)(1), an 

exemption may be granted for no longer 

than two years from its approval date 

and may be renewed upon application 

for additional two year periods. In 

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

31315, each of the 16 applicants has 

satisfied the entry conditions for 

obtaining an exemption from the vision 

requirements (63 FR 30285; 63 FR 

54519; 65 FR 66293; 67 FR 71610; 69 FR 

71098; 63 FR 66226; 64 FR 16517; 66 FR 

17994; 68 FR 15037; 70 FR 16886; 65 FR 

66286; 66 FR 13825; 68 FR 13360; 70 FR 

14747; 67 FR 76439; 68 FR 10298; 70 FR 

7543; 67 FR 68719; 68 FR 2629; 68 FR 

10301; 68 FR 19596; 70 FR 2701; 70 FR 

16887). Each of these 16 applicants has 

requested timely renewal of the 

exemption and has submitted evidence 

showing that the vision in the better eye 

continues to meet the standard specified 

at 49 CFR 391.41(b)(10) and that the 

vision impairment is stable. In addition, 

a review of each record of safety while 

driving with the respective vision 

deficiencies over the past two years 

indicates each applicant continues to 

meet the vision exemption standards. 

These factors provide an adequate basis 

for predicting each driver’s ability to 

continue to drive safely in interstate 

commerce. Therefore, FMCSA 

concludes that extending the exemption 

for each renewal applicant for a period 

of two years is likely to achieve a level 

of safety equal to that existing without 

the exemption. 

Request for Comments 

FMCSA will review comments 

received at any time concerning a 

particular driver’s safety record and 

determine if the continuation of the 

exemption is consistent with the 

requirements at 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 

31315. However, FMCSA requests that 

interested parties with specific data 

concerning the safety records of these 

drivers submit comments by May 14, 

2007. 

FMCSA believes that the 

requirements for a renewal of an 

exemption under 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 

31315 can be satisfied by initially 

granting the renewal and then 

requesting and evaluating, if needed, 

subsequent comments submitted by 

interested parties. As indicated above, 

the Agency previously published 

notices of final disposition announcing 

its decision to exempt these 16 

individuals from the vision requirement 

in 49 CFR 391.41(b)(10). The final 

decision to grant an exemption to each 

of these individuals was based on the 

merits of each case and only after 

careful consideration of the comments 

received to its notices of applications. 

The notices of applications stated in 

detail the qualifications, experience, 

and medical condition of each applicant 

for an exemption from the vision 

requirements. That information is 

available by consulting the above cited 

Federal Register publications. 

Interested parties or organizations 

possessing information that would 

otherwise show that any, or all of these 

drivers, are not currently achieving the 

statutory level of safety should 

immediately notify FMCSA. The 

Agency will evaluate any adverse 

evidence submitted and, if safety is 

being compromised or if continuation of 

the exemption would not be consistent 

with the goals and objectives of 49 

U.S.C. 31136(e) and 31315, FMCSA will 

take immediate steps to revoke the 

exemption of a driver. 

Issued on: April 9, 2007. 

Larry W. Minor, 

Acting, Associate Administrator. 

[FR Doc. E7–6998 Filed 4–12–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

[Docket Nos. FMCSA–98–4334, FMCSA–00–

7363, FMCSA–00–7918, FMCSA–02–13411] 

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 28 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. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Mary D. Gunnels, Chief, Physical 


pwalker on PROD1PC71 with NOTICES
18728 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 71 / Friday, April 13, 2007 / Notices 

Qualifications Division, (202) 366–4001, 

fmcsamedical@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 periods ended on March 16, 

and March 22, 2007. 

Discussion of Comments 

FMCSA received two comments in 

these proceedings. The comments were 

considered and discussed below. 

Ms. Sachau believes that the approval 

or renewal of vision exemptions does 

not take into account the issue of safety 

on the road and granting exemptions 

only 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) 

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 28 renewal 

applications, FMCSA renews the 

Federal vision exemptions for Henry 

Ammons, Jr., Michael D. Archibald, 

Robert D. Bonner, Howard K. Bradley, 

Kirk G. Braegger, Ambroiso E. Calles, 

David S. Carman, Jose G. Cruz, Everett 

A. Doty, Cedric E. Foster, Glen T. 

Garrabrant, Donald J. Goretski, Harry P. 

Henning, Christopher L. Humphries, 

Alan L. Johnston, Ralph J. Miles, Dennis 

I. Nelson, William R. New, Rance A. 

Powell, Shannon E. Rasmussen, James 

R. Rieck, Thomas C. Rylee, Stanley B. 

Salkowski, III., Garfield A. Smith, 

Michael G. Thomas, William H. 

Twardus, Henry L. Walker, and Ronald 

Watt. 

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: April 6, 2007. 

Larry W. Minor, 

Acting, Associate Administrator, Policy and 

Program Development. 

[FR Doc. E7–6999 Filed 4–12–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Railroad Administration 

Notice of Petitions for Approval; 

Railroad Safety Program Plans 

Although not required, the Federal 

Railroad Administration (FRA) is 

providing notice that it has received 

petitions for approval of two Railroad 

Safety Program Plans (RSPP) submitted 

pursuant to 49 Code of Federal 

Regulations (CFR) part 236, subpart H. 

The individual petitions are described 

below, including the party seeking 

approval and the requisite docket 

numbers where the petitions and any 

related information may be found. 

These documents are available for 

public inspection; however, FRA is not 

accepting public comment on the 

documents as this notice is provided for 

information only. 

Alaska Railroad Corporation (ARRC) 

[Waiver Docket Number FRA–2007–27600] 

ARRC submitted a petition for 

approval of an RSPP. The petition, the 

RSPP, and any related documents have 

been placed in the requisite docket and 

are available for public inspection. 

Norfolk Southern Corporation (NS) 

[Waiver Docket Number FRA–2006–26260] 

NS submitted a petition for approval 

of an RSPP. The petition, the RSPP, and 

any related documents have been placed 

in the requisite docket and are available 

for public inspection. 

All documents in the public docket 

are also available for inspection and 

copying on the Internet at the docket 

facility’s Web site at http://dms.dot.gov. 

You may review DOT’s complete 

Privacy Act Statement in the Federal 

Register published on April 11, 2000 

(Volume 65, Number 70; Pages 19477–

78). The Statement may also be found at 

http://dms.dot.gov. 

Issued in Washington, DC on April 9, 2007. 

Grady C. Cothen Jr., 

Deputy Associate Administrator for Safety 

Standards and Program Development. 

[FR Doc. E7–7069 Filed 4–12–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Railroad Administration 

Petition for Waiver of Compliance 

In accordance with Part 211 of Title 

49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), 

notice is hereby given that the Federal 

Railroad Administration (FRA) received 

a request for a waiver of compliance 

with certain requirements of its safety 


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