23890 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 83 / Tuesday, May 1, 2007 / Notices 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

National Highway Traffic Safety 

Administration 

[Docket No. NHTSA–2006–26282; Notice 2] 

U.S. Bus Corporation; Denial of 

Petition for Decision of 

Inconsequential Noncompliance 

U.S. Bus Corporation (U.S. Bus) has 

determined that certain school buses 

that it produced from 1998 through 

2006 do not comply with paragraph 

S9.3(c) of 49 CFR 571.111, Federal 

Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 

No. 111, Rearview Mirrors. As 

explained below, the noncompliance 

involves placement of a required label 

on school buses with cross view 

mirrors. U.S. Bus has filed an 

appropriate report pursuant to 49 CFR 

part 573, ‘‘Defect and Noncompliance 

Responsibility and Reports.’’ Pursuant 

to 49 U.S.C. 30118(d) and 30120(h), U.S. 

Bus also has petitioned for a 

determination that this noncompliance 

is inconsequential to motor vehicle 

safety. Notice of receipt of the petition 

was published, with a 30-day public 

comment period, on December 13, 2006 

in the Federal Register (71 FR 74996). 

NHTSA received no comments on the 

petition. To view the petition and all 

supporting documents, go to: http:// 

dms.dot.gov/search/ 

searchFormSimple.cfm and enter 

Docket No. NHTSA–2006–26282. 

Affected are a total of approximately 

4,019 Universe and Sturdibus model 

school buses produced by U.S. Bus from 

1998 through October 23, 2006 that do 

not meet the requirements of paragraph 

S9.3(c) of the standard. Specifically, 

paragraph S9.3(c) of FMVSS No. 111 

requires that: 

Each school bus which has a mirror 

installed in compliance with S9.3(a) that has 

an average radius of curvature of less than 

889 mm, as determined under S12, shall have 

a label visible to the seated driver. . . . The 

label shall state the following: ‘‘USE CROSS 

VIEW MIRRORS TO VIEW PEDESTRIANS 

WHILE BUS IS STOPPED. DO NOT USE 

THESE MIRRORS TO VIEW TRAFFIC 

WHILE BUS IS MOVING. IMAGES IN SUCH 

MIRRORS DO NOT ACCURATELY SHOW 

ANOTHER VEHICLE’S LOCATION.’’ 

On the noncompliant buses, the 

required label is affixed in a location 

behind the interior rearview mirror 

(used to observe vehicle occupants), 

thereby obscuring the label from view. 

As discussed in its petition, U.S. Bus 

argued that the noncompliance is 

inconsequential to motor vehicle safety 

and that no corrective action is 

warranted. U.S. Bus based its 

conclusion on the following reasoning: 

1. The decal in question is required only 

on school buses; 2. The crossview mirrors 

requiring the decal are only required on 

school buses; 3. School bus drivers are 

thoroughly trained in driving a school bus, 

including proper adjustment and viewing 

images through both the rearview and 

crossview mirrors; 4. The placement of the 

decal has no effect on the safety or reliability 

of the vehicle; 5. The placement of the decal 

may or may not be visible from the driver’s 

seated position, and depends upon the 

adjustment of the rearview mirror as to 

whether the decal is visible by the driver. 

NHTSA Decision 

In reaching our decision, NHTSA has 

carefully reviewed the subject petition, 

as well as a similar petition which was 

submitted to NHTSA in 2005 by another 

school bus manufacturer, Les 

Entreprises Corbeil, Inc. (Corbeil). To 

view the Corbeil petition and all 

supporting documents, go to: Docket 

No. NHTSA–2006–20923. The following 

explains our rationale. 

As part of its reasoning, U.S. Bus 

asserted that because cross view mirrors 

and the associated warning label are 

only required on school buses, the 

noncompliance is inconsequential to 

motor vehicle safety and no corrective 

action is warranted. NHTSA does not 

understand or agree with this line of 

reasoning. School buses are regulated as 

a special vehicle type because they have 

a unique usage to transport large 

numbers of school-aged children to and 

from school and other activities. School 

buses are equipped with cross view 

mirrors primarily for the purpose of 

allowing the driver, prior to moving a 

bus, to observe pedestrians who have 

entered the zone in front of and on the 

sides of the bus where the driver has 

limited direct line-of-sight. Thus, cross 

view mirrors and the label describing 

their use are critical to the safety of 

these students who may not be visible 

to the driver. 

U.S. Bus also stated that placement of 

the label has no effect on the safety of 

the vehicle and that school bus drivers 

are thoroughly trained in driving school 

buses, including the proper adjustment 

of and viewing images in both rearview 

and cross view mirror systems. NHTSA 

does not agree that driver training can 

replace the need for proper placement of 

the warning label. The label must be 

visible because it serves dual purposes, 

both of which are safety-related: (1) To 

inform the driver to use the cross view 

mirrors to view pedestrians while the 

bus is stopped, and (2) to remind the 

driver that the cross view mirrors are 

not to be used to view traffic while the 

bus is moving. Cross view convex 

mirrors affect distance perception 

because objects viewed in convex 

surface mirrors appear smaller (thereby 

giving the appearance of greater 

distance) than when viewed in flat 

surface mirrors. Furthermore, although 

NHTSA is aware that both the school 

bus industry and school systems place 

great importance on driver training, the 

thoroughness and consistency of driver 

training is not regulated and, 

consequently, may not be the same in 

all jurisdictions. In addition, school bus 

drivers tend to switch vehicles often, 

and their employment turnover rate is 

high. Therefore, the label, which is 

intended to be a constant reminder as to 

the use and limitations of cross view 

mirror systems, is a safety-critical 

feature, even for seasoned drivers. 

U.S. Bus stated that the label in the 

subject noncompliant buses may or may 

not be visible from the driver’s seated 

position, depending on the rear view 

mirror adjustment. Based on 

examination of the tested non-compliant 

bus, NHTSA has determined that when 

the inside mirror is properly adjusted to 

view the seated students the label is 

obscured for drivers of nearly any size. 

In addition, we note the agency’s June 

2005 decision to grant the Corbeil 

petition, in which case the required 

cross view mirror warning labels for 

school buses were never installed (see 

70 FR 33769 (June 9, 2005)). However, 

we would distinguish that case here. 

NHTSA based its Corbeil decision on 

the fact that the number of noncompliant vehicles was relatively small 

(245 buses), that corrections were made 

to rectify the situation in the future, and 

that driver training assured that the 

mirrors were used correctly. For U.S. 

Bus, however, the number of noncomplaint buses is significantly higher 

at 4,019. 

Lastly, since the Corbeil decision, 

NHTSA published in the fall of 2006 a 

Traffic Safety Facts report titled ‘‘School 

Transportation-Related Crashes,’’ DOT– 

HS–810626, which report states that 

since 1995, 170 school-age pedestrians 

(younger than 19) have died in school 

transportation-related crashes. The 

report also lists the numbers of 

pedestrian fatalities (school-age and 

other pedestrians) resulting from 

individuals being struck by school 

vehicles in 2003–2005, as 22, 27 and 27, 

respectively. The yearly pedestrian/ 

school vehicle fatalities have risen from 

16 in 2002 to 27 in 2005. We believe 

that strict compliance with applicable 

standards can help reverse this upward 

trend. According to an earlier Traffic 

Safety Facts report (DOT–HS–809770), 

there were 32 pedestrian/school vehicle 

fatalities in 1993. Based upon these 

findings, NHTSA believes that the 

decline in fatalities during the years 


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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 83 / Tuesday, May 1, 2007 / Notices 23891 

1 31 CFR 103.18. 

2 31 CFR 103.21. 

3 31 CFR 103.16. 

4 31 CFR 103.15, 103.17, and 103.19. 

5 See Additional Suspicious Activity Reports 

(SAR) Revised for Other Industries to Support Joint 

Filing and Reduce Duplicate SARs, http:// 

www.fincen.gov. 

6 The current SAR forms can be found on 

FinCEN’s Web page at: http://www.fincen.gov/reg— 

bsaforms.html#SAR. 

after 1993 is attributable in part to the 

amendment to FMVSS No. 111 

(effective in December 1993), which 

required the areas in front of and along 

the sides of school buses to be viewable 

by the driver. Manufacturers are using 

cross view mirrors to comply with these 

requirements. We want to ensure that 

the drivers of these buses receive every 

possible reminder to make proper use of 

cross view mirrors. 

Since the cross view mirror labels 

remind school bus drivers of the 

appropriate use of these mirrors, 

NHTSA has reconsidered its view 

concerning the label and now believes 

that driver training is not an adequate 

substitute for missing labels or labels 

that are not visible to the seated driver. 

In consideration of the foregoing, 

NHTSA has decided that U.S. Bus has 

not met its burden of persuasion that the 

noncompliance described is 

inconsequential to motor vehicle safety. 

Accordingly, U.S. Bus’s petition is 

hereby denied, and the petitioner must 

notify according to 49 U.S.C. 30118 and 

remedy according to 49 U.S.C 30120. 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 30118, 30120; 

delegations of authority at 49 CFR 1.50 and 

501.8. 

Issued on: April 24, 2007. 

Daniel C. Smith, 

Associate Administrator for Enforcement. 

[FR Doc. E7–8200 Filed 4–30–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–59–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY 

Financial Crimes Enforcement 

Network; Suspicious Activity 

Reporting; Release of Revised 

Suspicious Activity Reports 

AGENCY: Financial Crimes Enforcement 

Network, Department of the Treasury. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Financial Crimes 

Enforcement Network (‘‘FinCEN’’) is 

issuing this notice to communicate a 

delay in the dates for using the revised 

Suspicious Activity Report (‘‘SAR’’) 

forms. The revised SAR forms that 

support joint filing were originally 

scheduled to become effective on June 

30, 2007 and mandatory on December 

31, 2007. FinCEN will establish new 

dates for using the revised SAR forms in 

a future notice. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Regulatory Policy and Programs 

Division, Financial Crimes Enforcement 

Network at (800) 949–2732. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

It is FinCEN’s intention to implement 

revised SAR forms that facilitate joint 

filing for depository institutions,1

casinos and card clubs,2 insurance 

companies,3 and the securities and 

futures industries.4 On December 21, 

2006, FinCEN issued a notice on its Web 

site explaining that financial 

institutions would be able to begin filing 

the revised SAR forms with FinCEN on 

June 30, 2007.5 We are postponing this 

date and the date by which use of the 

revised forms becomes mandatory 

because of recently implemented data 

quality initiatives. FinCEN will provide 

advance notice of the new dates for 

using the revised forms at a future time. 

In the meantime, financial institutions 

will continue to report suspicious 

activities using the existing SAR forms.6

Dated: April 26, 2007. 

William F. Baity, 

Deputy Director, Financial Crimes 

Enforcement Network. 

[FR Doc. E7–8320 Filed 4–30–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4810–02–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY 

Internal Revenue Service 

[REG–138176–02] 

Proposed Collection; Comment 

Request for Regulation Project 

AGENCY: Internal Revenue Service (IRS), 

Treasury. 

ACTION: Notice and request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: The Department of the 

Treasury, as part of its continuing effort 

to reduce paperwork and respondent 

burden, invites the general public and 

other Federal agencies to take this 

opportunity to comment on proposed 

and/or continuing information 

collections, as required by the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 

Public Law 104–13 (44 U.S.C. 

3506(c)(2)(A)). Currently, the IRS is 

soliciting comments concerning an 

existing proposed regulation, REG– 

138176–02 (NPRM), Timely Mailing 

Treated As Timely Filing. 

DATES: Written comments should be 

received on or before July 2, 2007 to be 

assured of consideration. 

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments 

to Glenn Kirkland, Internal Revenue 

Service, Room 6516, 1111 Constitution 

Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20224. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Requests for additional information or 

copies of the regulation should be 

directed to Allan Hopkins, at (202) 622– 

6665, or at Internal Revenue Service, 

Room 6516, 1111 Constitution Avenue, 

NW., Washington, DC 20224, or through 

the Internet at Allan.M.Hopkins@irs.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Title: Timely Mailing Treated As 

Timely Filing. 

OMB Number: 1545–1899. 

Regulation Project Number: REG– 

138176–02. 

Abstract: Under I.R.C. section 7502, in 

order for taxpayers to establish the 

postmark date and prima facie evidence 

of delivery when using registered or 

certified mail to file documents with the 

IRS, taxpayers will need to retain the 

sender’s receipt. 

Current Actions: There is no change to 

this existing regulation. 

Type of Review: Extension of a 

currently approved collection. 

Affected Public: Individuals or 

households, business or other for-profit 

organizations, not-for-profit institutions, 

farms, Federal government and State, 

local, or tribal government. 

Estimated Number of Respondents: 

10,847,647. 

Estimated Time per Respondent: 6 

minutes. 

Estimated Total Annual Burden 

Hours: 1,084,765. 

The following paragraph applies to all 

of the collections of information covered 

by this notice: 

An agency may not conduct or 

sponsor, and a person is not required to 

respond to, a collection of information 

unless the collection of information 

displays a valid OMB control number. 

Books or records relating to a 

collection of information must be 

retained as long as their contents may 

become material in the administration 

of any internal revenue law. Generally, 

tax returns and tax return information 

are confidential, as required by 26 

U.S.C. 6103. 

Request for Comments: Comments 

submitted in response to this notice will 

be summarized and/or included in the 

request for OMB approval. All 

comments will become a matter of 

public record. Comments are invited on: 

(a) Whether the collection of 

information is necessary for the proper 

performance of the functions of the 


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