Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 16 / Monday, January 26, 2015 / Notices 4029 

top and bottom of the cover page and 

each succeeding page; and 

(3) Must provide a non-confidential 

summary of the information or advice. 

Any comment containing confidential 

information must be submitted by fax. A 

non-confidential summary of the 

confidential information must be 

submitted to www.regulations.gov. The 

non-confidential summary will be 

placed in the docket and will be open 

to public inspection. 

Pursuant to section 127(e) of the 

Uruguay Round Agreements Act (19 

U.S.C. 3537(e)), USTR will maintain a 

docket on this dispute settlement 

proceeding, docket number USTR– 

2015–0001, accessible to the public at 

www.regulations.gov. 

The public file will include nonconfidential comments received by 

USTR from the public regarding the 

dispute. If a dispute settlement panel is 

convened, or in the event of an appeal 

from such a panel, the following 

documents will be made available to the 

public at www.ustr.gov: The United 

States’ submissions, any nonconfidential submissions received from 

other participants in the dispute, and 

any non-confidential summaries of 

submissions received from other 

participants in the dispute. In the event 

that a dispute settlement panel is 

convened, or in the event of an appeal 

from such a panel, the report of the 

panel, and, if applicable, the report of 

the Appellate Body, will also be 

available on the Web site of the World 

Trade Organization, at www.wto.org. 

Comments open to public inspection 

may be viewed at www.regulations.gov. 

Juan Millan, 

Assistant United States Trade Representative 

for Monitoring and Enforcement. 

[FR Doc. 2015–01332 Filed 1–23–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3290–F5–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

[Docket No: FAA–2011–0786] 

Deadline for Notification of Intent To 

Use the Airport Improvement Program 

(AIP) Primary, Cargo, and Nonprimary 

Entitlement Funds for Fiscal Year 2015 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration, DOT. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA) announces May 

1, 2015, as the deadline for each airport 

sponsor to notify the FAA whether or 

not it will use its fiscal year 2015 

entitlement funds available under 

Section 47114 of Title 49, United States 

Code, to accomplish Airport 

Improvement Program (AIP)-eligible 

projects that the sponsor previously 

identified through the Airports Capital 

Improvement Plan (ACIP) process 

during the preceding year. 

The sponsor’s notification must 

address all entitlement funds 

apportioned for fiscal year 2015, as well 

as any entitlement funds not obligated 

from prior years. After Thursday, July 2, 

2015, the FAA will carry over all 

remaining entitlement funds, and the 

funds will not be available again until 

at least the beginning of fiscal year 2016. 

This notification requirement does not 

apply to non-primary airports covered 

by the block-grant program. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

Frank J. San Martin, Manager, Airports 

Financial Assistance Division, APP– 

500, on (202) 267–3831. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Title 49 of 

the United States Code, section 47105(f), 

provides that the sponsor of each airport 

to which funds are apportioned shall 

notify the Secretary by such time and in 

a form as prescribed by the Secretary, of 

the sponsor’s intent to apply for its 

apportioned funds, also called 

entitlement funds. Therefore, the FAA is 

hereby notifying sponsors about steps 

required to ensure that the FAA has 

sufficient time to carryover and convert 

remaining entitlement funds, due to 

processes required under federal laws. 

This notice applies only to those 

airports that have had entitlement funds 

apportioned to them, except those 

nonprimary airports located in 

designated Block Grant States. Sponsors 

intending to apply for any of their 

available entitlement funds, including 

those unused from prior years, shall 

submit by 12 p.m. prevailing local time 

on Friday, May 1, 2015, a written 

indication to the designated Airports 

District Office (or Regional Office in 

regions without Airports District 

Offices) their intent to submit a grant 

application no later than close of 

business Thursday, July 2, 2015, to use 

their fiscal year 2015 entitlement funds 

available under Title 49 of the United 

States Code, section 47114. This notice 

must address all entitlement funds 

apportioned for fiscal year 2015 

including those entitlement funds not 

obligated from prior years. By Friday, 

June 5, 2015, airport sponsors that have 

not yet submitted a final application to 

the FAA, should notify the FAA of any 

issues with meeting the final 

application deadline of Thursday July 2, 

2015. Absent notification from the 

sponsor by the May 1 deadline and/or 

subsequent notification by the June 5 

deadline of any issues with meeting the 

application deadline, the FAA will 

proceed after Thursday, July 2, 2015 to 

take action to carry over all remaining 

entitlement funds without further 

notice. The funds will not be available 

again until at least the beginning of 

fiscal year 2016. 

This notice is promulgated to 

expedite and facilitate the grant-making 

process. 

The AIP grant program is operating 

under the requirements of Public Law 

112–91, the ‘‘FAA Modernization and 

Reform Act of 2012,’’ enacted on 

February 14, 2012, which authorizes the 

FAA through September 30, 2015 and 

the ‘‘Consolidated and Further 

Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015’’ 

which appropriates FY 2015 funds for 

the AIP. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on January 20, 

2015. 

Elliott Black, 

Director, Office of Airport Planning and 

Programming. 

[FR Doc. 2015–01318 Filed 1–23–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

Aviation Rulemaking Advisory 

Committee—New Task 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of new task assignment 

for the Aviation Rulemaking Advisory 

Committee (ARAC). 

SUMMARY: The FAA assigned the 

Aviation Rulemaking Advisory 

Committee (ARAC) a new task to 

provide recommendations regarding 

revision of the damage-tolerance and 

fatigue requirements of Title 14, Code of 

Federal Regulations (14 CFR), part 25, 

including subparts C and E of 14 CFR 

part 26, and development of associated 

advisory material for metallic, 

composite, and hybrid structures. Past 

changes to the damage-tolerance and 

fatigue airworthiness standards and 

advisory material have been more 

specific to transport airplanes 

constructed predominantly of metal, 

using skin-stringer-frame architecture. 

Today, the trend in industry is to use 

more composite and hybrid structures 

(i.e., structure that includes a 

combination of composite and metallic 

parts and assemblies) to improve the 

performance of transport airplanes. As a 

result, the damage-tolerance and fatigue 

airworthiness standards and advisory 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with NOTICES
4030 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 16 / Monday, January 26, 2015 / Notices 

material may not be adequate to address 

this trend. This notice informs the 

public of the new ARAC activity and 

solicits membership for the new 

Transport Airplane Metallic and 

Composite Structures Working Group. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Walt 

Sippel, Federal Aviation 

Administration, 1601 Lind Avenue SW., 

Renton, WA 98057–3356, walter.sippel@

faa.gov, phone number 425–227–2774, 

facsimile number 425–227–1232. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

ARAC Acceptance of Task 

As a result of the December 18, 2014, 

ARAC meeting, the FAA has assigned 

and ARAC has accepted this task 

establishing the Transport Airplane 

Metallic and Composite Structures 

Working Group, under the Transport 

Airplane and Engine (TAE) 

Subcommittee. The working group will 

serve as staff to the ARAC and provide 

advice and recommendations on the 

assigned task. The ARAC will review 

and approve the recommendation report 

and will submit it to the FAA. 

Background 

The FAA established the ARAC to 

provide information, advice, and 

recommendations on aviation related 

issues that could result in rulemaking to 

the FAA Administrator, through the 

Associate Administrator of Aviation 

Safety. 

The Transport Airplane Metallic and 

Composite Structures Working Group 

will provide advice and 

recommendations to the ARAC on the 

damage-tolerance and fatigue 

requirements of part 25 and any 

associated advisory material for 

metallic, composite, and hybrid 

structures. This includes the 

requirements of and regulatory guidance 

material for subparts C and E of part 26 

and any associated advisory material. 

The requirements of § 25.571 apply 

equally to structure constructed from 

either metallic or nonmetallic materials. 

Guidance material is contained in the 

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) 

Advisory Circulars (AC) 25.571–1D and 

20–107B for metallic and composite 

structures, respectively. The changes to 

§ 25.571 that the FAA has adopted over 

the years have been more specific to the 

technical issues primarily associated 

with metallic structure. In Amendment 

25–132 to § 25.571, the FAA added 

requirements for applicants to establish 

a limit of validity of the engineering 

data that supports the structural 

maintenance program (hereafter referred 

to as LOV) and to demonstrate that 

widespread fatigue damage (WFD) will 

not occur in the airplane prior to 

reaching the LOV. The objective of this 

change, along with the development of 

the related guidance material, was 

focused on addressing the normal 

fatigue wear-out of metallic structure. 

Among other things, § 25.571 requires 

applicants to establish an LOV based on 

WFD considerations, and identify in the 

structural-maintenance program all 

maintenance actions required to address 

fatigue, environmental damage, and 

accidental damage throughout the 

operational life of the airplane. In a 

similar way, subpart C requires certain 

actions to prevent catastrophic failure 

due to WFD throughout the operational 

life of certain existing transport category 

airplanes. The FAA also adopted 

subpart E of part 26 to require holders 

of design approvals to make available to 

operators damage tolerance data for 

repairs and alterations to fatigue critical 

airplane structure. In addition to AC 

25.571–1D, guidance material for 

subparts C and E of part 26 are 

contained in ACs 120–104 and 120–93, 

respectively. Because the adoption of 

those requirements and § 25.571 were 

primarily focused on metallic structure, 

the FAA needs to evaluate those rules 

and advisory material to determine 

whether further changes are required to 

address composite structures. 

Remaining Rulemaking 

Recommendations 

In 1995, the FAA tasked the ARAC to 

recommend appropriate revisions for 

harmonization of § 25.571, supporting 

policy and guidance material, and 

corresponding paragraph 25.571 of the 

Joint Aviation Requirements (JAR), 

which is now Certification Specification 

(CS) 25.571 under the European 

Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). The 

ARAC formed the General Structures 

Harmonization Working Group 

(GSHWG) to carry out that task. In 2003, 

the GSHWG submitted the Working 

Group Report on § 25.571 and JAR 

25.571 [CS 25.571] to ARAC. That report 

described proposed changes to 

harmonize the rules and related 

guidance material. The GSHWG 

recommended revising or adding 

requirements for inspection thresholds, 

LOV, and structural damage capability. 

Subpart C of part 26 and § 25.571, 

Amendment 25–132, incorporated the 

recommendation to add requirements 

for establishing an LOV. The FAA has 

not yet addressed the GSHWG 

recommendations related to inspection 

thresholds and structural damage 

capability, and would request these be 

considered in the context of this 

rulemaking, which include: 

• Replacing the prescriptive 

requirement of § 25.571(a)(3) for setting 

damage-tolerance inspection thresholds 

with a performance-based requirement. 

• Adding a requirement for showing 

structural capability in the presence of 

damage, so that even if the structure 

fails partially, there will still be enough 

structure remaining to be safe. 

Increased Use of Composites 

Today, the trend in industry is to use 

more composite structures than in the 

past. The Small Airplane and Rotorcraft 

Directorates addressed this trend by 

creating separate rules for parts 23, 27 

and 29 for composite structures 

(§ 2X.573). This tasking will consider 

the changes to those rules as part of the 

evaluation of the damage-tolerance and 

fatigue airworthiness standards and 

associated advisory material. 

In June of 2009, the FAA Transport 

Airplane Directorate sought comments 

through the Federal Register (74 FR 

26919) on a need for future rulemaking 

to address extensive use of composite 

materials in transport category airplane 

construction. Several candidate 

technical areas were noted in the 

request, including fire safety, 

crashworthiness, lightning protection, 

fuel tank safety and damage-tolerance. 

The response by industry indicated that 

each area needs improved guidance and 

possible rulemaking. We believe the 

damage-tolerance requirements would 

require relatively small changes versus 

some of the updates desired in other 

areas. 

Composite considerations the working 

group will need to address include: 

• Composite analyses and test 

protocols as related to evolving industry 

practices and the development of 

regulatory standards. 

• Composite damage threats (e.g., 

environmental and accidental damage) 

and associated maintenance practices. 

• Large-scale test demonstration of 

repeated-load reliability and a need to 

use load enhancement factors for 

composite structure. 

• Thermal stresses generated between 

metal-composite interfaces, which are 

difficult to replicate in structural 

repeated-load testing but are required by 

§ 25.571 to be considered. 

Future Applicability 

Any future change to § 25.571 should 

be performance-based to the extent 

possible, allowing application to not 

only current aerospace materials and 

material systems, but those yet to be 

developed (i.e., emerging technology). 

Guidance material, including changes to 

AC 25.571–1D, or AC 20–107B, should 

provide complete guidance for 


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Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 16 / Monday, January 26, 2015 / Notices 4031 

traditional metal structure, composite 

structure, and hybrid structure (i.e., 

structures that include a combination of 

composite and metallic parts and 

assemblies). 

There are other FAA initiatives in the 

area of transport crashworthiness, fuel 

tank lightning protection, and 

composite flammability testing, which 

will lead to further standardization of 

requirements related to composite 

airframes. These initiatives would not 

affect § 25.571. 

The Task 

The Transport Airplane Metallic and 

Composite Structures Working Group is 

tasked to: 

1. Evaluate § 25.571, subparts C and E 

of part 26, and associated regulatory 

guidance material (e.g., advisory 

circulars and policy statements) to 

determine whether any changes to the 

airworthiness standards and/or 

guidance material are required to 

address transport airplanes being 

constructed of metallic, composite, and 

hybrid structures. The working group is 

also tasked to evaluate whether any 

changes to part 25 and the associated 

regulatory guidance material are 

required to provide consistency with the 

damage-tolerance and fatigue 

airworthiness standards and associated 

guidance material for parts 23, 27, and 

29. The working group is requested to 

include in its evaluation a review of the 

following advisory circulars (AC) and 

policy statements (PS): 

a. Advisory Circulars: AC 25.571–1, 

Damage Tolerance and Fatigue 

Evaluation of Structure; AC 20–107, 

Composite Airframe Structure; AC 120– 

93, Damage Tolerance Inspections for 

Repairs and Alterations; AC 120–104, 

Establishing and Implementing Limit of 

Validity to Prevent Widespread Fatigue 

Damage; AC 27–1, Certification of 

Normal Category Rotorcraft 

(specifically, Subpart C—Strength 

Requirements); and AC 29–2, 

Certification of Transport Category 

Rotorcraft (specifically, Subpart C— 

Strength Requirements). 

b. Policy Statements: PS–ANM100– 

1989–00048, Policy Regarding Impact of 

Modifications and Repairs on the 

Damage Tolerance Characteristics of 

Transport Category Airplanes; PS– 

ACE100–2001–006, Static Strength 

Substantiation of Composite Airplane 

Structure; PS–AIR–100–120–07, 

Guidance for Component Contractor 

Generated Composite Design Values for 

Composite Structure; PS–ACE100– 

2002–006, Material Qualification and 

Equivalency for Polymer Matrix 

Composite Material Systems; PS–ANM– 

100–1991–00049, Policy Regarding 

Material Strength Properties and Design 

Values, § 25.613; PS–ANM100–1993, 

Compliance with § 25.571(e) Discrete 

Source Damage (Uncontained Engine 

Failure). 

2. Advise and make written 

recommendations on whether to change 

14 CFR part 25, subparts C and E of 14 

CFR part 26, and related regulatory 

guidance material, such as ACs 25.571– 

1, 20–107, 120–93, and 120–104, to 

address the use of metallic, composite, 

and hybrid structures in transport 

airplanes. In developing the 

recommendations, the working group is 

requested to consider: 

a. The threats associated with fatigue, 

environmental exposure, and accidental 

damage that must be addressed per 

§ 25.571. 

b. Applicability to emerging 

technology materials. 

c. The recommendations contained in 

the 2003 General Structures 

Harmonization Working Group 

(GSHWG) report entitled, ‘‘Damage 

Tolerance and Fatigue Evaluation of 

Structures, FAR/JAR § 25.571.’’ You can 

find the GSHWG report at http://

www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/

rulemaking/committees/documents/

index.cfm/document/information/

documentID/384. The working group 

recommendations should include 

whether it is appropriate to: 

i. Require applicants to assume the 

structure contains an initial flaw of the 

maximum probable size that could exist 

as a result of manufacturing or serviceinduced damage. 

ii. Add a requirement for showing 

structural capability in the presence of 

damage, so that even if the structure 

fails partially, there will still be enough 

structure remaining to be safe. 

d. The continued operational safety of 

composite and hybrid structures as they 

age, including any airworthiness 

limitations in the structural 

maintenance program. 

e. The testing of hybrid structure, 

including, but not limited to, addressing 

thermal effects, test duration, load 

enhancement factors, and crack-growth 

retardation. 

f. The bonding or bolting of repairs to 

metallic, composite, and hybrid 

structures. 

g. The certification of large structural 

modifications on transport airplanes 

constructed of composite or hybrid 

structures. 

h. The EASA rulemaking activity on 

aging aircraft for harmonization 

purposes. 

3. Provide recommendations on 

appropriate performance-based 

requirements to address the results of 

the evaluations above, with 

consideration of applicability not only 

to metals and known composites, but 

also other emerging technology 

materials. 

4. Provide recommendations on any 

new guidance or changes to existing 

guidance, including AC 25.571–1D, and 

AC 20–107B to address the results of the 

evaluations above. 

5. Provide initial qualitative and 

quantitative costs and benefits. Based on 

the recommendations, perform the 

following: 

a. Estimate the costs to implement the 

recommendations; 

b. Estimate the benefits of the 

recommendations in terms of potential 

fatalities averted; 

c. Estimate any other benefits (e.g., 

reduced administrative burden) that 

would result from implementation of 

the recommendations. 

6. Develop a report containing 

recommendations on the findings and 

results of the tasks explained above. 

a. The recommendation report should 

document both majority and dissenting 

positions on the findings and the 

rationale for each position. 

b. Any disagreements should be 

documented, including the rationale for 

each position and the reasons for the 

disagreement. 

7. The working group may be 

reinstated to assist the ARAC by 

responding to the FAA’s questions or 

concerns after the recommendation 

report has been submitted. 

Schedule 

The recommendation report must be 

submitted to the FAA for review and 

acceptance no later than 24 months after 

publication of this notice. 

Working Group Activity 

The Transport Airplane Metallic and 

Composite Structures Working Group 

must comply with the procedures 

adopted by the ARAC. As part of the 

procedures, the working group must: 

1. Conduct a review and analysis of 

the assigned tasks and any other related 

materials or documents. 

2. Draft and submit a work plan for 

completion of the task, including the 

rationale supporting such a plan, for 

consideration by the Transport Airplane 

and Engine Subcommittee. 

3. Provide a status report at each 

Transport Airplane and Engine 

Subcommittee meeting. 

4. Draft and submit the 

recommendation report based on the 

review and analysis of the assigned 

tasks. 

5. Present the recommendation report 

at the Transport Airplane and Engine 

Subcommittee meeting. 


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with NOTICES
4032 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 16 / Monday, January 26, 2015 / Notices 

6. Present the findings from the 

additional tasks at the Transport 

Airplane and Engine Subcommittee 

meeting. 

7. Present the findings in response to 

the FAA’s questions or concerns about 

the recommendation report at the 

Transport Airplane and Engine 

Subcommittee meeting. 

Participation in the Working Group 

The Transport Airplane Metallic and 

Composite Structures Working Group 

will be comprised of technical experts 

having an interest in the assigned task. 

A working group member need not be 

a member representative of the ARAC. 

The FAA would like a wide range of 

members to ensure all aspects of the 

tasks are considered in development of 

the recommendations. The provisions of 

the August 13, 2014, Office of 

Management and Budget guidance, 

‘‘Revised Guidance on Appointment of 

Lobbyists to Federal Advisory 

Committees, Boards, and Commissions’’ 

(79 FR 47482), continues the ban on 

registered lobbyists participating on 

Agency Boards and Commissions if 

participating in their ‘‘individual 

capacity.’’ The revised guidance now 

allows registered lobbyists to participate 

on Agency Boards and Commissions in 

a ‘‘representative capacity’’ for the 

‘‘express purpose of providing a 

committee with the views of a 

nongovernmental entity, a recognizable 

group of persons or nongovernmental 

entities (an industry, sector, labor 

unions, or environmental groups, etc.) 

or state or local government.’’ (For 

further information see Lobbying 

Disclosure Act of 1995 (LDA) as 

amended, 2 U.S.C 1603, 1604, and 

1605.) 

If you wish to become a member of 

the Transport Airplane Metallic and 

Composite Structures Working Group, 

write the person listed under the 

caption FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT expressing that desire. Describe 

your interest in the task and state the 

expertise you would bring to the 

working group. The FAA must receive 

all requests by February 25, 2015. The 

ARAC and the FAA will review the 

requests and advise you whether or not 

your request is approved. 

If you are chosen for membership on 

the working group, you must actively 

participate in the working group by 

attending all meetings, and providing 

written comments when requested to do 

so. You must devote the resources 

necessary to support the working group 

in meeting any assigned deadlines. You 

must keep your management chain and 

those you may represent advised of 

working group activities and decisions 

to ensure the proposed technical 

solutions do not conflict with the 

position of those you represent. Once 

the working group has begun 

deliberations, members will not be 

added or substituted without the 

approval of the Transport Airplane and 

Engine Subcommittee Chair, the FAA, 

including the Designated Federal 

Officer, and the Working Group Chair. 

The Secretary of Transportation 

determined the formation and use of the 

ARAC is necessary and in the public 

interest in connection with the 

performance of duties imposed on the 

FAA by law. 

ARAC meetings are open to the 

public. However, meetings of the 

Transport Airplane Metallic and 

Composite Structures Working Group 

are not open to the public, except to the 

extent individuals with an interest and 

expertise are selected to participate. The 

FAA will make no public 

announcement of working group 

meetings. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on January 16, 

2015. 

Lirio Liu, 

Designated Federal Officer, Aviation 

Rulemaking Advisory Committee. 

[FR Doc. 2015–01044 Filed 1–23–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Railroad Administration 

[Docket No. FRA–2015–0001] 

Establishment of an Emergency Relief 

Docket for Calendar Year 2015 

AGENCY: Federal Railroad 

Administration (FRA), U.S. Department 

of Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Notice of establishment of 

public docket. 

SUMMARY: This Notice announces the 

establishment of FRA’s Emergency 

Relief Docket (ERD) for calendar year 

2015. The designated ERD for calendar 

year 2015 is Docket Number FRA–2015– 

0001. 

ADDRESSES: See SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION section for further 

information regarding submitting 

petitions and/or comments to Docket 

Number FRA–2015–0001. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On May 

19, 2009, FRA published a direct final 

rule addressing the establishment of 

ERDs and the procedures for handling 

petitions for emergency waivers of 

safety rules, regulations, or standards 

during an emergency situation or event. 

74 FR 23329. That direct final rule 

became effective on July 20, 2009, and 

made minor modifications to Title 49 

Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 

211.45 in FRA’s Rules of Practice 

published at 49 CFR part 211. Paragraph 

(b) of 49 CFR 211.45 provides that each 

calendar year, FRA will establish an 

ERD in the publicly accessible DOT 

docket system (available on the internet 

at http://www.regulations.gov). 

Paragraph (b) of 49 CFR 211.45 further 

provides that FRA will publish a notice 

in the Federal Register identifying by 

docket number the ERD for that year. As 

noted in the rule, FRA’s purpose for 

establishing the ERD and emergency 

waiver procedures is to provide an 

expedited process for FRA to address 

the needs of the public and the railroad 

industry during emergency situations or 

events. This Notice announces that the 

designated ERD for calendar year 2015 

is Docket Number FRA–2015–0001. 

As detailed in 49 CFR 211.45, if the 

FRA Administrator determines that an 

emergency event as defined in 49 CFR 

211.45(a) has occurred, or that an 

imminent threat of such an emergency 

occurring exists, and public safety 

would benefit from providing the 

railroad industry with operational relief, 

the emergency waiver procedures of 49 

CFR 211.45 will go into effect. In such 

an event, the FRA Administrator will 

issue a statement in the ERD indicating 

that the emergency waiver procedures 

are in effect and FRA will make every 

effort to post the statement on its Web 

site at http://www.fra.dot.gov/. Any 

party desiring relief from FRA 

regulatory requirements as a result of 

the emergency situation should submit 

a petition for emergency waiver in 

accordance with 49 CFR 211.45(e) and 

(f). Specific instructions for filing 

petitions for emergency waivers in 

accordance with 49 CFR 211.45 are 

found at 49 CFR 211.45(f). Specific 

instructions for filing comments in 

response to petitions for emergency 

waivers are found at 49 CFR 211.45(h). 

Anyone is able to search the 

electronic form of any written 

communications and comments 

received into any of our dockets by the 

name of the individual submitting the 

comment (or signing the document, if 

submitted on behalf of an association, 

business, labor union, etc.). In 

accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT 

solicits comments from the public to 

better inform its processes. 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. See also http://


emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with NOTICES