Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 249 / Tuesday, December 30, 1997 / Proposed Rules 67821

State City/town/county Source of flooding Location

#Depth in feet above

ground. *Elevation in feet.

(NGVD)

Existing Modified

Gilmer Bayou Tributary 2 Approximately 550 feet downstream of

Waterwood Drive.

None *234

Approximately 3,000 feet upstream of

Beebe Drive.

None *270

Gilmer Bayou Tributary 3 Approximately 1,750 feet downstream of

Winburn Drive.

None *244

Approximately 2,250 feet upstream of

Winburn Drive.

None *272

Maps are available for inspection at 9381 Greenwood Road, Greenwood, Louisiana.

Send comments to The Honorable Owen D. Adams, Mayor, Town of Greenwood, P.O. Box 195, Greenwood, Louisiana 71033.

Oklahoma ............... Allen (Town)

Pontotoc and

Hughes Counties.

Town Branch .................... Approximately 500 feet downstream of

Commerce Street.

None *837

Approximately 1,500 feet upstream of ‘‘B’’

Street.

None *855

Maps are available for inspection at the Town of Allen Town Hall, Allen, Oklahoma.

Send comments to The Honorable Geneva Vinson, Mayor, Town of Allen, P.O. Box 402, Allen, Oklahoma 74825.

Oregon ................... Troutdale (City)

Multnomah County.

Beaver Creek ................... At Jackson Park Road .............................. *40 *40

Just upstream of Troutdale Road ............. None *183

Approximately 200 feet downstream of

Southeast Stark Street.

None *242

Maps are available for inspection at the City of Troutdale Community Development Department, 104 Southeast Kibling Avenue, Troutdale, Oregon.

Send comments to The Honorable Paul Thalhofer, Mayor, City of Troutdale, 104 Southeast Kibling Avenue, Troutdale, Oregon 97060.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance No.

83.100, ‘‘Flood Insurance’’)

Dated: December 18, 1997.

Michael J. Armstrong,

Associate Director for Mitigation.

[FR Doc. 97–33931 Filed 12–29–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6718–04–P

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration

49 CFR Part 376

[FHWA Docket No. FHWA–97–3050]

RIN 2125–AE26

Exemption of Commonly-Owned Motor

Carriers From Equipment Identification

and Receipt Requirements Applicable

to Leased and Interchanged Vehicles

AGENCY: Federal Highway

Administration (FHWA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking;

request for comments.

SUMMARY: The FHWA is proposing to

modify its regulations under 49 CFR

part 376 governing the lease and

interchange of motor vehicle equipment

by exempting commonly-owned and

controlled motor carriers from the

vehicle identification and exchange of

receipt requirements of § 376.22 and the

identification of equipment requirement

of § 376.31. The FHWA routinely grants

waivers from these requirements on an

individual basis. This proposed action

would eliminate the need for carriers to

obtain individual waivers from the

FHWA.

DATES: Comments to this NPRM should

be received no later than March 2, 1998.

Late comments will be considered to the

extent practicable.

ADDRESSES: All signed, written

comments should refer to the docket

number appearing at the top of this

document and must be submitted to the

Docket Clerk, U.S. DOT Dockets, Room

PL–401, 400 Seventh Street, SW.,

Washington, DC 20590–0001. All

comments received will be available for

examination at the above address

between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., e.t.,

Monday through Friday, except Federal

holidays. Those desiring notification of

receipt of comments must include a selfaddressed, stamped envelope or

postcard.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.

John F. Grimm, Director, Office of Motor

Carrier Information Analysis, (202) 366–

4039, or Mr. Michael J. Falk, Motor

Carrier Law Division, Office of the Chief

Counsel, (202) 366–1384, Federal

Highway Administration, Department of

Transportation, 400 Seventh Street,

SW., Washington, DC 20590. Office

hours are from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., e.t.,

Monday through Friday, except Federal

holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

FHWA’s regulations at 49 CFR part 376

govern motor carrier transportation

provided in nonowned equipment.

These regulations, originally

promulgated by the Interstate Commerce

Commission (ICC), were formerly

codified at 49 CFR part 1057 until

redesignated on October 21, 1996. The

ICC Termination Act of 1995 (ICCTA),

Public Law 104–88, 109 Stat. 803,

transferred jurisdiction over motor

carrier leasing and interchange of

equipment practices to the Secretary of

Transportation, who delegated this

function to the FHWA under 49 CFR

1.48(h)(6).

Section 376.22 permits motor carriers

of property, subject to registration under

the ICCTA (authorized carriers), to trip

lease equipment between themselves

and private motor carriers under

specified conditions. A trip lease is a

contract for the use of nonowned

vehicles for single point-to-point hauls.

Section 376.22(a) requires that tripleasing carriers comply with the

identification of equipment
67822 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 249 / Tuesday, December 30, 1997 / Proposed Rules

requirements of § 376.11(c). Under

§ 376.22(c)(2), the carriers must also

have a written agreement placing

control and responsibility for the

equipment with the lessee during the

lease period, as determined by an

exchange of equipment receipts

required under § 376.11(b). Section

376.22(c)(4) permits the use of a master

lease under certain conditions to

comply with the trip-leasing

requirements.

Vehicle Identification Requirements

Under § 376.11(c)(1), an authorized

carrier acquiring the use of nonowned

equipment must identify the equipment

in accordance with the marking of

commercial vehicle regulations at 49

CFR part 390, subpart D (formerly 49

CFR part 1058). These regulations

require that commercial vehicles

display the name or trade name of the

motor carrier operating the vehicle, as

well as its principal place of business

and motor carrier identification number.

Equipment Receipt Requirements

Under § 376.11(b), at the time the

authorized carrier acquires the use of

nonowned equipment, it must give the

owner of the equipment a receipt

specifically identifying the equipment

and the date and time of day possession

is transferred. A receipt must also be

given when the authorized carrier

returns possession of the equipment to

the owner, if required by the lease

agreement.

Purpose of These Requirements

The leasing regulations are intended

to ensure that motor carriers providing

transportation in vehicles owned and

operated by others assume

responsibility for, and control the

transportation service in, equipment

they do not own to the same extent as

if they owned the vehicles themselves.

This not only affixes carrier

responsibility and liability for the

protection of shippers and the general

public, but also facilitates enforcement

of applicable regulatory requirements.

The equipment identification and

exchange of receipt requirements in

§§ 376.22(a) and (c) are designed to

monitor control and responsibility for

the operation of leased vehicles.

Waivers for Commonly-Owned Carriers

Over the years, motor carriers under

joint ownership or control have

requested individual waivers from the

equipment identification and exchange

of receipt requirements of §§ 376.22(a)

and (c), when exchanging equipment

among themselves, on the grounds that

compliance is unnecessary and unduly

burdensome as long as the carriers

remain under joint ownership and

control. The FHWA, as did the ICC

before it, has granted these waivers on

the condition that the carriers continue

to comply with other applicable

provisions of § 376.22 and that

contractual relationships between

owner-operators and the individual

carriers will be governed by §§ 376.11

and 376.12. The purpose of this notice

of proposed rulemaking is to establish a

blanket exemption from the vehicle

identification and receipt requirements

of § 376.22 for jointly-owned or

controlled carriers, thus eliminating the

need for individual waiver petitions.

Such carriers would still be required to

comply with the other applicable

provisions of § 376.22, as well as

§§ 376.11 and 376.12.

The FHWA has granted individual

waivers from the § 376.22 identification

of vehicles and exchange of receipt

requirements because these

requirements serve little public purpose

when vehicles are being exchanged

between commonly-controlled

companies which are jointly operated

with respect to safety program

administration and equipment

utilization. Vehicle ownership and

assignment information can be readily

made available from computerized

dispatch records and operational logs,

obviating the need for strict

identification, placarding and receipt

issuance requirements. Furthermore,

commonly-controlled carriers seeking

waivers claim that the elimination of

these requirements would allow them to

operate more efficiently and

economically by fostering improved

equipment use and eliminating a

significant and unproductive paperwork

and placarding burden.

The proposed action is consistent

with the National Transportation Policy

because it will promote efficiency in the

motor carrier transportation system and

encourage more productive use of

equipment and energy resources. See 49

U.S.C. 13101(a)(2)(B) and (E). It would

also allow FHWA to conserve its own

resources by eliminating the need to

grant waivers on an individual basis.

Interchange Identification

Requirements

For purposes of consistency between

the leasing regulations in subpart B of

part 376 and the interchange regulations

in subpart D of that part, we are also

proposing to modify § 376.31(d) with

respect to the interchange of equipment

between commonly-controlled

authorized carriers. Interchange of

equipment occurs when one motor

common carrier receives equipment

from another in order to continue a

through movement. Section 376.31(d)(1)

requires that the carrier giving up

possession of the equipment remove all

placarding identification showing it as

the operating entity, and that the carrier

receiving possession mark the

equipment with its own name, place of

business and identification number, in

accordance with 49 CFR part 390,

subpart D. New paragraph (d)(3) would

eliminate this requirement for

commonly-controlled carriers

interchanging equipment among

themselves. It would also eliminate, for

these carriers, the § 376.31(d)(2)

requirement that each vehicle carry a

detailed interchange statement.

The FHWA solicits public comment

on the proposed modifications of

§§ 376.22 and 376.31(d), which are set

forth below.

Rulemaking Analyses and Notices

All comments received before the

close of business on the comment

closing date indicated above will be

considered and will be available for

examination in the docket at the above

address. Comments received after the

comment closing date will be filed in

the docket and will be considered to the

extent practicable, but the FHWA may

issue a final rule at any time after the

close of the comment period. In

addition to late comments, the FHWA

will also continue to file in the docket

relevant information that becomes

available after the comment closing

date, and interested persons should

continue to examine the docket for new

material.

Executive Order 12866 (Regulatory

Planning and Review) and DOT

Regulatory Policies and Procedures

The FHWA has determined that this

action is not a significant regulatory

action within the meaning of Executive

Order 12866 or significant within the

meaning of Department of

Transportation regulatory policies and

procedures. It is anticipated that the

economic impact of this rulemaking will

be minimal; therefore, a full regulatory

evaluation is not required. The

rulemaking merely proposes to exempt

a small number of transportation

entities from complying with

identification and documentation

requirements which FHWA has

routinely waived upon request. Neither

the individual nor cumulative impact of

this action would be significant.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

In compliance with the Regulatory

Flexibility Act (Pub. L. 96–354, 5 U.S.C.

601–612), the FHWA has evaluated the
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 249 / Tuesday, December 30, 1997 / Proposed Rules 67823

effects of this rule on small entities.

Based on the evaluation, the FHWA

hereby certifies that this action would

not have a significant economic impact

on a substantial number of small

entities. The FHWA receives less than

ten petitions per year seeking waiver of

vehicle identification and receipt

issuance requirements. The proposed

rule, while beneficial, would not have a

significant economic impact.

Executive Order 12612 (Federalism

Assessment)

This action has been analyzed in

accordance with the principles and

criteria contained in Executive Order

12612, and it has been determined that

this action does not have sufficient

federalism implications to warrant the

preparation of a federalism assessment.

Executive Order 12372

(Intergovernmental Review)

Catalog of Federal Domestic

Assistance Program Number 20.217,

Motor Carrier Safety. The regulations

implementing Executive Order 12372

regarding intergovernmental

consultation on Federal programs and

activities do not apply to this program.

Paperwork Reduction Act

This action does not contain a

collection of information requirement

for purposes of the Paperwork

Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3501

et seq. It is specifically designed to

eliminate certain existing paperwork

requirements for commonly-controlled

motor carriers leasing or interchanging

vehicles among themselves. Thus, this

action is consistent with goals of the

Paperwork Reduction Act.

National Environmental Policy Act

The agency has analyzed this action

for the purpose of the National

Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42

U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and has determined

that this action would not have any

effect on the quality of the environment.

Regulation Identification Number

A regulation identification number

(RIN) is assigned to each regulatory

action listed in the Unified Agenda of

Federal Regulations. The Regulatory

Information Service Center publishes

the Unified Agenda in April and

October of each year. The RIN number

contained in the heading of this

document can be used to cross reference

this action with the Unified Agenda.

List of Subjects in 49 CFR Part 376

Highways and roads, Motor carriers—

equipment leasing, Reporting and

recordkeeping requirements.

Issued: December 18, 1997.

Kenneth R. Wykle,

Federal Highway Administrator.

In consideration of the foregoing and

under the authority of section 103 of the

ICC Termination Act of 1995, Public

Law 104–88, 109 Stat. 803, and 49 CFR

1.48, the FHWA proposes to amend title

49, chapter III, as follows:

1. The authority citation for part 376

continues to read as follows:

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 13301 and 14102; 49

CFR 1.48.

2. Section 376.22 is amended by

adding new paragraph (d) to read as

follows:

§ 376.22 Exemption for private carrier

leasing and leasing between authorized

carriers.

* * * * *

(d) Authorized and private carriers

under common ownership and control

may lease equipment to each other

under this section without complying

with the requirements of paragraph (a)

of this section pertaining to

identification of equipment, and the

requirements of paragraphs (c)(2) and

(c)(4) of this section pertaining to

equipment receipts. The leasing of

equipment between such carriers will be

subject to all other requirements of this

section.

3. Section 376.31 is amended by

adding paragraph (d)(3) to read as

follows:

§ 376.31 Interchange of equipment.

* * * * *

(d)(3) Authorized carriers under

common ownership and control may

interchange equipment with each other

without complying with the

requirements of paragraph (d)(1) of this

section pertaining to removal of

identification from equipment, and the

requirements of paragraph (d)(2) of this

section pertaining to the identification

of equipment.

[FR Doc. 97–33902 Filed 12–29–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–22–P