36666 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 146 / Monday, July 30, 2018 / Notices 

the SDLA with their MEC as proof of 

medical certification. As a result of this 

extension, there are no additional 

annual burden hours or costs to 

respondents imposed by the Medical 

Examiner’s Certification Integration 

final rule during the first 6 years of 

implementation of the final rule. 

Therefore, all the IC activities imposed 

on the MEs, drivers, and motor carriers 

over the first 6 years of implementing 

the Medical Examiner’s Certification 

Integration final rule will remain 

unchanged. 

On April 27, 2018, FMCSA published 

a 60-day notice (83 FR 18640) 

requesting comment on the renewal of 

this ICR. In response to the notice, eight 

comments were received. However, 

none of the comments were related to 

information collection activities or the 

renewal of this ICR. 

Public Comments Invited: You are 

asked to comment on any aspect of this 

information collection, including: (1) 

Whether the proposed collection is 

necessary for the FMCSA to perform its 

functions; (2) the accuracy of the 

estimated burden; (3) ways for the 

FMCSA to enhance the quality, 

usefulness, and clarity of the collected 

information; and (4) ways that the 

burden could be minimized without 

reducing the quality of the collected 

information. 

Issued under the authority delegated in 49 

CFR 1.87 on: July 20, 2018. 

G. Kelly Regal, 

Associate Administrator for Office of 

Research and Information Technology. 

[FR Doc. 2018–16224 Filed 7–27–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

[Docket No. FMCSA–2013–0147] 

Qualification of Drivers; Skill 

Performance Evaluation; Virginia 

Department of Motor Vehicles 

Application for Renewal Exemption 

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of renewal of exemption; 

request for comments. 

SUMMARY: FMCSA announces its 

decision to renew a Virginia Department 

of Motor Vehicles (DMV) exemption on 

behalf of truck and bus drivers who are 

licensed in the Commonwealth of 

Virginia and need a Skill Performance 

Evaluation (SPE) Certificate from 

FMCSA to operate commercial motor 

vehicles (CMV) in interstate commerce. 

The exemption enables interstate CMV 

drivers who are licensed in Virginia and 

are subject to the Federal SPE 

requirements under 49 CFR 391.49 to 

continue to fulfill the Federal 

requirements with a State-issued SPE 

and to operate CMVs in interstate 

commerce anywhere in the United 

States. 

DATES: This decision is effective July 8, 

2018, and will expire July 8, 2023, and 

may be renewed. Comments must be 

received on or before August 29, 2018. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

bearing the Federal Docket Management 

System (FDMS) Docket No. FMCSA– 

2013–0147 using any of the following 

methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

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

online instructions for submitting 

comments. 

• Mail: Docket Management Facility; 

U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building 

Ground Floor, Room W12–140, 

Washington, DC 20590–0001. 

• Hand Delivery: West Building 

Ground Floor, Room W12–140, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, 

DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., e.t., 

Monday through Friday, except Federal 

Holidays. 

• Fax: 1–202–493–2251. 

Instructions: Each submission must 

include the Agency name and the 

docket number(s) for this notice. Note 

that all comments received will be 

posted without change to http://

www.regulations.gov, including any 

personal information provided. Please 

see the Privacy Act heading below for 

further information. 

Docket: For access to the docket to 

read background documents or 

comments, go to http://

www.regulations.gov at any time or 

Room W12–140 on the ground level of 

the West Building, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE, Washington, DC, between 9 

a.m. and 5 p.m., e.t., Monday through 

Friday, except Federal holidays. The 

FDMS is available 24 hours each day 

e.t., 365 days each year. If you want 

acknowledgment that we received your 

comments, please include a selfaddressed, stamped envelope or 

postcard or print the acknowledgement 

page that appears after submitting 

comments online. 

Privacy Act: In accordance with 5 

U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits comments 

from the public to better inform its 

rulemaking process. DOT posts these 

comments, without edit, including any 

personal information the commenter 

provides, to http://www.regulations.gov, 

as described in the system of records 

notice (DOT/ALL–14 FDMS), which can 

be reviewed at http://www.dot.gov/ 

privacy. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. 

Eileen Nolan, Office of Carrier, Driver 

and Vehicle Safety, Medical Programs 

Division, 202–366–4001, 

fmcsamedical@dot.gov, FMCSA, 

Department of Transportation, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE, Room W64–224, 

Washington, DC 20590–0001. Office 

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

e.t., Monday through Friday, except 

Federal holidays. If you have questions 

regarding viewing or submitting 

material to the docket, contact Docket 

Services, telephone (202) 366–9826. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

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

FMCSA may grant an exemption from 

certain parts of the Federal Motor 

Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) for 

no longer than 5 years 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 

allows the Agency to renew exemptions 

at the end of the 5-year period. 

On July 8, 2014, FMCSA granted 

Virginia a 2-year exemption that enables 

interstate CMV drivers licensed in 

Virginia who are subject to the Federal 

SPE requirements under 49 CFR 391.49 

to fulfill the Federal requirements with 

a State-issued SPE (79 FR 38659). 

Subsequently, a request for exemption 

renewal was received, and granted for a 

2-year period, beginning July 8, 2016 

and ending on July 8, 2018 (81 FR 

44674). 

At the time the first exemption was 

granted, the term of temporary 

exemptions was limited by statute to a 

maximum of 2 years. However, on 

December 4, 2015, Congress enacted the 

Fixing America’s Surface Transportation 

(FAST) Act, which now allows an 

exemption to be granted for a period of 

5 years (49 U.S.C. 31315(b)(2)) if 

FMCSA 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.’’ Virginia has consistently 

maintained the statutory requirements 

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

31315 for their SPE program. Therefore, 

the Agency believes that extending the 

exemption period to a 5-year period will 

likely achieve a level of safety that is 

equivalent to, or greater than, the level 

of safety achieved without the 

exemption. 

The requirements of the exemption 

were outlined in the prior notices and 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 146 / Monday, July 30, 2018 / Notices 36667 

will therefore not be repeated. Virginia 

has established its own SPE program 

that is essentially identical to the 

current FMCSA SPE program to include 

an application process modeled on the 

FMCSA process. In addition, State 

personnel who have completed SPE 

training identical to that of FMCSA 

personnel currently administer the SPE 

program and conduct the skill 

evaluation according to the same 

procedures and testing criteria used by 

FMCSA. If the driver passes the skill 

evaluation, the State issues the SPE 

Certificate. Virginia maintains records of 

applications, testing, and certificates 

issued, which are available, as required, 

for periodic review by FMCSA. On 

behalf of CMV drivers licensed in the 

Commonwealth of Virginia, the State 

requested renewal of the exemption 

from 49 CFR 391.49 concerning 

FMCSA’s SPE Certificate process for 

drivers who have experienced an 

impairment or loss of a limb. 

II. Request for Comments 

Interested parties or organizations 

possessing information that would 

otherwise show that granting this 

exemption is 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 

Virginia DMV exemption. 

III. Basis for Renewing Exemption 

The Agency’s decision regarding this 

exemption is based on the fact that 

Virginia’s SPE program is essentially 

identical to the current FMCSA 

program. Virginia continues to adhere to 

the application process modeled on the 

FMCSA process. State personnel who 

conduct the skill evaluation complete 

the same training as FMCSA personnel 

conducting the test and follow the same 

procedures and testing criteria used by 

FMCSA. FMCSA has conducted ongoing 

monitoring and SPE program reviews 

and Virginia continues to maintain 

records of applications, testing, and 

certificates issued for periodic review by 

FMCSA. At the time, Virginia DMV 

submitted its request for exemption 

renewal to the Agency, it had issued 29 

new and 48 renewal SPE Certificates. 

Based upon FMCSA’s analyses of the 

applications and the program as a 

whole, FMCSA has determined that no 

safety vulnerabilities are associated with 

Virginia’s renewal request. The renewal 

of the exemption for a 5-year period is 

granted. 

Consequently, FMCSA has concluded 

that renewing the exemption allows the 

Virginia SPE program to achieve the 

level of safety required by 49 U.S.C. 

31315. 

If a Virginia-licensed driver would 

prefer not to opt for the streamlined SPE 

process, the driver may still apply for an 

FMCSA-issued SPE. However, FMCSA 

may still exercise its discretion and call 

upon Virginia DMV to provide 

assistance in conducting the road 

evaluation needed to complete an SPE 

application, depending on the volume 

of applications. 

IV. Conditions and Requirements: 

The FMCSA grants the renewal of the 

exemption to allow the Virginia DMV to 

conduct SPE’s on drivers who have 

experienced an impairment or loss of a 

limb and are licensed in the 

Commonwealth of Virginia. The 

following terms and conditions apply to 

the State and any drivers who receive a 

State-issued SPE certificate: 

• Virginia must establish and 

maintain its own SPE program that is 

essentially identical to the current 

FMCSA program. 

• The State must maintain an 

application process modeled on the 

FMCSA process and submit information 

concerning the application process to 

FMCSA’s Medical Programs Division for 

review, as required. 

• State personnel who conduct the 

skill test must complete SPE training 

identical to that of FMCSA personnel 

currently administering the Federal SPE 

program. 

• The skill evaluation and scoring for 

the SPE must be done using the same 

procedures and testing criteria used by 

FMCSA. 

• Virginia must maintain records of 

applications, testing, and certificates 

issued for periodic review by FMCSA. 

• Virginia must submit a monthly 

report to FMCSA listing the names and 

license number of each driver tested by 

the State and the result of the test (pass 

or fail). 

• Each driver who receives a Stateissued SPE must carry a copy of the 

certificate when driving for presentation 

to authorized Federal, State, or local law 

enforcement officials. 

V. Preemption 

During the period the exemption is in 

effect; no State shall enforce any law or 

regulation that conflicts with this 

exemption with respect to a person 

operating under the exemption. An 

exemption granted under the authority 

of 49 U.S.C. 31315(b) preempts State 

laws and regulations that conflict with 

or are inconsistent with the exemption. 

The decision to grant Virginia’s request 

amounts to automatic Federal 

ratification of the State issued SPE 

Certificate and therefore prohibits other 

jurisdictions from requiring a separate 

FMCSA-issued SPE. The State-issued 

certificate must be treated as if it had 

been issued by FMCSA. Virginialicensed drivers who receive the Stateissued SPE are allowed to operate CMVs 

in interstate commerce anywhere in the 

United States. 

VI. Conclusion 

Virginia has consistently maintained 

the statutory exemption requirements 

associated with the Skill Performance 

Evaluation Certificate program. 

Therefore, in accordance with 49 U.S.C. 

31136(e) and 31315, this exemption will 

be valid for five years unless revoked 

earlier by FMCSA. 

The Agency does not intend its 

decision to pressure other States to take 

action to implement State-run SPE 

programs. Virginia is the first State to 

submit an application on behalf of its 

drivers to provide an alternative to the 

Federal SPE process. Other States are 

welcome to make similar applications if 

they believe it is appropriate to do so 

and they have the resources to meet 

terms and conditions comparable to 

those provided in this exemption. 

Issued on: July 24, 2018. 

Raymond P. Martinez, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2018–16225 Filed 7–27–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Railroad Administration 

[Docket Number FRA–2018–0052] 

Petition for Waiver of Compliance 

Under part 211 of Title 49 Code of 

Federal Regulations (CFR), this provides 

the public notice that by letter dated 

June 4, 2018, Norfolk Southern Railway 

(NS) petitioned the Federal Railroad 

Administration (FRA) for a waiver of 

compliance from certain provisions of 

the Federal railroad safety regulations 

contained at 49 CFR part 236. FRA 

assigned the petition Docket Number 

FRA–2018–0052. 

NS seeks a waiver of compliance from 

cab signal system requirements found in 

49 CFR 236.566, Locomotive of each 

train operating in train stop, train 

control, or cab signal territory; 

equipped. Specifically, NS seeks relief 

to operate non-equipped locomotives in 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with NOTICES