Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 154 / Thursday, August 9, 2018 / Notices 39495 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

[Docket No. FMCSA–2015–0480] 

Commercial Driver’s License 

Standards: Application for Exemption; 

CRST Expedited (CRST) 

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of application for 

renewal of exemption; request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: FMCSA announces that it has 

received an application from CRST 

Expedited (CRST) for a renewal of its 

exemption from the regulation that 

requires a commercial learner’s permit 

(CLP) holder to be accompanied by a 

commercial driver’s license (CDL) 

holder with the proper CDL class and 

endorsements, seated in the front seat of 

the vehicle while the CLP holder 

operates it on public roads or highways. 

The exemption renewal would allow 

CLP holders who have passed the skills 

test but not yet received the CDL 

document to drive a CRST commercial 

motor vehicle (CMV) accompanied by a 

CDL holder who is not necessarily in 

the passenger seat, provided the driver 

has documentation of passing the skills 

test. CRST currently holds an exemption 

for the period September 23, 2016 

through September 24, 2018. FMCSA 

requests public comment on CRST’s 

application for exemption. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before September 10, 2018. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

identified by Federal Docket 

Management System (FDMS) Number 

FMCSA–2015–0480 by any of the 

following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: 

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 or Courier: West 

Building, Ground Floor, Room W12– 

140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, 

between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday 

through Friday, except Federal holidays. 

• Fax: 1–202–493–2251. 

• Each submission must include the 

Agency name and the docket number for 

this notice. Note that DOT posts all 

comments received without change to 

www.regulations.gov, including any 

personal information included in a 

comment. Please see the Privacy Act 

heading below. 

Docket: For access to the docket to 

read background documents or 

comments, go to www.regulations.gov at 

any time or visit 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., ET, 

Monday through Friday, except Federal 

holidays. The on-line Federal Docket 

Management System is available 24 

hours each day, 365 days each year. 

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 www.regulations.gov, as 

described in the system of records 

notice (DOT/ALL–14 FDMS), which can 

be reviewed at www.dot.gov/privacy. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. 

Pearlie Robinson, FMCSA Driver and 

Carrier Operations Division; Office of 

Carrier, Driver and Vehicle Safety 

Standards; Telephone: (202) 366–4225. 

Email: MCPSD@dot.gov. If you have 

questions on viewing or submitting 

material to the docket, contact Docket 

Services, telephone (202) 366–9826. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Public Participation and Request for 

Comments 

FMCSA encourages you to participate 

by submitting comments and related 

materials. 

Submitting Comments 

If you submit a comment, please 

include the docket number for this 

notice (FMCSA–2015–0480), indicate 

the specific section of this document to 

which the comment applies, and 

provide a reason for suggestions or 

recommendations. You may submit 

your comments and material online or 

by fax, mail, or hand delivery, but 

please use only one of these means. 

FMCSA recommends that you include 

your name and a mailing address, an 

email address, or a phone number in the 

body of your document so the Agency 

can contact you if it has questions 

regarding your submission. 

To submit your comments online, go 

to www.regulations.gov and put the 

docket number, ‘‘FMCSA–2015–0480’’ 

in the ‘‘Keyword’’ box, and click 

‘‘Search.’’ When the new screen 

appears, click on ‘‘Comment Now!’’ 

button and type your comment into the 

text box in the following screen. Choose 

whether you are submitting your 

comment as an individual or on behalf 

of a third party and then submit. An 

option to upload a file is provided. If 

you submit your comments by mail or 

hand delivery, submit them in an 

unbound format, no larger than 81⁄2 by 

11 inches, suitable for copying and 

electronic filing. If you submit 

comments by mail and would like to 

know that they reached the facility, 

please enclose a stamped, self-addressed 

postcard or envelope. FMCSA will 

consider all comments and material 

received during the comment period 

and may grant or not grant this 

application based on your comments. 

II. Legal Basis 

FMCSA has authority under 49 U.S.C. 

31136(e) and 31315 to grant exemptions 

from certain parts of the Federal Motor 

Carrier Safety Regulations. FMCSA must 

publish a notice of each exemption 

request in the Federal Register (49 CFR 

381.315(a)). The Agency must provide 

the public an opportunity to inspect the 

information relevant to the application, 

including any safety analyses that have 

been conducted. The Agency must also 

provide an opportunity for public 

comment on the request. 

The Agency reviews safety analyses 

and public comments submitted, and 

determines whether granting the 

exemption would likely achieve a level 

of safety equivalent to, or greater than, 

the level that would be achieved by the 

current regulation (49 CFR 381.305). 

The decision of the Agency must be 

published in the Federal Register (49 

CFR 381.315(b)) with the reasons for 

denying or granting the application and, 

if granted, the name of the person or 

class of persons receiving the 

exemption, and the regulatory provision 

from which the exemption is granted. 

The notice must also specify the 

effective period and explain the terms 

and conditions of the exemption. The 

exemption may be renewed (49 CFR 

381.300(b)). 

III. Request for Exemption Renewal 

CRST’s initial exemption application 

from the provisions of 49 CFR 

383.25(a)(1) was submitted in 2015; a 

copy is in the docket identified at the 

beginning of this notice. That 2015 

application describes fully the nature of 

CRST’s operations and CMV drivers. 

The exemption was granted on 

September 23, 2016 (81 FR 65696). 

CRST now requests a renewal of the 

exemption. 

The current exemption excuses CRST 

from the requirement that a driver 

accompanying a CLP holder must be 

physically present at all times in the 

front seat of a CMV, on the condition 

that the CLP holder has successfully 

passed an approved CDL skills test. 

CRST’s 2015 application argued that the 

existing requirement is inefficient and 


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39496 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 154 / Thursday, August 9, 2018 / Notices 

unproductive, as the company must 

incur added expense to send the driver 

to his or her home State to collect a CDL 

document. Under the rule, the driver is 

not only unable to utilize newly 

acquired driving skills, but must also 

forego compensation before obtaining a 

CDL. CRST believes that FMCSA should 

renew the exemption for an additional 

5-year period because it results in safer 

drivers. It allows CRST to foster a more 

productive and efficient training 

environment by allowing CLP holders to 

hone their recently acquired driving 

skills through on-the job-training and to 

begin earning an income right away, 

producing immediate benefits for the 

driver, the carrier, and the economy as 

a whole. 

IV. Method To Ensure an Equivalent or 

Greater Level of Safety 

CRST states that the exemption does 

not negatively affect safety outcomes. 

Instead, the exemption allows drivers 

trained out-of-State to obtain on-the-job 

experience in CRST’s comprehensive 

training program while avoiding 

significant delays and skill degradation. 

The exemption creates immediate 

economic and safety benefits for both 

the CLP holders and CRST—drivers 

earn an income as part of a team 

operation while improving their driver 

skills and gaining valuable experience. 

CRST indicated in its renewal 

application that data show that drivers 

utilizing the exemption demonstrated 

better safety outcomes than non-exempt 

drivers. Through the end of 2016, CRST 

reported zero accidents to FMCSA 

involving drivers utilizing the 

exemption. 

In the June 12, 2017, Federal Register, 

FMCSA granted the renewal of a similar 

exemption from 49 CFR 383.25(a)(1) to 

C.R. England, Inc. (C.R. England) for a 

five-year period. Under the terms and 

conditions of that exemption, a CLP 

holder who has documentation of 

passing the CDL skills test may drive a 

CMV for C.R. England without being 

accompanied by a CDL holder in the 

front seat. The Agency believed that 

C.R. England’s request for exemption 

would achieve a level of safety that is 

equivalent to, or greater than, the level 

of safety achieved without the 

exemption (82 FR 26975). 

A copy of CRST’s application for 

exemption renewal is available for 

review in the docket for this notice. 

Issued on: August 2, 2018. 

Larry W. Minor, 

Associate Administrator for Policy. 

[FR Doc. 2018–17063 Filed 8–8–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

[Docket No. FMCSA–2018–0159] 

Agency Information Collection 

Activities; Revision of an Approved 

Information Collection Request: 

Commercial Driver Licensing and Test 

Standards 

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice and request for 

information. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 

FMCSA announces its plan to submit 

the Information Collection Request (ICR) 

described below to the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) for its 

review and approval and invites public 

comment. The FMCSA requests 

approval to revise and renew an ICR 

titled, ‘‘Commercial Driver Licensing 

and Test Standards,’’ due to an increase 

in the number of commercial driver’s 

license records and the addition of one 

information collection item: ‘‘Driver 

completion of knowledge and skills 

tests 49 CFR 384.201.’’ This ICR is 

needed to ensure that drivers, motor 

carriers and the States are complying 

with notification and recordkeeping 

requirements for information related to 

testing, licensing, violations, 

convictions and disqualifications and 

that the information is accurate, 

complete and transmitted and recorded 

within certain time periods as required 

by the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety 

Act of 1986 (CMVSA), as amended. 

DATES: We must receive your comments 

on or before October 9, 2018. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

identified by Federal Docket 

Management System (FDMS) Docket 

Number FMCSA–2126–0011 using any 

of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the online 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Fax: 202–493–2251. 

• Mail: Docket Operations; U.S. 

Department of Transportation, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, 

Ground Floor, Room W12–140, 

Washington, DC 20590–0001. 

• Hand Delivery or Courier: West 

building, Ground Floor, Room 12–140, 

1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, 

Washington, DC, between 9:00 a.m. and 

5:00 p.m., e.t., Monday through Friday, 

except Federal holidays. 

Instructions: All submissions must 

include the Agency name and docket 

number. For detailed instructions on 

submitting comments, see the Public 

Participation heading below. 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. 

Docket: For access to the docket to 

read background documents or 

comments received, go to http://

www.regulations.gov and follow the 

online instructions for accessing the 

dockets, or go to the street address listed 

above. 

Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search 

the electronic form of all comments 

received into any of our dockets by the 

name of the individual submitting the 

comment (or signing the comment, if 

submitted on behalf of an association, 

business, labor union, etc.). You may 

review DOT’s complete Privacy Act 

Statement for the Federal Docket 

Management System published in the 

Federal Register on January 17, 2008 

(73 FR 3316), or you may visit http://

edocket.access.gpo.gov/2008/pdfE8- 

794.pdf. 

Public Participation: The Federal 

eRulemaking Portal is available 24 

hours each day, 365 days each year. You 

can obtain electronic submission and 

retrieval help and guidelines under the 

‘‘help’’ section of the Federal 

eRulemaking Portal website. If you want 

us to notify you that we received your 

comments, please include a selfaddressed, stamped envelope or 

postcard, or print the acknowledgement 

page that appears after submitting 

comments online. Comments received 

after the comment closing date will be 

included in the docket and will be 

considered to the extent practicable. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

Selden Fritschner, Office of Safety 

Programs, Commercial Driver’s License 

Division (MC–ESL), Federal Motor 

Carrier Safety Administration, West 

Building 6th Floor, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590– 

0001. Telephone: 202–366–0677; email: 

selden.fritschner@dot.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background: The licensed drivers in 

the United States deserve reasonable 

assurance that their fellow motorists are 

properly qualified to drive the vehicles 

they operate. Before the Commercial 

Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1986 

(CMVSA or the Act) Public Law 99–570, 

Title XII, 100 Stat. 3207–170, codified at 

49 U.S.C. chapter 313) was signed by 

the President on October 27, 1986, 18 

States and the District of Columbia 

authorized any person licensed to drive 

an automobile to also legally drive a 


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