Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 45 / Wednesday, March 7, 2012 / Notices 13685 

Public Participation: The 

www.regulations.gov Web site is 

generally 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 www.regulations.gov web site. If 

you want us to notify you that we 

received your comments, please include 

a self-addressed, stamped envelope or 

postcard or print the acknowledgement 

page that appears after submitting 

comments online. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

Thomas Yager, Chief, FMCSA Driver 

and Carrier Operations Division; Office 

of Bus and Truck Standards and 

Operations; Telephone: 202–366–4325. 

Email: MCPSD@dot.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

FMCSA has authority under 49 U.S.C. 

31136(e) and 31315 to grant exemptions 

from 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 the safety 

analyses and the public comments, 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 reason for 

denying or, in the alternative, the 

specific person or class of persons 

receiving the exemption, and the 

regulatory provision or provisions from 

which exemption is granted. The notice 

must also specify the effective period of 

the exemption (up to 2 years), and 

explain the terms and conditions of the 

exemption. The exemption may be 

renewed (49 CFR 381.300(b)). 

Request for Exemption 

Daimler has applied for an exemption 

for from the commercial driver’s license 

(CDL) rules, specifically 49 CFR 383.23 

that prescribes licensing requirements 

for drivers operating commercial motor 

vehicles (CMVs) in interstate or 

intrastate commerce. Daimler requests 

the exemption because these drivers are 

citizens of Germany, and therefore 

cannot apply for a CDL in any of the 

U.S. States. A copy of the application is 

in Docket No. FMCSA–2012–0032. 

The exemption would allow two 

drivers to operate CMVs in interstate 

commerce to support Daimler field tests 

to meet future vehicle safety and 

environmental regulatory requirements 

and to promote the development of 

technology advancements in vehicle 

safety systems and emissions 

reductions. According to Daimler, the 

drivers will typically drive for no more 

than 6 hours per day for 2 consecutive 

days, and that 10 percent of the test 

driving will be on two-lane state 

highways, while 90 percent will be on 

interstate highways. The driving for 

each driver will consist of no more than 

200 miles per day, for a total of 400 

miles during a two-day period on a 

quarterly basis. 

The drivers are Georg Weiberg and 

Klaus-Dieter Holloh, and Daimler 

requests that the exemption cover a twoyear period. The drivers hold valid 

German CDLs, and as explained by 

Daimler in its exemption requests, the 

requirements for a German CDL are such 

that they ensure that the same level of 

safety is met or exceeded as if these 

drivers had U.S. State-issued CDLs. 

FMCSA has determined the process 

for obtaining a German-issued CDL is 

comparable to, or as effective as the 

Federal requirements of Part 383, and 

adequately assesses each driver’s ability 

to operate CMVs in the United States. 

Request for Comments 

In accordance with 49 U.S.C. 

31315(b)(4) and 31136(e), FMCSA 

requests public comment on Daimler’s 

application for an exemption from the 

CDL requirements of 49 CFR 383.23. 

The Agency will consider all comments 

received by close of business on April 

6, 2012. Comments will be available for 

examination in the docket at the 

location listed under the ADDRESSES

section of this notice. The Agency will 

consider to the extent practicable 

comments received in the public docket 

after the closing date of the comment 

period. 

Issued on: February 29, 2012. 

Larry W. Minor, 

Associate Administrator for Policy. 

[FR Doc. 2012–5521 Filed 3–6–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

[FMCSA Docket No. FMCSA–2011–0368] 

Qualification of Drivers; Exemption 

Applications; Diabetes Mellitus 

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA), DOT 

ACTION: Notice of final disposition. 

SUMMARY: FMCSA announces its 

decision to exempt twenty individuals 

from its rule prohibiting persons with 

insulin-treated diabetes mellitus (ITDM) 

from operating commercial motor 

vehicles (CMVs) in interstate commerce. 

The exemptions will enable these 

individuals to operate CMVs in 

interstate commerce. 

DATES: The exemptions are effective 

March 7, 2012. The exemptions expire 

on March 7, 2014. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Elaine M. Papp, Chief, Medical 

Programs Division, (202) 366–4001, 

fmcsamedical@dot.gov, FMCSA, Room 

W64–224, Department of 

Transportation, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590– 

0001. Office hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 

5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except 

Federal holidays. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Electronic Access 

You may see all the comments online 

through the Federal Document 

Management System (FDMS) at: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. 

Docket: For access to the docket to 

read background documents or 

comments, go to http:// 

www.regulations.gov and/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., Monday through Friday, 

except Federal holidays. 

Privacy Act: Anyone may search the 

electronic form of all comments 

received into any of DOT’s dockets by 

the name of the individual submitting 

the comment (or of the person signing 

the comment, if submitted on behalf of 

an association, business, labor union, or 

other entity). You may review DOT’s 

Privacy Act Statement for the Federal 

Docket Management System (FDMS) 

published in the Federal Register on 

January 17, 2008 (73 FR 3316), or you 

may visit http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/ 

2008/pdf/E8–785.pdf. 

Background 

On January 24, 2012, FMCSA 

published a notice of receipt of Federal 


srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
13686 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 45 / Wednesday, March 7, 2012 / Notices 

diabetes exemption applications from 

twenty individuals and requested 

comments from the public (77 FR 3549). 

The public comment period closed on 

February 23, 2012 and no comments 

were received. 

FMCSA has evaluated the eligibility 

of the twenty applicants and determined 

that granting the exemptions to these 

individuals would achieve a level of 

safety equivalent to or greater than the 

level that would be achieved by 

complying with the current regulation 

49 CFR 391.41(b)(3). 

Diabetes Mellitus and Driving 

Experience of the Applicants 

The Agency established the current 

requirement for diabetes in 1970 

because several risk studies indicated 

that drivers with diabetes had a higher 

rate of crash involvement than the 

general population. The diabetes rule 

provides that ‘‘A person is physically 

qualified to drive a commercial motor 

vehicle if that person has no established 

medical history or clinical diagnosis of 

diabetes mellitus currently requiring 

insulin for control’’ (49 CFR 

391.41(b)(3)). 

FMCSA established its diabetes 

exemption program, based on the 

Agency’s July 2000 study entitled ‘‘A 

Report to Congress on the Feasibility of 

a Program to Qualify Individuals with 

Insulin-Treated Diabetes Mellitus to 

Operate in Interstate Commerce as 

Directed by the Transportation Act for 

the 21st Century.’’ The report concluded 

that a safe and practicable protocol to 

allow some drivers with ITDM to 

operate CMVs is feasible. The 

September 3, 2003 (68 FR 52441), 

Federal Register notice in conjunction 

with the November 8, 2005 (70 FR 

67777), Federal Register notice provides 

the current protocol for allowing such 

drivers to operate CMVs in interstate 

commerce. 

These twenty applicants have had 

ITDM over a range of 1 to 39 years. 

These applicants report no severe 

hypoglycemic reactions resulting in loss 

of consciousness or seizure, requiring 

the assistance of another person, or 

resulting in impaired cognitive function 

that occurred without warning 

symptoms, in the past 12 months and no 

recurrent (2 or more) severe 

hypoglycemic episodes in the past 5 

years. In each case, an endocrinologist 

verified that the driver has 

demonstrated a willingness to properly 

monitor and manage his/her diabetes 

mellitus, received education related to 

diabetes management, and is on a stable 

insulin regimen. These drivers report no 

other disqualifying conditions, 

including diabetes-related 

complications. Each meets the vision 

requirement at 49 CFR 391.41(b)(10). 

The qualifications and medical 

condition of each applicant were stated 

and discussed in detail in the January 

24, 2012, Federal Register notice and 

they will not be repeated in this notice. 

Discussion of Comment 

FMCSA did not receive any 

comments in this proceeding. 

Basis for Exemption Determination 

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

FMCSA may grant an exemption from 

the diabetes requirement in 49 CFR 

391.41(b)(3) if the exemption is likely to 

achieve an equivalent or greater level of 

safety than would be achieved without 

the exemption. The exemption allows 

the applicants to operate CMVs in 

interstate commerce. 

To evaluate the effect of these 

exemptions on safety, FMCSA 

considered medical reports about the 

applicants’ ITDM and vision, and 

reviewed the treating endocrinologists’ 

medical opinion related to the ability of 

the driver to safely operate a CMV while 

using insulin. 

Consequently, FMCSA finds that in 

each case exempting these applicants 

from the diabetes requirement in 49 CFR 

391.41(b)(3) is likely to achieve a level 

of safety equal to that existing without 

the exemption. 

Conditions and Requirements 

The terms and conditions of the 

exemption will be provided to the 

applicants in the exemption document 

and they include the following: (1) That 

each individual submit a quarterly 

monitoring checklist completed by the 

treating endocrinologist as well as an 

annual checklist with a comprehensive 

medical evaluation; (2) that each 

individual reports within 2 business 

days of occurrence, all episodes of 

severe hypoglycemia, significant 

complications, or inability to manage 

diabetes; also, any involvement in an 

accident or any other adverse event in 

a CMV or personal vehicle, whether or 

not it is related to an episode of 

hypoglycemia; (3) that each individual 

provide a copy of the ophthalmologist’s 

or optometrist’s report to the medical 

examiner at the time of the annual 

medical examination; and (4) that each 

individual provide a copy of the annual 

medical certification to the employer for 

retention in the driver’s qualification 

file, or keep a copy in his/her driver’s 

qualification file if he/she is selfemployed. The driver must also have a 

copy of the certification when driving, 

for presentation to a duly authorized 

Federal, State, or local enforcement 

official. 

Conclusion 

Based upon its evaluation of the 

twenty exemption applications, FMCSA 

exempts, Guillermo V. Apodaca (NM), 

Charles S. Bird (VA), Dorin D. Blodgett 

(IN), James W. Dusing (MN), Jeffrey M. 

Halida (WS), Matthew E. Hay (TX), 

Tracy N. Jenkins (DE), Jon W. Jernigan 

(OK), Gregory A. King (NC), Derrick D. 

LaRue (RI), Matthew R. Linehan (NY), 

David J. Lloyd (AL), Cory A. Meadows 

(OH), Lori L. Monosso (WS), Kenneth D. 

Nemetz (WS), John L. Scherette (WA), 

James P. Shurkus (NH), Joel L. Topping 

(NV), Joshua C. Wyse (OH) and Rowland 

P. Yee (HI) from the ITDM requirement 

in 49 CFR 391.41(b)(3), subject to the 

conditions listed under ‘‘Conditions and 

Requirements’’ above. 

In accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) 

and 31315 each exemption will be valid 

for two years unless revoked earlier by 

FMCSA. The exemption will be revoked 

if the following occurs: (1) The person 

fails to comply with the terms and 

conditions of the exemption; (2) the 

exemption has resulted in a lower level 

of safety than was maintained before it 

was granted; or (3) continuation of the 

exemption would not be consistent with 

the goals and objectives of 49 U.S.C. 

31136(e) and 31315. If the exemption is 

still effective at the end of the 2-year 

period, the person may apply to FMCSA 

for a renewal under procedures in effect 

at that time. 

Issued on: February 28, 2012. 

Larry W. Minor, 

Associate Administrator for Policy. 

[FR Doc. 2012–5517 Filed 3–6–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

[Docket No. FMCSA–2011–0383] 

Qualification of Drivers; Exemption 

Applications; Diabetes Mellitus 

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA). 

ACTION: Notice of applications for 

exemption from the diabetes mellitus 

requirement; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: FMCSA announces receipt of 

applications from 17 individuals for 

exemption from the prohibition against 

persons with insulin-treated diabetes 

mellitus (ITDM) operating commercial 

motor vehicles (CMVs) in interstate 

commerce. If granted, the exemptions 

would enable these individuals with 


srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES