37254 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 132 / Friday, July 10, 1998 /Rules and Regulations

* * * * *

Stanley F. Mires,

Chief Counsel, Legislative.

[FR Doc. 98–18433 Filed 7–7–98; 4:36 pm]

BILLING CODE 7710–12–P

POSTAL SERVICE

39 CFR Part 111

Elimination of Mixed BMC/ADC Pallets

of Packages of Flats

AGENCY: Postal Service.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: This final rule revises

Domestic Mail Manual (DMM) sections

M020, M041, and M045 to eliminate the

options for mailers to place packages

and bundles of Periodicals Mail on

mixed ADC pallets and to place

packages and bundles of Standard Mail

(A) and Standard Mail (B) on mixed

BMC pallets. Mailers will continue to

have the options to place sacks, trays, or

parcels on mixed ADC or mixed BMC

pallets, as appropriate for the class of

mail.

EFFECTIVE DATE: September 8, 1998.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Cheryl Beller, (202) 268–5166.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On

February 18, 1998, the Postal Service

published in the Federal Register (63

FR 8154–8156) proposed revisions to

the DMM to eliminate the options,

available since the implementation of

Classification Reform in July 1996, to

place packages and bundles on mixed

ADC pallets (Periodicals) and mixed

BMC pallets (Standard Mail). Although

these options offer some benefits in

mailers’ manufacturing and distribution

handling processes by reducing sack

usage, they have had a negative impact

on service and mailpiece integrity.

The deadline for submitting

comments on the proposed revisions

was April 6, 1998. All comments

received or mailed by that date have

been considered.

Evaluation of Comments Received

There were only three written

responses to the proposed revisions.

One commenter noted that, as a printer,

it prefers to place as much mail as

possible on pallets because sacking is

more labor intensive, but it also

recognizes that mixed pallets may be

more costly for the Postal Service to

process. However, it was not in favor of

implementation of the revisions at this

time due to problems it has been

experiencing in obtaining a sufficient

supply of brown sacks for Periodicals.

When the revised standards are

implemented, the Periodicals that this

company currently places on mixed

ADC pallets will have to be placed in

sacks. The mailer was concerned that

the brown sack shortage would affect

service.

The Postal Service has completed its

largest purchase ever of brown sacks

and is confident that a sufficient

quantity will be available on a regular

basis to handle the volume shifts. In

addition, the Chicago Mail Transport

Equipment Service Center (MTESC) has

recently opened. This is the first of 22

MTESCs that will open during the next

year to ensure the availability of sacks.

The second commenter is primarily

concerned that the potential increase in

sack usage will result in a slowdown

and higher costs in its manufacturing

process, which relies heavily on

automation and robotics. These

processes are not compatible with

sacking. The commenter urged the

Postal Service to continue to work with

mailers on alternative preparation

options that will help to eliminate sack

usage. During the past several years, the

Postal Service has been working with

the mailing industry to understand how

mailers sort mail to pallets and to

identify opportunities for improvement.

The joint industry/Postal Service

Mailers Technical Advisory Committee

(MTAC) Presort Optimization Work

Group is currently discussing mail

reallocation rules related to presort that

would provide a means for mailers to

optimize palletization. Although

protecting the SCF pallet is the initial

priority of the group, this effort could

prevent some mail from falling to the

mixed level. The Postal Service intends

to publish draft rules this summer for

mailer comment.

In addition to using presort

optimization to enhance palletization,

mailers who prepare palletized plant

verified drop shipments (PVDS) may be

able, under the provisions of DMM

M041.5.3, to reduce the volume of mail

that may have to be sacked as a result

of these revisions. DMM M041.5.3 states

that in a mailing or mailing job

presented for acceptance at a single

postal facility, one overflow pallet may

be prepared containing less than 250

pounds or three tiers/layers of letter

trays if the mail is for the service area

of the entry facility and the pallet is

properly labeled under M045, based on

its contents. No special authorization is

needed. For example, if a PVDS mailer

is entering mail at the Springfield, MA,

BMC and has prepared one or more

Springfield, MA, destination BMC

pallets, the mailer may currently be

placing overflow of less than 250

pounds from these pallets on a mixed

BMC pallet. However, the mailer does

have the option to place this overflow

mail on a Springfield, MA, pallet

instead of sacking the mail or placing it

on a mixed ADC/BMC pallet under

current standards, provided the lessthan-minimum-volume pallet is

deposited at the Springfield BMC. This

addresses some of the service and cost

issues that the revised standards are

intended to address while providing

mailers with an alternative to sacking

under the conditions noted.

The third commenter does not

prepare many mixed pallets but is

interested in any changes that could

improve mail delivery times. Although

not convinced that mixed pallets

contribute to slower delivery, this

mailer stated it would support the

change, but suggested a longer

implementation period than the 45 days

suggested in the proposed rule. It needs

additional lead time to implement the

changes for mailings that are prepared

on a 6-week select lead time. For over

a year, the Postal Service has been

communicating with the mailing

industry on plans to eliminate the

mixed pallet preparation option for

packages and bundles as soon as a

sufficient supply of sacks was available

on a regular basis to handle the shift in

volume. Now that this precondition is

satisfied, the Postal Service believes it is

reasonable to implement the changes as

quickly as possible without causing a

severe negative impact on our

customers. Therefore, to address the

concerns of this commenter and other

mailers with similar production issues,

the Postal Service has postponed the

required implementation for 60 days.

The Domestic Mail Manual is revised

as follows. These changes are

incorporated by reference in the Code of

Federal Regulations. See 39 CFR part

111.

List of Subjects in 39 CFR Part 111

Postal Service.

PART 111—[AMENDED]

1. The authority citation for 39 CFR

part 111 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 552 (a); 39 U.S.C. 101,

401, 403, 404, 3001–3011, 3201–3219, 3403–

3406, 3621, 5001.

2. Revise the following section of the

Domestic Mail Manual as follows:

M Mail Preparation And Sortation

M000 General Preparation Standards

* * * * *
Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 132 / Friday, July 10, 1998 /Rules and Regulations 37255

M020 Packages and Bundles

1.0 BASIC STANDARDS

* * * * *

1.4 Palletization

[Amend the third sentence in 1.4 by

deleting the reference to mixed BMC

pallets to read as follows:]

* * * Packages and bundles on BMC

pallets must be shrinkwrapped and

machinable on BMC parcel sorters;

machinability is determined by the

USPS.* * *

* * * * *

M040 Pallets

M041 General Standards

* * * * *

5.0 PREPARATION

5.1 Presort

[Amend 5.1 by revising the last

sentence and adding new sentences to

read as follows:]

* * * For sacks, trays, or machinable

parcels on pallets, the mailer must

prepare all required pallet levels before

any mixed ADC or mixed BMC pallets

are prepared for a mailing or job.

Packages and bundles prepared under

M045 must not be placed on mixed ADC

or mixed BMC pallets. Packages and

bundles that cannot be placed on pallets

must be prepared in sacks under the

standards for the rate claimed.

5.2 Required Preparation

[Amend 5.2 by deleting the second

and third sentences and revising the

fourth sentence to read as follows:]

* * * Mixed pallets of sacks, trays, or

machinable parcels must be labeled to

the BMC or ADC (as appropriate)

serving the post office where mailings

are entered into the mailstream. * * *

* * * * *

5.6 Sacked Mail

[Amend 5.6 by revising the first

sentence to read as follows:]

Mail that is not palletized (e.g., the

mailer chooses not to prepare BMC

pallets, or the packages do not meet the

machinability standards in M020) must

be prepared under the standards for the

rate claimed. * * *

* * * * *

M045 Palletized Mailings

* * * * *

[Revise the heading of 2.0 to read as

follows:]

2.0 PACKAGES OF FLATS

2.1 Standards

[Amend 2.1 by revising the second

sentence to read as follows:]

* * * The palletized portion of a

mailing may not include packages

sorted to mixed ADCs, mixed BMCs, or

to foreign destinations.

* * * * *

2.4 Size—Standard Mail (B)

* * * * *

[Amend 2.4c by revising the second

sentence to read as follows:]

* * * Packages at other rates must be

sorted to 5-digit, 3-digit, optional SCF,

and ADC destinations, as appropriate.

* * * * *

3.0 OPTIONAL BUNDLES—

PERIODICALS AND STANDARD MAIL

(A)

3.1 Standards

[Amend 3.1 by revising the second

sentence to read as follows:]

* * * The palletized portion of a

mailing may not include bundles sorted

to mixed ADCs, mixed BMCs, or to

foreign destinations.

* * * * *

4.0 PALLET PRESORT AND

LABELING

[Amend the heading to read as

follows:]

4.1 Packages, Bundles, and Sacks

* * * * *

e. As appropriate:

[Amend the beginning of (1) by

adding ‘‘(sacks and trays only)’’ to read

as follows:]

(1) Periodicals (sacks and trays only):

mixed ADC: optional; * * *

[Amend the beginning of (2) by

adding ‘‘(sacks and trays only)’’ to read

as follows:]

(2) Standard Mail (sacks and trays

only): mixed BMC: optional; * * *

* * * * *

5.0 PALLETS OF PACKAGES,

BUNDLES, AND TRAYS OF LETTERSIZE MAIL

* * * * *

[Amend 5.3 to eliminate references to

mixed BMC pallets and to insert ‘‘(trays

only)’’ to read as follows:]

5.3 BMC and Mixed BMC Pallets

Packages and bundles placed on BMC

pallets must be machinable on BMC

parcel sorting equipment. Line 2 on

pallet labels must reflect the processing

category of the pieces. A BMC or mixed

BMC (trays only) pallet may include

pieces that are eligible for the DBMC

rate and others that are ineligible if the

mailer provides documentation showing

the pieces that qualify for the DBMC

rate.

* * * * *

Stanley F. Mires,

Chief Counsel, Legislative.

[FR Doc. 98–18434 Filed 7–9–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7710–12–P

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[OH 114–1a; FRL–6123–1]

Approval and Promulgation of

Maintenance Plan Revisions; Ohio

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency.

ACTION: Direct final rule.

SUMMARY: The United States

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

is approving through ‘‘direct final’’

procedure, a March 13, 1998, request

from Ohio, for a State Implementation

Plan (SIP) maintenance plan revision for

the Columbus ozone maintenance area

(Franklin, Delaware and Licking

Counties). The maintenance plan

revision establishes a new maintenance

year of 2010 for the area and a new

transportation conformity mobile source

emissions budget for the year 2010. The

2010 emissions budget projections

incorporate future emission reductions

from area and point sources. The newly

established 2010 emissions projections

determine the area’s safety margins for

Oxides of Nitrogen (NOX) and Volatile

Organic Compounds (VOCs). Also being

approved is the State’s request that a

portion of the safety margins be

allocated to the area’s 2010 mobile

source emissions budget for

transportation conformity purposes. The

area’s safety margin is defined as the

difference between the attainment

inventory level (the Columbus area’s

attainment inventory year is 1990) of the

total emissions and the projected levels

of the total emissions in the final year

of the maintenance plan (as established

for Columbus in this rule to be 2010).

DATES: This direct final rule is effective

on September 8, 1998, unless EPA

receives relevant adverse or critical

written comments by August 10, 1998.

If adverse comment is received, the EPA

will publish a timely withdrawal of the

direct final rule in the Federal Register

and inform the public that the rule will

not take effect. Any parties interested in

commenting on this action should do so

at this time. If no such comments are

received, the public is informed that