9394 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 40 / Thursday, March 1, 2007 / Notices 

b Outer/Middle Marker 

b Published Instrument Approach 

b Localizer 

b Other (specify) 

lllllllllllllllllll

E. Project Cost: 

Federal amount requested: llllll

Total local cash financial contribution: 

lllllllllllllllllll

Airport funds: lllllllllll

Non-Airport funds: lllllllll

State cash financial contribution: lll

Existing funds: lllllllllll

New funds: lllllllllllll

Airport In-kind contribution: (amount & 

description) llllllllllll

Other In-Kind contribution: (amount & 

description) llllllllllll

Total cost of project: lllllllll

F. Enplanements: 

2000 llllllllllllllll

2001 llllllllllllllll

2002 llllllllllllllll

2003 llllllllllllllll

2004 llllllllllllllll

2005 llllllllllllllll

G. Is this application subject to review 

by State under Executive Order 12372 

process? 

b a. This application was made available to the State under the Executive 

Order 12372 Process for review on 

(date) . lllllllllllllll

b b. Program is subject to E.O. 12372, 

but has not been selected by the State 

for review. 

b c. Program is not covered by E.O. 

12372. 

H. Is the Applicant delinquent on any 

Federal debt? (if ‘‘yes’’, provide 

explanation) 

b No 

b Yes (explain) llllllllll

Appendix C 

Filing Form SF424—Application for Federal 

Domestic Assistance 

Grants.gov, originally called the E-Grants 

Initiative, a mandate of the President’s 

Management Agenda, states, 

‘‘Agencies will allow applicants for Federal 

Grants to apply for and ultimately manage 

grant funds online through a common Web 

site, simplifying grants management and 

eliminating redundancies.’’

Public Law 106–107, the legislation that 

mandates streamlining and improved 

accountability for Federal grants, and related 

references in the President’s Management 

Agenda, requires that Federal grant 

management activities be standardized. As a 

result, the Office of Management and Budget 

recently issued a policy directive requiring 

that all Federal agencies post grant 

opportunities online as of November 7, 2006. 

Therefore, this year, to comply with the 

Grants.gov initiative, the Department will 

begin accepting grant applications via http:// 

www.grants.gov. In order for an application 

to be considered in the Small Community Air 

Service Development Program, the 

community must submit its application of 

form SF424—Application for Federal 

Domestic Assistance—via http:// 

www.grants.gov. Below are instructions on: 

• How to FIND the SCASDP application 

online at http://www.grants.gov; 

• How to register to submit applications; 

and 

• How to APPLY or complete and submit 

the application form SF424. 

Finding the SCASDP Grant Opportunity on 

Grants.Gov 

Start your search for the Small Community 

Air Service Development Program grant 

opportunity by entering http:// 

www.grants.gov and clicking the Find Grant 

Opportunities tab at the top of the page. In 

the search box titled ‘‘Search for Catalog of 

Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) 

number’’ enter 20.930. You will see a 

summary of the SCASDP requirements. 

Register to Submit Applications 

Prior to applying, you must register to 

create a Grants.gov account and receive 

approval from your organization to submit 

applications. Detailed instructions on how to 

complete the registration is available on 

http://www.grants.gov. 

1. Register your Organization. 

• Obtain a Data Universal Number System 

(DUNS) number. 

• Register the organization with a Central 

Contractor Registry (CCR). 

2. Register yourself as an Authorized 

Organization Representative (AOR). 

• Obtain a username and password. 

• Register with Grants.gov. 

3. Get Authorized as an AOR by your 

Organization. 

• Obtain E-Business Point of Contact 

authorization. 

Applying for the Grant 

Once you have located the Small 

Community Air Service Development 

Program grant opportunity, you will need to 

enter the Funding Opportunity and/or the 

Catalog of Federal Domestic Application 

(CFDA) number 20.930 to access the 

application package and instructions online. 

However, you must complete the registration 

process before applying (see B above). In 

order to view the application package and 

instructions, you will also need to download 

and install the PureEdge Viewer. 

1. Download PureEdge Viewer [Required]. 

2. Download an Application Package. 

3. Complete an Application Package. 

4. Submit an Application Package. 

Enter the SCASDP CFDA number (20.930) 

to download the application form SF424 and 

begin the process to apply for the grant 

through http://www.grants.gov. It is a 4-step 

process: 

Apply Step 1: Download the Grant 

Application Form SF424 and Application 

Instructions 

You will need to enter the Funding 

Opportunity and/or CFDA number to access 

the application package and instructions. 

Download and install the PureEdge Viewer 

(available on http://www.grants.gov). This 

small, free program will allow you to access, 

complete, and submit applications 

electronically and securely. 

Apply Step 2: Complete the Selected Grant 

Application Package 

You can complete the application offline—

giving you the flexibility to complete grant 

applications when and where you want. It 

also enables you to easily route it through 

your organization for review, or completion 

of various components, just like any other 

e-mail attachment. 

Apply Step 3: Submit a Completed Grant 

Application Package 

You will submit the application online. 

When you are ready to submit the completed 

application form SF424, you must have 

already completed the Get Started Steps. You 

will then need to log into http:// 

www.grants.gov using the username and 

password you entered when you registered 

with a Credential Provider to submit the 

application. 

Note: To submit electronic grant 

applications, you must be fully authorized by 

your organization, i.e., been given status as 

an Authorized Organization Representative 

(AOR). You can easily check your status by 

logging into http://www.grants.gov by 

accessing the Applicant link at the top of the 

screen. If you have registered your user name 

and password with Grants.gov, you will be 

able to log in. After logging in, access the 

‘Manage Profile’ link. Your status, located 

below your title, will state: ‘‘AOR—request 

sent’’ or ‘‘AOR—Approved’’. If your status is 

‘AOR—request sent’, you cannot yet submit 

grant applications. You may correct this by 

contacting your E-Business Point of Contact 

(POC). He or she will need to log in by 

accessing the Ebiz link at the top of the 

screen. They will need your organization’s 

DUNs number and MPIN, to approve you as 

an AOR. 

Apply Step 4: Track the Status of a 

Completed Grant Application Package 

Once you have submitted an application, 

you can check the status of your application 

submission. You can identify your 

application by CFDA Number, Funding 

Opportunity Number, Competition ID, and/or 

Grants.gov Tracking Number. 

[FR Doc. E7–3581 Filed 2–28–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–9X–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

Electronic Subscription Service for 

Airworthiness Directives and Special 

Airworthiness Information Bulletins 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of policy change. 

SUMMARY: This notice publishes 

additional information about the FAA’s 


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planned transition to electronic 

distribution of airworthiness directives 

(ADs) and special airworthiness 

information bulletins (SAIB) through an 

e-mail subscription service. This notice 

gives more details and the schedule for 

the electronic distribution system, and 

addresses comments we received in 

response to Aircraft Engineering 

Division’s previous notice about the 

plan. The previous notice was titled 

‘‘Printing and Distribution Changes for 

Airworthiness Directives and Special 

Airworthiness Information Bulletins’’

and was published in the Federal 

Register on August 24, 2006. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before April 2, 2007. 

ADDRESSES: Send your comments on the 

planned policy changes electronically 

by logging onto the following Web site: 

http://www.faa.gov/aircraft/draft_docs/ 

or you may e-mail comments to: 9-amcair-140-policy. You may mail a hard 

copy of your comments to: Federal 

Aviation Administration, Aircraft 

Engineering Division, Delegation and 

Airworthiness Programs Branch, AIR–

140, MMAC, P.O. Box 26460, Oklahoma 

City, OK 73125. Attn: Mary Ellen 

Anderson. Finally, you may deliver 

comments to: Federal Aviation 

Administration, Room 815, 800 

Independence Avenue, SW., 

Washington, DC 20591. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Mary Ellen Anderson, Federal Aviation 

Administration, Aircraft Certification 

Service, Aircraft Engineering Division, 

Delegation and Airworthiness Programs 

Branch, AIR–140, 6500 S. MacArthur 

Blvd., ARB 308; Oklahoma City, 

Oklahoma 73169; phone: (405) 954–

7071; fax: (405) 954–2209. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Comments Invited 

Interested persons are invited to 

comment on the planned policy changes 

by submitting written data, views, or 

arguments to the above address. 

Comments received may be examined, 

both before and after the closing date, at 

the Federal Aviation Administration, 

Room 815, 800 Independence Avenue, 

SW., Washington, DC 20591, weekends 

except Federal holidays, between 8:30 

a.m. and 4:30 p.m. The Director, Aircraft 

Certification Service, will consider all 

comments received on or before the 

closing date. 

Background 

ADs are enforceable rules that apply 

to products (aircraft, aircraft engines, 

propellers, and appliances), published 

to address an unsafe condition per CFR 

Part 39 criteria. All ADs are currently 

available to the public via: (1) Federal 

Register at http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/ 

advanced.html; (2) FAA’s Regulatory 

and Guidance Library (RGL) Web site at 

http://rgl/faa.gov; and (3) paper 

mailings to all registered owners and 

operators of the affected product. 

We also issue a type of AD called an 

emergency AD when an unsafe 

condition exists that requires immediate 

corrective action. We mail or fax 

emergency ADs to all registered owners 

and operators of the affected product, 

and publish a final rule version soon 

after in the Federal Register. 

SAIBs provide recommended actions 

that owners and operators may use to 

improve the safety of their products. 

Because the information contained in 

SAIBs is not mandatory, we do not 

publish SAIBs in the Federal Register. 

Effective January 2007, we added SAIBs 

to our RGL Web site, making it much 

easier to access and search on these 

safety documents. 

Paper mailing of ADs and SAIBs is a 

slow, expensive, and inefficient method 

of delivering safety-related information 

to affected parties, requiring a massive 

paper printing and distribution 

management system. In 2005, we 

processed and mailed more than 

1,000,000 copies of ADs to affected 

owners and operators. It often takes 5 to 

6 days for the owner or operator to 

receive the mailed copy. And, because 

of inaccurate or obsolete addresses in 

FAA’s Aircraft Registry database, we 

typically receive thousands of returned 

ADs. In light of these difficulties as well 

as ongoing budgetary constraints, we are 

pursuing ways to improve our efficiency 

in distribution of safety information. 

Discussion 

This notice introduces ‘‘GovDelivery’’

for all ADs and SAIBs—an e-mail 

subscription management system 

designed specifically for the public 

sector. Owners, operators, and any 

interested party will be able to sign up 

through FAA’s RGL Web site at http:// 

rgl.faa.gov, and will receive both ADs 

and SAIBs once subscription is 

completed. Subscribers will be able to 

select to receive all documents or only 

those pertaining to a specific product 

make and model. They will also have 

the option to receive general categories 

such as ‘small airplane’ or ‘engine.’ The 

subscription service will generally 

deliver the AD or SAIB to each e-mail 

address within minutes after 

publication in our RGL Web site. All 

ADs will continue to be published in 

the Federal Register, and all ADs and 

SAIBs will continue to be available at 

our RGL Web site. 

Once we are assured that the 

GovDelivery service is working 

correctly, we will transition away from 

paper mailings of ADs. We are asking 

industry representative groups to help 

with this transition by making aviation 

stakeholders aware of the new 

subscription service for ADs and SAIBs. 

While we anticipate that GovDelivery 

service will provide a timely and costeffective method of ensuring that 

affected parties receive the safety 

information they need, we will be 

monitoring the system to validate that 

the service is meeting the needs of our 

customers. 

We issued a previous notice in the 

Federal Register on August 24, 2006, 

titled ‘‘Printing and Distribution 

Changes for Airworthiness Directives 

and Special Airworthiness Information 

Bulletins.’’ That notice outlined 

immediate changes to our mailing 

processes for ADs and SAIBs. We 

provided the public the opportunity to 

comment on that notice and have 

considered all comments we received. 

Our responses to those comments are 

provided following the policy discussed 

below. 

Policy 

We expect to make the GovDelivery 

electronic e-mail service available for 

ADs and SAIBs available in May 2007. 

All interested parties are encouraged to 

subscribe to this service on our RGL 

Web site at http://rgl.faa.gov. Once 

GovDelivery is available and we are 

confident in the accurate and timely 

electronic dissemination of ADs and 

SAIBs to our subscribers, we will begin 

implementation of the following 

changes to our AD/SAIB distribution 

processes: 

(a) We will phase out paper mailing 

of ADs within a two-month period after 

GovDelivery becomes available except 

as described in (b) below. We will 

manage the phase-out based on the 

number and types of subscribers signed 

up in the GovDelivery system. 

(b) For now, we will continue to mail 

or fax emergency ADs to affected 

owners and operators. We are working 

on a method to deliver emergency ADs 

electronically in future, that will assure 

and record receipt when sent to affected 

parties. 

(c) We will discontinue the existing 

emergency AD subscription service that 

is currently available on the RGL Web 

site, since the GovDelivery service will 

send emergency ADs (and their final 

rule versions) to subscribers who have 

selected to receive ADs of that make/ 

model or category. 

(d) We will discontinue the existing 

SAIB subscription service that is 


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currently available on the FAA Web 

site, to allow integration with the AD 

portion of the subscription service. 

(e) We will no longer mail or e-mail 

ADs or SAIBw to FAA offices and civil 

airworthiness authorities (CAAs) of 

other countries. Instead, we will 

encourage all interested FAA personnel 

as well as the CAAs to sign-up through 

GovDelivery to receive these 

documents. 

Comments to Previous Notice 

Several commenters expressed 

support for the planned electronic 

distribution of ADs and SAIBs. One 

commenter stated that it would be easier 

to receive ADs and SAIBs electronically 

instead of ‘‘logging on and searching 

through databases to find applicable 

ADs and SAIBs.’’ We agree. GovDelivery 

service will allow subscribers to receive 

ADs and SAIBs by e-mail. 

Recommendation to Continue Paper 

Mailings 

AOPA recommended that we 

continue paper mailing of ADs and 

SAIBs until we make enhancements to 

our e-mail subscription service to 

ensure the continued availability and 

dissemination of relevant safety 

information. We partially agree. Due to 

the existing e-mail service for SAIBs we 

discontinued these mailings in 2006. 

However, we will continue mailing ADs 

until we are assured the new 

GovDelivery service is available and 

working correctly for both ADs and 

SAIBs. To publicize the service we have 

added ‘‘alerts’’ on our RGL AD web page 

and are announcing the coming 

GovDelivery service on the back of 

every AD mailed out. 

Recommendation To Update the SAIB 

e-mail Subscription Service 

AOPA recommended we enhance the 

existing SAIB e-mail service to allow 

selection of SAIBs based on aircraft or 

engine make and model. We agree. 

GovDelivery service will allow the user 

to subscribe to and receive SAIBs 

selected by make/model instead of 

having to receive all issued SAIBs. 

Continuation of FAA AD Bi-Weekly 

A representative for a repair station 

asked whether the FAA will continue to 

compile and issue the bi-weekly list of 

ADs. We are making no change to the 

AD Bi-weekly process at this time, and 

will continue to publish the Bi-Weekly 

report until further notice. 

Recommendation To Continue Mailing 

‘‘Engine type’’ ADs 

Continental Airlines, AOPA, NATCA 

and others expressed concern that we 

misstated the user’s ability to ‘register 

an engine’ in the FAA Aircraft Registry. 

We agree that this terminology was 

incorrect, since aircraft owners cannot 

register their engine in the Registry. 

When they register an airframe they can 

choose to also identify the engine 

installed on the airframe; our intent was 

to use this engine data to support AD 

mailings. However, we have decided to 

continue mailing ADs to all owners of 

engine models identified in an AD, as 

well as owners of airframe models 

called out in the ‘‘installed on, but not 

limited to’’ applicability. We will 

continue this practice until we 

implement the GovDelivery service. 

Recommendation To Mail/Final Rule 

version of Emergency ADs 

AOPA and NATCA stated that 

sometimes the content of an emergency 

AD changes between its issuance and 

the issuance of the final rule version, 

and for this reason we should mail the 

final rule copy of the emergency AD as 

well. We disagree. The final rule version 

must be substantively equal to the 

emergency AD to avoid serious legal 

consequences. If it changes in substance 

from the emergency AD version, we 

assign a different AD number and issue 

another AD. Since the final rule version 

is equivalent it is not necessary to mail 

it in addition to the emergency AD. Not 

that once the GovDelivery service is in 

place, both versions (the emergency AD 

and its final rule) will be e-mailed to 

subscribers for the AD’s applicability. 

Notification of the Public About This 

Policy Change 

NATCA wrote that the distribution of 

paper copies of ADs has been the 

standard for decades. This is a 

significant policy change that should be 

made aware to the public and open for 

public debate. NATCA requests that we 

withdraw the notice and resubmit it for 

comment. NATCA also states that FAA 

has been heavy-handed in lowering the 

safety level of aircraft by making 

significant changes in (other) policies. 

This final policy change must not be 

implemented for a period of time (six 

months) and be distributed in writing 

(published on paper) to all affected 

organizations, foreign authorities, and 

every registered aircraft owner, operator, 

repair stations, airline, etc. this would 

allow those in the public that do not 

currently have internet access time to 

obtain access. 

We partially agree. Since the previous 

notice, issued in August 2006, 

contained a request for comments, we 

see no need to withdraw the notice and 

resubmit it. We also do not concur that 

we have in any way lowered the safety 

level of aircraft. Rather, we expect to 

improve safety by increasing the 

timeliness and accuracy of our delivery 

system. However, we agree that the 

public should have the opportunity to 

review and comment on these changes, 

which was the purpose of the previous 

notice as well as this one. With these 

notices we will have informed 

interested parties more than six months 

prior to our expected implementation 

date. 

Conflict With Existing FAA Policy 

NATCA stated that this notice is in 

conflict with (AD Manual) M–8040.1, 

Section 17 that mandates the procedures 

the FAA will follow to distribute paper 

copies to the public. The proposed 

policy must note any and all FAA 

policies/orders that will be affected. We 

agree that changes to the AD Manual 

will be necessary in order to align with 

this planned policy change. We will 

include these changes in a future 

revision to the AD Manual once this 

policy is finalized. 

Notification of the Union About This 

Policy Change 

NATCA commented that FAA has 

failed to coordinate this planned policy 

change with the NATCA union. This is 

a significant change in the working 

conditions of the NATCA bargaining 

unit employees in AIR, especially AIR–

140. If the agency proceeds with these 

changes, NATCA expects the agency to 

comply with the legal requirements to 

notify and negotiate with NATCA prior 

to implementation. No training has been 

identified for the workforce. 

FAA will comply with all legal 

requirements. Per the requirements we 

have assessed this planned policy 

change and have determined that there 

is no significant change to working 

conditions and any impact to bargaining 

unit employees is ‘de minimis.’ No new 

skills, resources, equipment, or training 

are expected to be required to order to 

implement this change. 

Questionable Use of Federal Funds 

NATCA stated that FAA should make 

public the current costs of publishing 

ADs and SAIBs, and it should be made 

part of the public record where the 

money that should have been used for 

publishing will be spent instead. It 

should also be noted if this is a 

‘‘business plan’’ item and if any 

managers will receive an award/bonus/ 

pay increase due to the implementation 

of this notice. 

We considered current costs as a 

factor in deciding to change this policy, 

and have estimated the savings in 

reduced printing costs at about $240,000 


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per year. However, we have no way of 

determining where these funds will be 

spent instead, so are unable to provide 

this information. No managers have 

received or will receive extra 

compensation for its implementation. 

This policy change is not a ‘‘business 

plan’’ item but supports an FAA Flight 

Plan item. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on February 26, 

2007. 

Susan J.M. Cabler, 

Acting Manager, Aircraft Engineering 

Division, Aircraft Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. 07–921 Filed 2–28–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–M 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

[Docket No. FMCSA–2006–25246] 

Qualification of Drivers; Exemption 

Applications; Vision 

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of final disposition. 

SUMMARY: FMCSA announces its 

decision to exempt 33 individuals from 

the vision requirement in the Federal 

Motor Carrier Safety Regulations 

(FMCSRs). The exemptions will enable 

these individuals to operate commercial 

motor vehicles (CMVs) in interstate 

commerce without meeting the 

prescribed vision standard. The Agency 

has concluded that granting these 

exemptions will provide a level of safety 

that is equivalent to, or greater than, the 

level of safety maintained without the 

exemptions for these CMV drivers. 

DATES: The exemptions are effective 

March 1, 2007. The exemptions expire 

on March 2, 2009. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Mary D. Gunnels, Chief, Physical 

Qualifications Division, (202) 366–4001, 

maggi.gunnels@dot.gov, FMCSA, 

Department of Transportation, 400 

Seventh Street, SW., Room 8301, 

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 Document Management 

System (DMS) at http://dmses.dot.gov. 

Docket: For access to the docket to 

read background documents or 

comments received, go to http:// 

dms.dot.gov and/or Room PL–401 on 

the plaza level of the Nassif Building, 

400 Seventh Street, SW., 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 

complete Privacy Act Statement in the 

Federal Register (65 FR 19477, Apr. 11, 

2000). This statement is also available at 

http://dms.dot.gov. 

Background 

On January 3, 2007, FMCSA 

published a notice of receipt of 

exemption applications from certain 

individuals, and requested comments 

from the public (72 FR 180). That notice 

listed 33 applicants’ case histories, but 

it incorrectly indicated there were 32. 

The 33 individuals applied for 

exemptions from the vision requirement 

in 49 CFR 391.41(b)(10), for drivers who 

operate CMVs in interstate commerce. 

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

FMCSA may grant an exemption for a 2- 

year period 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 also 

allows the Agency to renew exemptions 

at the end of the 2-year period. 

Accordingly, FMCSA has evaluated the 

33 applications on their merits and 

made a determination to grant 

exemptions to all of them. The comment 

period closed on February 2, 2007. 

Vision and Driving Experience of the 

Applicants 

The vision requirement in the 

FMCSRs provides: 

A person is physically qualified to 

drive a commercial motor vehicle if that 

person has distant visual acuity of at 

least 20/40 (Snellen) in each eye 

without corrective lenses or visual 

acuity separately corrected to 20/40 

(Snellen) or better with corrective 

lenses, distant binocular acuity of a least 

20/40 (Snellen) in both eyes with or 

without corrective lenses, field of vision 

of at least 70 in the horizontal meridian 

in each eye, and the ability to recognize 

the colors of traffic signals and devices 

showing standard red, green, and amber 

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

FMCSA recognizes that some drivers 

do not meet the vision standard, but 

have adapted their driving to 

accommodate their vision limitation 

and demonstrated their ability to drive 

safely. The 33 exemption applicants 

listed in this notice are in this category. 

They are unable to meet the vision 

standard in one eye for various reasons, 

including amblyopia, macular scar, 

retinal detachment, corneal scarring, 

prosthesis, corneal opacity, optic 

atrophy, ocular histoplasmosis 

syndrome, retinal vein occlusion, 

cataract, and loss of vision due to 

trauma. In most cases, their eye 

conditions were not recently developed. 

All but ten of the applicants were either 

born with their vision impairments or 

have had them since childhood. The ten 

individuals who sustained their vision 

conditions as adults have had them for 

periods ranging from 4 to 25 years. 

Although each applicant has one eye 

which does not meet the vision standard 

in 49 CFR 391.41(b)(10), each has at 

least 20/40 corrected vision in the other 

eye, and in a doctor’s opinion, has 

sufficient vision to perform all the tasks 

necessary to operate a CMV. Doctors’

opinions are supported by the 

applicants’ possession of valid 

commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) or 

non-CDLs to operate CMVs. Before 

issuing CDLs, States subject drivers to 

knowledge and skills tests designed to 

evaluate their qualifications to operate a 

CMV. All these applicants satisfied the 

testing standards for their State of 

residence. By meeting State licensing 

requirements, the applicants 

demonstrated their ability to operate a 

commercial vehicle, with their limited 

vision, to the satisfaction of the State. 

While possessing a valid CDL or nonCDL, these 33 drivers have been 

authorized to drive a CMV in intrastate 

commerce, even though their vision 

disqualified them from driving in 

interstate commerce. They have driven 

CMVs with their limited vision for 

careers ranging from 4 to 25 years. In the 

past 3 years, five of the drivers have had 

convictions for traffic violations and 

two of them were involved in crashes. 

The qualifications, experience, and 

medical condition of each applicant 

were stated and discussed in detail in 

the January 3, 2007 Notice (72 FR 180). 

Basis for Exemption Determination 

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

FMCSA may grant an exemption from 

the vision standard in 49 CFR 

391.41(b)(10) if the exemption is likely 

to achieve an equivalent or greater level 

of safety than would be achieved 

without the exemption. Without the 

exemption, applicants will continue to 

be restricted to intrastate driving. With 

the exemption, applicants can drive in 

interstate commerce. Thus, our analysis 

focuses on whether an equal or greater 

level of safety is likely to be achieved by 

permitting each of these drivers to drive 


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