45796 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 152 / Wednesday, August 6, 2008 / Notices 

Scenic Enhancement (Wildflowers) [23 

U.S.C. 319]. 

4. Wildlife: Endangered Species Act 

[16 U.S.C. 1531–1544 and Section 

1536], Marine Mammal Protection Act 

[16 U.S.C. 1361], Anadromous Fish 

Conservation Act [16 U.S.C. 757(a)- 

757(g)], Fish and Wildlife Coordination 

Act [16 U.S.C. 661–667(d)], Migratory 

Bird Treaty Act [16 U.S.C. 703–712], 

Magnuson-Stevenson Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act of 

1976, as amended [16 U.S.C. 1801 et 

seq. ]. 

5. Historic and Cultural Resources: 

Section 106 of the National Historic 

Preservation Act of 1966, as amended 

[16 U.S.C. 470(f) et seq. ]; Archeological 

Resources Protection Act of 1977 [16 

U.S.C. 470(aa)–11]; Archaeological and 

Historic Preservation Act [16 U.S.C. 

469–469(c)]; Native American Grave 

Protection and Repatriation Act 

(NAGPRA) [25 U.S.C. 3001–3013]. 

6. Social and Economic: Civil Rights 

Act of 1964 [42 U.S.C. 2000(d)–

2000(d)(1)]; American Indian Religious 

Freedom Act [42 U.S.C. 1996]; Farmland 

Protection Policy Act (FPPA) [7 U.S.C. 

4201–4209]. 

7. Wetlands and Water Resources: 

Land and Water Conservation Fund 

(LWCF) [16 U.S.C. 4601–4604]; Safe 

Drinking Water Act (SDWA) [42 U.S.C. 

300(f)–300(j)(6)]; Wild and Scenic 

Rivers Act [16 U.S.C. 1271–1287); 

Emergency Wetlands Resources Act [16 

U.S.C. 3921, 3931]; TEA–21 Wetlands 

Mitigation [23 U.S.C. 103(b)(6)(m), 

133(b)(11)]; Flood Disaster Protection 

Act [42 U.S.C. 4001–4128]. 

8. Hazardous Materials: 

Comprehensive Environmental 

Response, Compensation, and Liability 

Act (CERCLA) [42 U.S.C. 9601–9675]; 

Superfund Amendments and 

Reauthorization Act of 1986 (SARA); 

Resource Conservation and Recovery 

Act (RCRA) [42 U.S.C. 6901–6992(k)]. 

9. Executive Orders: E.O. 11990 

Protection of Wetlands; E.O. 11988 

Floodplain Management; E.O. 12898, 

Federal Actions to Address 

Environmental Justice in Minority 

Populations and Low Income 

Populations; E.O. 11593 Protection and 

Enhancement of Cultural Resources; 

E.O. 13007 Indian Sacred Sites; E.O. 

13287 Preserve America; E.O. 13175 

Consultation and Coordination with 

Indian Tribal Governments; E.O. 11514 

Protection and Enhancement of 

Environmental Quality; E.O.13112 

Invasive Species. 

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 

Program Number 20.205, Highway Research, 

Planning and Construction. The regulations 

implementing Executive Order 12372 

regarding intergovernmental consultation on 

Federal programs and activities apply to this 

program.) 

Authority: 23 U.S.C. 139(I)(1). 

Issued on: July 31, 2008. 

George Hoops, 

Major Projects Engineer, FHWA, Raleigh, 

North Carolina. 

[FR Doc. E8–17986 Filed 8–5–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–RY–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration 

[Docket No. FMCSA–2007–28055] 

Demonstration Project on NAFTA 

Trucking Provisions 

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of extension of 

demonstration project. 

SUMMARY: FMCSA announces the 

extension of the demonstration project 

allowing up to 100 Mexico-domiciled 

motor carriers to operate beyond the 

U.S. border commercial zones, and the 

same number of U.S. carriers to operate 

in Mexico, from one year to the full 

three years allowed by statute, 49 U.S.C. 

31315. Reciprocally, Mexico has agreed 

to allow U.S.-domiciled motor carriers 

in the demonstration project to continue 

to operate in Mexico for up to three 

years. 

DATES: This notice is effective upon 

publication. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

Milt Schmidt, Division Chief, North 

American Borders Division, Federal 

Motor Carrier Safety Administration, 

Telephone (202) 366–4049; e-mail 

milt.schmidt@dot.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Secretary 

of Transportation Mary E. Peters and 

Mexico’s Secretary of Communications 

and Transportation Luis Tollez 

Kuenzler announced a demonstration 

project to implement certain trucking 

provisions of the North American Free 

Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in February 

2007. The project was expected to last 

one year. FMCSA’s notice inaugurating 

the project stated that ‘‘[t]he 

demonstration project has a one-year 

limit’’ (72 FR 23883, 23884, May 1, 

2007). 

Shortly thereafter Congress required 

the Department of Transportation (DOT) 

to satisfy a series of new conditions 

before starting the demonstration 

project. See section 6901 of the ‘‘U.S. 

Troop Readiness, Veterans’ Care, 

Katrina Recovery, and Iraq 

Accountability Appropriations Act, 

2007’’ [hereafter: ‘‘Iraq Supplemental’’], 

Pub. L. 110–28, 121 Stat. 112, 183, May 

25, 2007. Section 6901 imposed limits 

on DOT’s use of appropriated funds to 

grant authority to Mexico-domiciled 

motor carriers to operate beyond the 

border commercial zones. In particular, 

section 6901(a) required that the 

granting of such authority be tested as 

part of a pilot program meeting the 

requirements of 49 U.S.C. 31315(c) and 

that the pilot program also comply with 

the requirements of section 350 of 

Public Law 107–87 (115 Stat. 833, 864, 

December 18, 2001). Section 350, 

enacted by the 2002 DOT 

Appropriations Act and reenacted in 

every subsequent annual DOT 

appropriations act, set forth additional 

requirements FMCSA must meet as a 

condition of granting Mexico-domiciled 

motor carriers authority to operate in 

the United States. A pilot program 

under § 31315(c) must include, among 

other things, a ‘‘scheduled life * * * of 

not more than 3 years.’’

As demonstrated in the Federal 

Register notices of June 8 and August 

17, 2007 (72 FR 31877 and 72 FR 46263, 

respectively), FMCSA met all of the 

conditions established by section 6901 

of the Iraq Supplemental, including 

compliance with section 350. The 

demonstration project was initiated on 

September 6, 2007, after Secretary 

Peters submitted to Congress the 

Department’s response to the report by 

the DOT Office of Inspector General 

verifying compliance with section 350, 

as required by section 6901(b)(1) and 

(b)(2)(A). FMCSA issued provisional 

operating authority to the first Mexicodomiciled motor carrier the same day. 

However, uncertainties concerning the 

length and viability of the 

demonstration project may have 

deterred a significant number of 

carriers, both from Mexico and the 

United States, from seeking to 

participate in the project. For example, 

many Mexico-domiciled motor carriers 

who previously expressed an interest in 

operating beyond the border commercial 

zones have not pursued such authority 

through the demonstration project. 

Additionally, we have been advised that 

other Mexico-domiciled carriers who 

received approval for project 

participation are not participating 

because they are reluctant to incur 

substantial costs related to obtaining 

insurance to operate in the United 

States and developing a customer base 

for long-haul operations, in the face of 

these uncertainties. The result is that 

the number of Mexico-domiciled 

carriers operating under the 

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Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 152 / Wednesday, August 6, 2008 / Notices 45797 

demonstration project is smaller than 

expected: currently, 27 carriers are 

operating 107 trucks. Although these 

carriers have made 9,983 trips into the 

United States, most of these carriers had 

destinations in the commercial zones; 

they have performed 1,272 long-haul 

trips beyond the border zones. 

Concurrently, many U.S.-domiciled 

motor carriers have expressed concern 

at the high cost of maintaining an 

official legal representative in Mexico, 

especially due to their belief that a 

minimum of two years is needed to 

develop sustainable business 

relationships with Mexican shippers. 

This has resulted in a limited number of 

U.S. carriers participating in the 

demonstration project. At the moment, 

only 10 U.S. carriers are participating 

and they are operating only 55 vehicles. 

They have made 2,245 trips across the 

Mexican border. 

In order to ensure the demonstration 

project can be reviewed and evaluated 

on the basis of a more comprehensive 

body of data, FMCSA has decided to 

extend the project from one year up to 

the full three years allowed by statute. 

The U.S. and Mexico will continue to 

limit the project to a maximum of 100 

of each other’s motor carriers and will 

provide for reciprocal authority. In 

addition, the U.S. will require 

participating Mexican carriers and 

drivers to comply with all applicable 

U.S. laws and regulations. The 

extension will enable FMCSA to collect 

and analyze a larger volume of safety 

and operational data, which is the 

fundamental goal of the demonstration 

project. We believe an extension will 

provide non-participating motor 

carriers, both in Mexico and the United 

States, added incentives to join the 

project, knowing that their investment 

in long-haul foreign operations will 

have more time to mature and become 

profitable. 

Issued on: July 31, 2008. 

John H. Hill, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. E8–17946 Filed 8–4–08; 9:15 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Transit Administration 

[Docket No: FTA–2008–0002] 

National Transit Database: 

Amendments to Urbanized Area 

Annual Reporting Manual 

Provider: Federal Transit 

Administration (FTA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of Amendments to 2008 

National Transit Database Urbanized 

Area Annual Reporting Manual. 

SUMMARY: This notice announces the 

adoption of certain amendments for the 

Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) 

2008 National Transit Database (NTD) 

Urbanized Area Annual Reporting 

Manual (Annual Manual). On February 

7, 2008, FTA published a notice in the 

Federal Register (73 FR 7361) inviting 

comments on proposed amendments to 

the 2008 Annual Manual. This notice 

provides responses to those comments, 

and announces the adoption of certain 

amendments for the 2008 Annual 

Manual, as well as the adoption of some 

amendments to take effect for the 2009 

Report Year. 

DATES: Effective Date: August 6, 2008. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

program issues, John D. Giorgis, Office 

of Budget and Policy, (202) 366–5430 

(telephone); (202) 366–7989 (fax); or 

john.giorgis@dot.gov (e-mail). For legal 

issues, Richard Wong, Office of the 

Chief Counsel, (202) 366–0675 

(telephone); (202) 366–3809 (fax); or 

richard.wong@dot.gov (e-mail). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

The National Transit Database (NTD) 

is the Federal Transit Administration’s 

(FTA’s) primary database for statistics 

on the transit industry. Recipients of 

FTA’s Urbanized Area Formula Program 

(Section 5307) and Other Than 

Urbanized Area Formula Program 

(Section 5311) are required by statute to 

submit data to the NTD. These data are 

used to ‘‘help meet the needs of * * * 

the public for information on which to 

base public transportation service 

planning * * * ’’ (49 U.S.C. 5335). 

Other transit providers in urbanized 

areas report to the NTD under these 

requirements on a voluntary basis for 

purposes of including their data in the 

apportionment of Urbanized Area 

Formula Grants. FTA details the NTD 

reporting requirements for urbanized 

area transit providers in the NTD 

Urbanized Area Annual Reporting 

Manual (Annual Manual). 

Currently, over 650 transit providers 

in urbanized areas report to the NTD 

through an Internet-based reporting 

system. Each year, performance data 

from these submissions are used to 

apportion over $5 billion of FTA funds 

under the Urbanized Area Formula and 

the Fixed-Guideway Modernization 

Grants Programs. These data are also 

used in the annual National Transit 

Summaries and Trends report, the 

biennial Conditions and Performance 

Report to Congress, and in meeting 

FTA’s obligations under the 

Government Performance and Results 

Act. 

In an ongoing effort to improve the 

NTD Internet reporting system and to be 

responsive to the needs of transit 

providers reporting to the NTD, and to 

the needs of the transit data user 

community, FTA annually refines and 

clarifies reporting requirements to the 

NTD. This notice announces the 

adoption of certain amendments for the 

2008 Annual Manual, as well as the 

adoption of some amendments to take 

effect for the 2009 Report Year. 

II. Comments and FTA Response to 

Comments 

On February 7, 2008, FTA published 

a notice in the Federal Register (73 FR 

7361) inviting comments on proposed 

amendments to the 2008 Annual 

Manual. FTA received responses from 

seven commenters. Three of the 

commenters made comments on the set 

of amendments as a whole. One 

expressed support for the package of 

amendments as a whole and two 

commenters suggested that most of the 

proposed amendments should not take 

effect until the 2009 Report Year, in 

order to give reporters sufficient time to 

prepare reports under the new 

requirements. FTA agrees with the 

commenters and will therefore delay 

many of the proposed amendments until 

the 2009 Report Year, particularly those 

that impact relationships with 

purchased transportation providers. 

FTA will respond to all comments based 

on each proposed amendment. 

(a) Contractual Relationship (B–30) 

Form 

FTA proposed to revamp this form to 

allow reporters to clearly report three 

separate types of relationships: (1) 

Traditional purchased transportation 

contracts; (2) taxicab contracts for 

demand response service; and (3) passthrough relationships. Under this 

proposal, taxicab contracts for demand 

response service would become a third 

type of service under the NTD, with 

reduced reporting requirements on the 

S–10, and no reporting requirements for 

the A–10 (asset inventory) form. FTA 

received one comment in support of the 

proposed changes. 

FTA Response: Based on the above 

comments requesting that changes 

impacting the reporting requirements 

for purchased transportation services be 

delayed until the 2009 Report Year, FTA 

agrees to delay implementation of this 

amendment until the 2009 Report Year. 

The above requirements will be 

reflected in the 2009 Annual Manual. 

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