Document ID: NHTSA-2020-0031-0004
Agency: nhtsa
Document Type: Notice
Title: Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Motorcycle Helmets (Labeling)
Posted Date: 2022-01-12T05:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 8 (Wednesday, January 12, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1832-1833]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-00370]

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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket No. NHTSA-2020-0031]

Agency Information Collection Activities; Notice and Request for 
Comment; Motorcycle Helmets (Labeling)

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 
Department of Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Notice and request for comments on a reinstatement of a 
previously approved collection of information.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), 
this notice announces that the Information Collection Request (ICR) 
summarized below is being submitted to the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The ICR for motorcycle helmet 
labeling describes the nature of the information collection and its 
expected burden. A Federal Register Notice with a 60-day comment period 
soliciting comments on the following information collection was 
published on May 12, 2021.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before February 11, 2022.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed 
information collection, including suggestions for reducing burden, 
should be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget at 
www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. To find this particular information 
collection, select ``Currently under Review--Open for Public Comment'' 
or use the search function.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For additional information or access 
to background documents, contact Ms. Cristina Echemendia, U.S. 
Department of Transportation, NHTSA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West 
Building Room W43-447, NRM-130, Washington, DC 20590. Ms. Cristina 
Echemendia's telephone number is 202-366-6345 and fax number is 202-
366-7002. Please identify the relevant collection of information by 
referring to its OMB Control Number.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), a 
Federal agency must receive approval from the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) before it collects certain information from the public, 
and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information 
by a Federal agency unless the collection displays a valid OMB control 
number. In compliance with those requirements, this notice announces 
that the following information collection request is being submitted to 
OMB.
    Title: Motorcycle Helmets (Labeling).
    OMB Control Number: 2127-0518.
    Form Number: N/A.
    Type of Request: Reinstatement of previously approved collection of 
information.
    Type of Review Requested: Regular.
    Length of Approval Requested: Three years.

Summary of the Collection of Information

    The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act, at 49 U.S.C. 
30111, authorizes the Secretary of Transportation (NHTSA by delegation) 
to issue Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) that set 
performance standards for motor vehicles and items of motor vehicle 
equipment. Vehicle and equipment manufacturers must certify that their 
vehicles and equipment comply with the safety standards. Moreover, 
under 49 U.S.C. 30117, the Secretary (NHTSA by delegation) is also 
authorized to require manufacturers to provide information to first 
purchasers of motor vehicles or motor vehicle equipment when the 
vehicle equipment is purchased, in the form of printed matter placed in 
the vehicle or attached to the motor vehicle or motor vehicle 
equipment.
    Using this authority, NHTSA issued the initial FMVSS No. 218 in 
1974. Motorcycle helmets are devices used to protect motorcyclists from 
head injury in motor vehicle crashes. Manufacturers must label every 
helmet produced to indicate that the helmet is in compliance with the 
requirements of the standard. The certification label consists of the 
symbol ``DOT,'' the term ``FMVSS No. 218,'' the word ``CERTIFIED,'' the

[[Page 1833]]

precise model designation, and the manufacturer's name and/or brand on 
the outer shell of the helmet towards the posterior bottom edge. 
Manufacturers are also required to label every helmet to provide helmet 
owners with important safety information including manufacturer's name, 
discrete size, month and year of manufacture, and specific instructions 
to the purchaser. FMVSS No. 218 S5.6 requires that each helmet shall be 
labeled permanently and legibly in a manner such that the label(s) can 
be read easily without removing padding or any other permanent part.

Description of the Need for the Information and Proposed Use of the 
Information

    The labeling requirement in the standard supports the Department of 
Transportation's strategic goal in safety. NHTSA uses this information 
for enforcement purposes to ensure that manufacturers certify 
compliance with the Standard. State and local law enforcement use this 
information to enforce helmet-use laws, and consumers use the 
information to make decisions when purchasing motorcycle helmets.

60-Day Notice

    A Federal Register notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting 
public comments on the following information collection was published 
on May 12, 2021(86 FR 26136). The closing date for comments was July 
12, 2021. The agency received no comments.
    Affected Public: Motorcycle helmet manufacturers.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 45.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Number of Responses: 3,250,000.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 9,100.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Cost: $1,137,500.
    The 45 respondents (helmet manufacturers) produce a total of 
3,250,000 annual responses (3,250,000 motorcycle helmets are 
manufactured annually). A manufacturer spends approximately 10 seconds 
per response for labeling. The estimated total annual burden hours for 
helmet manufacturers to label motorcycle helmets as required in FMVSS 
No. 218 is 9,100 burden hours (3,250,000 x 10 seconds, rounded).
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Cost: $1,137,500.
    NHTSA estimates that the printing and material cost per helmet is 
$0.35. Therefore, the estimated total annual burden cost is $1,137,500 
(3,250,000 helmets produced per year x $0.35). The total estimated 
annual burden costs are detailed in the table below:

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                                   Number of                     Annual printing   Total number      Estimated
Number of respondents (helmet  helmets produced   Printing and     and material     of helmets     total annual
        manufacturers)           annually per     material cost      cost per        produced      printing and
                                  respondent       per helmet      manufacturer      annually     material costs
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45...........................  72,000 (Rounded)           $0.35  $25,200.00            3,250,000      $1,137,500
                                                                  (Rounded).
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    Public Comments Invited: You are asked to comment on any aspects of 
this information collection, including: (a) Whether the proposed 
collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of 
the functions of the agency, including whether the information will 
have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of 
the burden of the proposed information collection, including the 
validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (c) ways to enhance 
the quality, utility and clarity of the information to be collected; 
and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
respondents, including the use of automated, electronic, mechanical, or 
other technological collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses.
    Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. Chapter 
35, as amended; Delegation of Authority at 49 CFR 1.95, and DOT Order 
1351.29.

Raymond R. Posten,
Associate Administrator for Rulemaking.
[FR Doc. 2022-00370 Filed 1-11-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P