Document ID: NHTSA-2020-0101-0001
Agency: nhtsa
Document Type: Notice
Title: Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Reporting of Information and Documents about Potential Defects
Posted Date: 2020-12-29T05:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 249 (Tuesday, December 29, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 85848-85855]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-28766]

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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket Number NHTSA-2020-0101]

Agency Information Collection Activities; Notice and Request for 
Comment; Reporting of Information and Documents About Potential Defects

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

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

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SUMMARY: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) 
invites public comments about our intention to request Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) approval for a reinstatement with 
modification of a currently approved information collection. Before a 
Federal agency can collect certain information from the public, it must 
receive approval from OMB. Under procedures established by the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, before seeking OMB approval, Federal 
agencies must solicit public comment on proposed collections of 
information, including extensions and reinstatements of previously 
approved collections. This document describes a collection of 
information for which NHTSA intends to seek OMB approval.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before March 1, 2021.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by the Docket No. NHTSA-
2020-0101 using any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments.
     Mail or Hand Delivery: Docket Management, U.S. Department 
of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, Room W12-
140, Washington, DC 20590-0001, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET, Monday 
through Friday, except Federal holidays. To be sure someone is there to 
help you, please call (202) 366-9322 before coming.
     Fax: 202-493-2251.
    Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and 
docket number for this proposed collection of information. Note that 
all comments received will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided. 
Please see the Privacy Act heading below.
    Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search the electronic form of all 
comments received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual 
submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf 
of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review DOT's 
complete Privacy Act Statement in the Federal Register published on 
April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477-78) or you may visit https://www.transportation.gov/privacy.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to http://www.regulations.gov or the street 
address listed above. To be sure someone is there to help you, please 
call (202) 366-9322 before coming. Follow the online instructions for 
accessing the dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For additional information or access 
to background documents, contact, Tanya Topka, Trends Analysis Division 
(NEF-108), Room W48-337, National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration, 1200 New Jersey Ave., Washington, DC 20590. Telephone: 
(202) 366-9590. Please identify the relevant collection of information 
by referring to its OMB Control Number.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 
before an agency submits a proposed collection of information to OMB 
for approval, it must first publish a document in the Federal Register 
providing a 60-day comment period and otherwise consult with members of 
the public and affected agencies concerning each proposed collection of 
information.

[[Page 85849]]

The OMB has promulgated regulations describing what must be included in 
such a document. Under OMB's regulation, see 5 CFR 1320.8(d), an agency 
must ask for public comment on the following: (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 collection of information, including the 
validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (c) how to enhance 
the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; 
and (d) how to minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
those who are to respond, including the use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology, e.g. permitting electronic 
submission of responses. In compliance with these requirements, NHTSA 
asks for public comments on the following collection of information:
    Title: Reporting of Information and Documents About Potential 
Defects.
    OMB Control Number: 2127-0616.
    Type of Request: Reinstatement with modification of a previously 
approved information collection.
    Type of Review Requested: Regular.
    Requested Expiration Date of Approval: 3 years from date of 
approval.
    Background and Summary of the Collection of Information: This 
notice requests comment on NHTSA's intention to seek approval from OMB 
to reinstate with modification a previously approved collection of 
information, OMB No. 2127-0616, covering requirements in 49 CFR 579, 
Reporting of Information and Communications about Potential Defects. 
Part 579 implements, and addresses with more specificity, requirements 
from the Transportation Recall Enhancement, Accountability, and 
Documentation (TREAD) Act (Pub. L. 106-414), which was enacted on 
November 1, 2000, and are codified at 49 U.S.C. 30166.
    The purpose of part 579 is to enhance motor vehicle safety by 
specifying information and documents that manufacturers of motor 
vehicles and motor vehicle equipment must provide to NHTSA with respect 
to possible safety-related defects and non-compliances in their 
products, including the reporting of safety recalls and other safety 
campaigns the manufacturers conduct outside the United States. Under 
part 579, there are three categories of reporting requirements: (1) 
Requirements at Sec.  579.5 to submit notices, bulletins, customer 
satisfaction campaigns, consumer advisories, and other communications 
(found in Subpart A of part 579); (2) requirements at Sec.  579.11 to 
submit information related to safety recalls and other safety campaigns 
in foreign countries (found in Subpart B of part 579); and (3) 
requirements at Sec. Sec.  579.21-28 to submit Early Warning 
Information (found in Subpart C of part 579). The Early Warning 
Reporting (EWR) requirements (49 U.S.C. 30166(m); 49 CFR part 579, 
subpart C) specify that manufacturers of motor vehicles and motor 
vehicle equipment must submit to NHTSA information, periodically or 
upon NHTSA's request, that includes claims for deaths and serious 
injuries, property damage data, communications from customers and 
others, information on incidents resulting in fatalities or serious 
injuries from possible defects in vehicles or equipment in the United 
States or in identical or substantially similar vehicles or equipment 
in a foreign country, and other information that assists NHTSA in 
identifying potential safety-related defects. The intent of this 
information collection is to provide early warning of such potential 
safety-related defects to NHTSA.
    Description of the Need for the Information and Proposed Use of the 
Information: The information required under 49 U.S.C. 30166 and 49 CFR 
part 579 is used by NHTSA to promptly identify potential safety-related 
defects in motor vehicles and motor vehicle equipment in the United 
States. When a trend in incidents arising from a potentially safety-
related defect is discovered, NHTSA relies on this information, along 
with other agency data, to determine whether or not to open a defect 
investigation.
    Affected Public: Manufacturers of motor vehicles and motor vehicle 
equipment.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: NHTSA receives part 579 
submissions from approximately 337 manufacturers per year. We estimate 
that there will be a total of 337 respondents per year associated with 
OMB No. 2127-0616.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: When this approved information 
collection was last renewed in June 2017, NHTSA estimated the annual 
burden associated with this collection to be 49,243 burden hours. NHTSA 
is updating these estimates to better align with the current volume of 
submissions and to include reporting for common green tires and follow-
up sequences (per Sec.  579.28(l)) that were left out of the previous 
information collection request. NHTSA now estimates that the annual 
burden hours associated with this collection are 53,810 hours and that 
the collection requires no additional costs to the respondents beyond 
the labor costs associated with the burden hours.
    NHTSA estimated the burdens associated with this labor by 
calculating the burden associated with submitting information under 
each subpart of part 579. In addition to these burdens, NHTSA also 
estimates that manufacturers will incur computer maintenance burden 
hours, which are estimated on a per manufacturer basis.

Requirements Under Part 579, Subpart A

    The first component of this collection request covers the 
requirements found in part 579 Subpart A, Sec.  579.5, Notices, 
bulletins, customer satisfaction campaigns, consumer advisories, and 
other communications. Section 579.5 requires manufactures to furnish 
(1) a copy of all notices, bulletins, and other communications sent to 
more than one manufacturer, distributor, dealer, lessor, lessee, owner, 
or purchaser, in the United States, regarding any defect in its 
vehicles or items of equipment (including any failure or malfunction 
beyond normal deterioration in use, or any failure of performance, or 
any flaw or unintended deviation from design specifications), whether 
or not such defect is safety-related and (2) a copy of each 
communication relating to a customer satisfaction campaign, consumer 
advisory, recall, or other safety activity involving the repair or 
replacement of motor vehicles or equipment, that the manufacturer 
issued to, or made available to, more than one dealer, distributor, 
lessor, lessee, other manufacturer, owner, or purchaser, in the United 
States. Manufacturers are required to submit this information monthly. 
However, Section 579.5 does not require manufacturers to create these 
documents. Instead, only copies of these documents must be submitted to 
NHTSA and manufacturers must index these communications and email them 
to NHTSA within 5 working days after the end of the month in which they 
were issued. Therefore, the burden hours are only those associated with 
collecting the documents and submitting copies to NHTSA.
    NHTSA estimates that it receives approximately 24,884 notices a 
year. We estimate that it takes about 5 minutes to collect, index, and 
send each notice to NHTSA. Therefore, we estimate that it takes 2,074 
hours for manufacturers to submit notices as required under Section 
579.5 (24,884 notices x 5 minutes = 124,420 minutes or 2,074 hours).

[[Page 85850]]

    To calculate the labor cost associated with submitting Section 
579.5 notices, bulletins, customer satisfaction campaigns, consumer 
advisories and other communications that are sent to more than one 
dealer or owner, NHTSA looked at wage estimates for the type of 
personnel submitting the documents. While some manufacturers employ 
clerical staff to collect and submit the documents, others use 
technical computer support staff to complete the task. Because we do 
not know what percent of the work is completed by clerical or technical 
computer support staff, NHTSA estimates the total labor costs 
associated with these burden hours by looking at the average wage for 
the higher paid technical computer support staff. The Bureau of Labor 
Statistics (BLS) estimates that the average hourly wage for Computer 
Support Specialists (BLS Occupation code 15-1230) in the Motor Vehicle 
Manufacturing Industry is $31.39.\1\ The Bureau of Labor Statistics 
estimates that private industry workers' wages represent 70.2% of total 
labor compensation costs.\2\ Therefore, NHTSA estimates the hourly 
labor costs to be $44.72 for Computer Support Specialists. The labor 
cost per submission is estimated to be $3.73 ($44.72 x 5 minutes). 
NHTSA estimates the total labor cost associated with the 2,074 burden 
hours for Sec.  579.5 submissions to be $92,817.32 ($3.73 x 24,884 
submissions). Table 1 provides a summary of the burden estimates using 
the average annual submission count for monthly reports submitted 
pursuant to Sec.  579.5 and the estimated burden hours and labor costs 
associated with those submissions.
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    \1\ May 2019 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment 
and Wage Estimates NAICS 336100--Motor Vehicle Manufacturing, U.S. 
Bureau of Labor Statistics, https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics4_336100.htm#15-0000. Last Accessed June 17, 2020.
    \2\ Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, U.S. Bureau of 
Labor Statistics, https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.t01.htm. 
Last Accessed July 30, 2020.

                                                 Table 1--Burden Estimates for Sec.   579.5 Submissions
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                                                                            Average hourly  Labor cost per   Total burden
 Average annual Sec.   579.5 submissions   Estimated burden per submission    labor cost      submission         hours            Total labor costs
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
24,884...................................  5 minutes......................          $44.72           $3.73           2,074  $92,817.32 or $92,817
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Requirements Under Part 579, Subpart B (Foreign Reporting)

    The second component of this information collection request covers 
the requirements found in part 579 Subpart B, ``Reporting of Safety 
Recalls and Other Safety Campaigns in Foreign Countries.'' Pursuant to 
Sec.  579.11, whenever a manufacturer determines to conduct a safety 
recall or other safety campaign in a foreign country, or whenever a 
foreign government has determined that a safety recall or other safety 
campaign must be conducted, covering a motor vehicle, item of motor 
vehicle equipment, or tire that is identical or substantially similar 
to a vehicle, item of equipment, or tire sold or offered for sale in 
the United States, the manufacturer must report to NHTSA not later than 
5 working days after the manufacturer makes such determination or 
receives written notification of the foreign government's 
determination. Section 579.11(e) also requires each manufacturer of 
motor vehicles to submit, not later than November 1 of each year, a 
document that identifies foreign products and their domestic 
counterparts.
    In order to provide the information required for foreign safety 
campaigns, manufacturers must (1) determine whether vehicles or 
equipment that are covered by a foreign safety recall or other safety 
campaign are identical or substantially similar to vehicles or 
equipment sold in the United States, (2) prepare and submit reports of 
these campaigns to the agency, and (3) where a determination or notice 
has been made in a language other than English, translate the 
determination or notice into English before transmitting it to the 
agency.
    NHTSA estimates that there is no burden associated with determining 
whether an individual safety recall covers a foreign motor vehicle or 
item of motor vehicle equipment that is identical or substantially 
similar to those sold in the United States because manufacturers can 
simply consult the list that they are required to submit each year. 
Therefore, the only burden associated with making the determination of 
whether a foreign safety recall or other safety campaign is required to 
be reported to NHTSA is the burden associated with creating the annual 
list. NHTSA continues to estimate that it takes approximately 9 hours 
per manufacturer to develop and submit the list. The 9 hours are 
comprised of 8 attorney hours and 1 hour for IT work. NHTSA receives 
these lists from 101 manufacturers, on average, resulting in 909 burden 
hours (101 vehicle manufacturers x 8 hours for attorney support = 808 
hours) + (101 vehicle manufacturers x 1 hour for IT support = 101 
hours).
    NHTSA estimates that preparing and submitting each foreign defect 
report (foreign recall campaign) requires 1 hour of clerical staff and 
that translation of determinations into English requires 2 hours of 
technical staff (note: This assumes that all foreign campaign reports 
require translation, which is unlikely). Between 2016 and 2018, NHTSA 
received a yearly average of 227 foreign recall reports. NHTSA 
estimates that in each of the next three years, NHTSA will receive, on 
average, 227 foreign recall reports. NHTSA estimates that each report 
will take 3 hours (1 hour to prepare by a clerical employee and 2 hours 
for translation). Therefore, NHTSA estimates that the burden hours 
associated with submitting these reports will be 681 hours (3 hours per 
report x 227 reports).
    Therefore, NHTSA estimates the total annual burden hours on 
manufacturers for reporting foreign safety campaigns and substantially 
similar vehicles/equipment is 1,590 hours (909 hours for submitting 
annual lists + 681 hours for submitting foreign recall and safety 
campaign reports). This is an increase of 444 burden hours from our 
previous estimate (1,590 hours for current estimate - 1,146 hours for 
previous estimate). Table 2 provides a summary of the estimated burden 
hours for part 579 Subpart B submissions.

[[Page 85851]]

                              Table 2--Burden Hour Estimates for Foreign Reporting
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                                                 Annual number                                     Total burden
                Submission type                 of submissions       Burden hours per report           hours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Foreign Recall/Safety-Related Campaign Report.             227  1 hour clerical + 2 hours                    681
                                                                 translation = 3 hours.
Annual List...................................             101  8 hours attorney + 1 hour IT = 9             909
                                                                 hours.
                                               -----------------------------------------------------------------
    Total.....................................  ..............  ................................           1,590
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    To calculate the labor cost associated with part 579 foreign 
reporting submissions, NHTSA looked at wage estimates for the type of 
personnel submitting the documents. As stated above, NHTSA estimates 
that submitting annual lists under Sec.  579.11(e) will involve 8 hours 
of attorney time and 1 hour of IT work. The Bureau of Labor Statistics 
(BLS) estimates that the average hourly wage for Lawyers (BLS 
Occupation code 23-1000) in the Motor Vehicle Manufacturing Industry is 
$95.85 \3\ and the average hourly wage for Computer Support Specialists 
(BLS Occupation code 15-1230) in the Motor Vehicle Manufacturing 
Industry is $31.39.\4\ The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that 
private industry workers, wages represent 70.2% of total labor 
compensation costs.\5\ Therefore, NHTSA estimates the hourly labor 
costs to be $136.54 for Lawyers and $44.72 for Computer Support 
Specialists. NHTSA estimates the total labor cost associated with 
submitting one annual list to be $1,137.04 ($136.54 per hour x 8 
attorney hours + $44.72 per hour x 1 IT hour) and $114,841.04 or 
$114,841 for all 101 annual lists NHTSA estimates will be submitted 
annually.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ May 2019 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment 
and Wage Estimates NAICS 336100--Motor Vehicle Manufacturing, U.S. 
Bureau of Labor Statistics, https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics4_336100.htm#23-0000.
    \4\ https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics4_336100.htm#15-0000.
    \5\ Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, U.S. Bureau of 
Labor Statistics, https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.t01.htm. 
Last Accessed July 31, 2020.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    NHTSA estimates that submitting each foreign recall or safety 
campaign report involves 1 hour of clerical work and 2 hours of 
translation work. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) estimates that 
the average hourly wage for Office Clerks (BLS Occupation code 43-9061) 
in the Motor Vehicle Manufacturing Industry is $20.74 \6\ and the 
average hourly wage for Interpreters and Translators (BLS Occupation 
code 27-3091) is $27.40.\7\ The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates 
that private industry workers' wages represent 70.2% of total labor 
compensation costs.\8\ Therefore, NHTSA estimates the hourly labor 
costs to be $29.54 for Office Clerks and $39.03 for Interpreters and 
Translators. NHTSA estimates the total labor cost associated with 
submitting one foreign recall or safety campaign report to be $107.60 
($29.54 per hour x 1 Clerical hour + $39.03 per hour x 2 Translator 
hours) and $24,425.20 or $24,425 for all 227 foreign recall or safety 
campaign reports NHTSA estimates will be submitted annually.
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    \6\ May 2019 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment 
and Wage Estimates NAICS 336100--Motor Vehicle Manufacturing, U.S. 
Bureau of Labor Statistics, https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics4_336100.htm#43-0000. Last Accessed June 17, 2020.
    \7\ May 2019 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates 
United States, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_nat.htm. Last Accessed June 17, 2020.
    \8\ Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, U.S. Bureau of 
Labor Statistics, https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.t01.htm. 
Last Accessed July 31, 2020.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Table 3 provides a summary of the labor costs associated with the 
foreign reporting requirements in part 579, Subpart B. NHTSA estimates 
that the total labor costs associated with the annual list requirement 
and the requirement to report foreign recalls and safety campaigns is 
$139,266 ($114,841 + $24,425).

                           Table 3--Annual Labor Cost Estimates for Foreign Reporting
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
   Submission type and labor       Hours per     Hourly labor   Labor cost per     Number of
           category               submission         cost         submission      submissions   Total labor cost
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Annual List--Lawyer...........               8         $136.54       $1,092.32             101  $110,324.32.
Annual List--Computer                        1           44.72           44.72             101  $4,516.72.
 Specialist.
                               ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Totals for Annual List....               9  ..............        1,137.04  ..............  $114,841.04 or
                                                                                                 $114,841.
Foreign Recall/Safety--Related               1           29.54           29.54             227  $6,705.58.
 Campaign Report--Clerical.
Foreign Recall/Safety--Related               2           39.03           78.06             227  $17,719.62.
 Campaign Report--Translator.
                               ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Totals for Foreign Recall/               3  ..............          107.60  ..............  $24,425.20 or
     Safety Campaign Report.                                                                     $24,425.
                               ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
        Total Labor Costs for   ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............  $139,266.24 or
         Part 579 Subpart B                                                                      $139,266.
         Requirements.
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[[Page 85852]]

Requirements Under Part 579, Subpart C (Reporting of Early Warning 
Information (EWR))

    The third component of this information collection covers the 
requirements found in Part 579 Subpart C, ``Reporting of Early Warning 
Information.'' Besides production information, there are five major 
categories requiring reporting of incidents or claims in Subpart C, 
with the specific requirements and applicability of those categories 
varying by vehicle and equipment type and, in some circumstances, 
manufacturer volume. Sections 579.21-27 require manufacturers to submit 
the following: (1) Production information; (2) reports on incidents 
involving death or injury in the United States; (3) reports on 
incidents involving one or more deaths in a foreign country involving a 
vehicle or item of equipment that is identical or substantially similar 
to a vehicle or item of equipment that is offered for sale in the 
United States; (4) separate reports on the number of property damage 
claims, consumer complaints, warranty claims, and field reports that 
involve a specified system or event; (5) copies of field reports; and, 
for manufacturers of tires, (6) a list of common green tires 
(applicable to only tire manufacturers). Section 579.28(l) allows NHTSA 
to request additional related information to help identify a defect 
related to motor vehicle safety. The regulation specifies the time 
frame for reporting for each category. Foreign recalls of substantially 
similar vehicles and manufacturer communications are required to be 
submitted monthly, substantially similar vehicle listings are required 
annually, and all other report types are required to be submitted on a 
quarterly basis.

Production Information--Quarterly Reporting

    Manufacturers are required to report production information to 
NHTSA on a quarterly basis (e.g., 4 times per calendar year).\9\ 
Estimates of the burden hours and reporting costs are based on:
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    \9\ Low volume and equipment manufacturers are not required to 
submit production information.
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     The number of manufacturers reporting;
     The frequency of required reports;
     The number of hours required per report; and
     The cost of personnel to report.
    The number of hours for reporting ranges from 1 hour for trailer 
manufacturers to 8 hours for light vehicle manufacturers (Table 4). 
Quarterly reporting burden hours are calculated by multiplying hours 
used to report for a given category by the number of manufacturers for 
the category and by the four times per year quarterly reporting. Using 
these methods and the average number of manufacturers who report 
annually, we estimate the annual burden hours for quarterly reporting 
at 5,216 hours as detailed below in Table 4.
    NHTSA assumes that 50 percent of the total burden hours are 
utilized by technical personnel while clerical staff consumes the 
remaining 50 percent. In other words, the hourly wage rate for each 
quarterly report is split evenly between technical and clerical 
personnel and a weighted hourly rate is developed from this assumption. 
Therefore, using the BLS total hourly compensation rates discussed 
above of $44.72 for a Computer Support Specialist and $29.54 for an 
Office Clerk, the weighted hourly rate is $37.13 (Technical Mean Hourly 
Wage of $44.72 x 0.5 + Clerical Mean Hourly Wage of $29.54 x 0.5). The 
estimated reporting costs are calculated as follows:

(M x Tp x $37.13 = quarterly cost of reporting) x 4 = annual 
cost of reporting *

* M = Manufacturers reporting data in the category; Tp = 
Reporting time for the category; $37.13 = Reporting labor cost 
compensation rate; 4 = Quarterly reports per year

For example, the estimated reporting cost for light vehicles is 
$42,773.76 (36 manufacturers x 8 hours x $37.13 compensation rate x 4 
quarters), and the total annual labor costs associated with quarterly 
reporting are estimated to be $193,670. Table 4 includes the estimated 
burden hours and reporting costs for non-dealer field reports, 
aggregate submissions, and death and injury submissions, as well as the 
quarterly and annual labor costs associated with reporting.

                               Table 4--Estimated Manufacturer Annual Burden Hours and Labor Costs for Quarterly Reporting
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               Quarterly                       Quarterly
                                            Average number     hours to     Blended hourly    labor costs    Annual burden
        Vehicle/equipment category                of          report per      comp. rate          per          hours for         Annual labor costs
                                             manufacturers   manufacturer                    manufacturer      reporting
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Light Vehicles............................              36               8          $37.13         $297.04           1,152  $42,773.76.
Medium-Heavy Vehicles.....................              39               5           37.13          185.65             780  28,961.40.
Trailers..................................              96               1           37.13           37.13             384  14,257.92.
Motorcycles...............................              15               2           37.13           74.26             120  4,455.60.
Emergency Vehicles........................               8               5           37.13          185.65             160  5,940.80.
Buses.....................................              33               5           37.13          185.65             660  24,505.80.
Tires.....................................              32               5           37.13          185.65             640  23,763.20.
Child Restraints..........................              42               1           37.13           37.13             168  6,237.84.
Vehicle Equipment.........................              36               8           37.13          297.04           1,152  42,773.76.
                                           -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Totals................................  ..............              40  ..............  ..............           5,216  $193,670.08 or $193,670.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Early Warning Reporting (EWR) Submissions

    Table 5 provides an average annual submission count for each 
category submitted per the requirements of 49 CFR part 579, subpart C: 
Reports on incidents involving death or injury in the United States; 
reports on incidents involving one or more deaths in a foreign country 
involving a vehicle or item of equipment that is identical or 
substantially similar to a vehicle or item of equipment that is offered 
for sale in the United States; separate reports on the number of 
property damage claims, consumer complaints, warranty claims, and field 
reports that involve a specified system or event; copies of field 
reports; and, for manufacturers of tires, a list of common green tires; 
and additional

[[Page 85853]]

follow-up information per Sec.  579.28(l) related to injury and 
fatality claims or comprehensive inquiries. Each reporting category has 
specific requirements and types of reports that need to be submitted 
and we state ``N/A'' where there is no requirement for that reporting 
category.

                                               Table 5--Annual Average of EWR Submissions by Manufacturers
                                                                       [2016-2018]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                      Heavy,
           Category of claims              Light       med      Trailers  Motorcycles  Emergency    Buses      Tires       Child    Equipment    Totals
                                          vehicles   vehicles                           vehicles                        restraints     mfr.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Incidents Involving Injury or Fatality      11,124         39         30         133           8         33         58         453          9     11,887
 in U.S................................
Incidents Involving Fatality in Foreign        146          6          5           2           0          1          3         167          0        330
 Country...............................
Reports on Number of Claims Involving       10,261        666         91          40           0          0      1,154          NA         NA     12,212
 Specific System or Event..............
Mfr. Field Reports.....................     66,722     16,639         20       1,301           0          0         NA       3,727         NA     88,409
Common Green Tire Reporting............         NA         NA         NA          NA          NA         NA        112          NA         NA        112
Average Number of Follow-Up Sequences          148         10          3           5           1          1          3          17          2        190
 per 579.28(l).........................
                                        ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Totals:............................     88,401     17,360        149       1,481           9         35      1,330       4,364         11    113,140
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The above updated submission totals represent an 12% increase from 
the previously approved information collection. Submission totals for 
each category have risen with an average of 11,887 injury and fatality 
claims in the United States (previously 9,804 claims), 330 foreign 
death claims (previously 101 claims), 12,212 claims involving specific 
system or event (previously 11,481 claims), 88,409 manufacturer field 
reports (previously 79,297 field reports), 112 common green tire 
reports, and 190 injury and fatality or comprehensive inquiry follow-up 
sequences per Sec.  579.28(l), totaling 113,140 submissions on average 
(previously estimated at 100,683 submissions).
    The agency estimates that an average of 5 minutes is required for a 
manufacturer to process each report, except for foreign death claims 
and follow-up responses. We estimate foreign death claims and follow-up 
responses per Sec.  579.28(l) require an average of 15 minutes to 
process. Multiplying the total average number of minutes by the number 
of submissions NHTSA receives in each reporting category yields the 
burden hour estimates found below in Table 6. Our previous estimates of 
Early Warning associated burden hours totaled 8,407, and we now update 
that total to 9,515 burden hours, a 13.2% increase, associated with the 
above noted claim categories.

                     Table 6--Annual Manufacturer Burden Hour Estimates for EWR Submissions
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                      Annual       Average time
                                                                    average  of     to process       Estimated
                       Category of claims                               EWR         each report   annual  burden
                                                                    submissions       (min.)           hours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Incidents Involving Injury or Fatality in U.S...................          11,887               5          990.58
Incidents Involving Fatality in Foreign Country.................             330              15           82.50
Reports on Number of Claims Involving Specific System or Event..          12,212               5        1,017.67
Mfr. Field Reports..............................................          88,409               5        7,367.42
Common Green Tire Reporting.....................................             112               5            9.33
Average Number of Follow-Up Sequences per 579.28(l).............             190              15            47.5
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
    Totals:.....................................................         113,140  ..............           9,515
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Thus, the total estimated annual manufacturer burden hours for 
Sections 579.21-28 (EWR submissions and quarterly reporting) are 14,731 
hours (5,216 (Table 4) + 9,515 (Table 6).
    We have also constructed various estimates of the average five 
minutes of labor among the various occupations depending on the type of 
claim that was reviewed. Table 7 shows the estimated time allocations 
that it will take an individual to review each type of claim (in 
minutes) and the weighted hourly rate for individuals involved.

                                 Table 7--Estimated Manufacturer Time Allocation by Claim Type and Weighted Hourly Rate
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                    Estimated time (in minutes) to review a claim
                                                           ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                              Engineer                 Technical     Clerical
                        Claim type                           Lawyer (rate:     (rate      IT (rate:      (rate:       (rate:                   Weighted
                                                             $136.54 \10\)   $63.03 11)   $66.82 12)   $44.72 13)   $29.54 14)   Total time  hourly rate
 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Incidents Involving Injury or Fatality in U.S.............               3            0            0            0            2            5       $93.74
Incidents Involving Fatality in Foreign Country...........               3           10            0            0            2           15        73.27
Reports on Number of Claims Involving Specific System or                 0            0            0            3            2            5        38.65
 Event....................................................
Mfr. Field Reports........................................               0            0            0            3            2            5        38.65
Green Tire Events.........................................               0            0            0            0            5            5        29.54

[[Page 85854]]

 
Average Number of Follow-Up Sequences per 579.28(l).......               3           10            0            0            2           15        73.27
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The total labor costs for claims documents were obtained using the 
following formula:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \10\ May 2019 National Industry-Specific Wage Estimates--Motor 
Vehicle Manufacturing, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Lawyers 
(Code 23-1000), $95.85, https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics4_336100.htm#23-0000, divided by 70.2% for compensation rate, 
https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.t01.htm.
    \11\ May 2019 National Industry-Specific Wage Estimates--Motor 
Vehicle Manufacturing, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Engineers 
(Code 17-2000), $44.25, https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics4_336100.htm#17-0000, divided by 70.2% for compensation rate, 
https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.t01.htm.
    \12\ May 2019 National Occupational Employment and Wage 
Estimates, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Computer and Information 
Analysts (Code 15-1210), $46.91, https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_nat.htm#15-0000, divided by 70.2% for compensation rate, https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.t01.htm.
    \13\ May 2019 National Industry-Specific Wage Estimates--Motor 
Vehicle Manufacturing, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Computer 
Support Analyst (Code 15-1230), $31.39, https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics4_336100.htm#15-0000, divided by 70.2% for compensation 
rate, https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.t01.htm.
    \14\ May 2019 National Industry-Specific Wage Estimates--Motor 
Vehicle Manufacturing, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Office 
Clerks (Code 43-9061), $20.74, https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics4_336100.htm#43-0000, divided by 70.2% for compensation rate, 
https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.t01.htm.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
K x T x W = Costs for claim type *

* K = Claims submitted by industry; T = Estimated time spent on a 
claim; W = Weighted Hourly Rate.

    Table 8 shows the annual labor costs of reporting EWR information 
to NHTSA.

                              Table 8--Estimated EWR Annual Labor Costs by Category
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                    Annual       Average  time                     Estimated
                                  average  of     to  process      Weighted       labor  cost   Estimated annual
      Category of claims              EWR        each  report     hourly rate         per          labor cost
                                  submissions       (min.)                        submission
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Incidents Involving Injury or           11,887               5          $93.74           $7.81  $92,857.28.
 Fatality in U.S.
Incidents Involving Fatality               330              15           73.27           18.32  6,044.78.
 in Foreign Country.
Reports on Number of Claims             12,212               5           38.65            3.22  39,332.82.
 Involving Specific System or
 Event.
Mfr. Field Reports............          88,409               5           38.65            3.22  284,750.65.
Common Green Tire Reporting...             112               5           29.54            2.46  275.71.
Average Number of Follow-Up                190              15           73.27           18.32  3,480.33.
 Sequences per 579.28(l).
                               ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Totals:...................         113,140  ..............  ..............  ..............  426,741.56 or
                                                                                                 426,742.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Computer Maintenance Burden

    In addition to the burden associated with submitting documents 
under each subpart of part 579, NHTSA also estimates that manufacturers 
will incur computer maintenance burden hours associated with the 
information collection requirements. The estimated manufacturer burden 
hours associated with aggregate data submissions for consumer 
complaints, warranty claims, and dealer field reports are included in 
reporting and computer maintenance hours. The burden hours for computer 
maintenance are calculated by multiplying the hours of computer use 
(for a given category) by the number of manufacturers reporting in a 
category. NHTSA estimates that light vehicle manufacturers will spend 
approximately 347 hours per year on computer maintenance and that other 
vehicle manufacturers will spend about 25% as much time as light 
vehicle manufacturers on computer maintenance. Therefore, NHTSA 
estimates that medium-heavy truck, trailer, motorcycle manufacturers, 
emergency vehicle, and bus manufacturers will each spend approximately 
86.5 hours on computer maintenance each year. NHTSA estimates that tire 
manufacturers and child restraint manufacturers will also spend 86.5 
hours on computer maintenance per year. Therefore, NHTSA estimates the 
total burden for computer maintenance to be 35,415 hours per year 
(based on there being an estimated 36 light vehicle manufacturers, 39 
medium-heavy vehicle manufacturers, 96 trailer manufacturers, 15 
motorcycle manufacturers, 8 emergency vehicle manufacturers, 33 bus 
manufacturers, 32 tire manufacturers, and 42 child restraint 
manufactures).
    To calculate the labor cost associated with computer maintenance 
hours, NHTSA looked at wage estimates for the type of personnel 
submitting the documents. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) 
estimates that the average hourly wage for Computer Support Specialists 
(BLS Occupation code 15-1230) in the Motor Vehicle Manufacturing 
Industry is $31.39.\15\ The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that 
private industry workers' wages represent 70.2% of total labor 
compensation costs.\16\ Therefore, NHTSA estimates the hourly labor 
costs to be $44.72 for Computer Support Specialists. For the estimated 
total of 35,415 annual computer maintenance burden hours, NHTSA 
estimates the associated labor costs will be approximately $1,583,736. 
Table 9

[[Page 85855]]

shows the annual estimated burden hours for computer maintenance by 
vehicle/equipment category and the estimated labor costs associated 
with those burden hours.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \15\ https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics4_336100.htm#15-0000.
    \16\ Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, U.S. Bureau of 
Labor Statistics, https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.t01.htm. 
Last Accessed July 31, 2020.

           Table 9--Estimated Manufacturer Annual Burden Hours for Computer Maintenance for Reporting
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                  Hours for
                                   Average        computer         Average      Annual  burden
  Vehicle/equipment category      number of      maintenance    hourly  labor      hours for       Total labor
                                manufacturers        per            cost           computer           costs
                                                manufacturer                      maintenance
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Light Vehicles...............              36             347          $44.72  12,492..........  $558,642.24.
Medium-Heavy Vehicles........              39            86.5           44.72  3,373.5.........  150,862.92.
Trailers.....................              96            86.5           44.72  8,304...........  371,352.88.
Motorcycles..................              15            86.5           44.72  1,297.5.........  58,024.20.
Emergency Vehicles...........               8            86.5           44.72  692.............  30,946.24.
Buses........................              33            86.5           44.72  2,854.5.........  127,653.24.
Tires........................              32            86.5           44.72  2,768...........  123,784.96.
Child Restraints.............              42            86.5           44.72  3,633...........  162,467.76.
                              ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Totals...................  ..............  ..............  ..............  35,414.5 or       1,583,736.44 or
                                                                                35,415 hours.     1,583,736.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Based on the foregoing, we estimate the burden hours for industry 
to comply with the current Part 579 reporting requirements (EWR 
requirements, foreign campaign requirements and Part 579.5 
requirements) to be 53,810 hours per year. The total annual burden 
hours for this information collection consisting of manufacturer 
communications under Section 579.5 (Subpart A), foreign reporting 
(Subpart B), EWR submissions and reporting (Subpart C), and computer 
maintenance is outlined in Table 9 below.

      Table 9--Total Manufacturer Burden Hours for This Collection
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                           Annual burden
                     Reporting type                            hours
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subpart A: Manufacturer Communications..................           2,074
Sec.   579.5 (Table 1)..................................
Subpart B: Foreign Reporting (Table 2)..................           1,590
Subpart C: EWR Submissions and Quarterly Reporting                14,731
 (Tables 4 & 6).........................................
Computer Maintenance....................................          35,415
                                                         ---------------
    Total...............................................          53,810
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The burden estimates represent an overall increase in burden hours 
of 4,567 hours. The increase in burden hours is due to increases in the 
number of submissions and modifying this request to include reporting 
for common green tires and additional information requested by NHTSA 
per Section 579.28(l) that were left out of the previous information 
collection request. The wage estimates have been adjusted to reflect 
the latest available rates from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
    Estimated Total Annual Cost: NHTSA estimates the collection 
requires no additional costs to the respondents beyond the labor costs 
associated with the burden hours to collect and submit the reports to 
NHTSA and the labor hours and associated labor costs for computer 
maintenance.
    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 Department, including whether the information will 
have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the Department's estimate 
of the burden of the proposed information collection; (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 collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology.

    Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. 
Chapter 35, as amended; 49 CFR 1.49; and DOT Order 1351.29.

Jeffrey Mark Giuseppe,
Associate Administrator for Enforcement.
[FR Doc. 2020-28766 Filed 12-28-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P