Document ID: NHTSA-2011-0084-0007
Agency: nhtsa
Document Type: Notice
Title: Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Compliance Labeling of Retroreflective Materials for Heavy Trailer Conspicuity
Posted Date: 2021-07-21T04:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 137 (Wednesday, July 21, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38528-38529]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-15521]

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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket Number NHTSA-2011-0084]

Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the 
Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; Compliance 
Labeling of Retroreflective Materials for Heavy Trailer Conspicuity

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

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

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this 
notice announces that the Information Collection Request (ICR) 
abstracted below, regarding the reinstatement of a previously approved 
collection of information on Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 
(FMVSS) No. 108, will be submitted to the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The ICR describes the labeling 
requirement for retroreflective sheeting material and its expected 
burden. A Federal Register Notice with a 60-day comment period 
soliciting comments on the following information collection was 
published on July 7, 2020. No comments were received regarding this 
information collection.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before August 20, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed 
information collection, including suggestions for reducing the 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 Andrei Denes, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, NHTSA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590. 
Mr. Denes's telephone number is (202) 366-1810, 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 these requirements, this notice announces 
that the following information collection request will be submitted 
OMB.
    A Federal Register notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting 
public comments on the following information collection was published 
on July 7, 2020 (85 FR 40735).
    Title: 49 CFR 571.108, Standard No. 108; Lamps, reflective devices, 
and associated equipment; Compliance Labeling of Retroreflective 
Materials for Heavy Trailer Conspicuity
    OMB Control Number: 2127-0569.
    Type of Request: Reinstatement of a previously approved collection.
    Type of Review Requested: Regular.
    Length of Approval Requested: Three years.
    Summary of the Collection of Information: The National Traffic and 
Motor Vehicle Act, authorizes the Secretary of Transportation (NHTSA by 
delegation), at 49 U.S.C. 30111, to issue Federal Motor Vehicle Safety 
Standards (FMVSS) that set performance standards for motor vehicles and 
items of motor vehicle equipment. Further, the Secretary (NHTSA by 
delegation) is authorized, at 49 U.S.C. 30117, to require manufacturers 
to provide information to first purchasers of motor vehicles or items 
of motor vehicle equipment related to performance and safety in printed 
materials that are

[[Page 38529]]

attached to or accompany the motor vehicle or item of motor vehicle 
equipment. Under this authority, the agency issued FMVSS No. 108, 
specifying labeling requirements to aid the agency in achieving many of 
its safety goals.
    FMVSS No. 108, ``Lamp, reflective devices and associated 
equipment,'' requires that the inscription ``DOT-C2'', ``DOT-C3'', or 
``DOT-C4'', as appropriate, constituting a certification that the 
retroreflective sheeting conforms to the requirements of the standard, 
appear at least once on the exposed surface of each white or red 
segment of retroreflective sheeting, and at least once every 300 mm on 
retroreflective sheeting that is white only. The characters must be not 
less than 3 mm high, and must be permanently stamped, etched, molded, 
or printed in indelible ink.
    Description of the Need for the Information and Proposed Use of the 
Information: Crashes can be reduced if retroreflective material having 
certain essential properties is used to mark trailers. The permanent 
labeling is used to identify retroreflective material having the 
minimum properties required for effective conspicuity of trailers at 
night.
    Affected Public: Manufacturers of conspicuity grade retroreflective 
materials.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 3.
    The respondents are likely to be manufacturers of the conspicuity 
material. The agency estimates that currently there are three 
manufacturers producing conspicuity material.
    Frequency: On Occasion.
    Number of Responses: 190,000,000.
    It is estimated that there are 2.34 million trailers and 0.54 
million truck tractors that require new conspicuity tape annually. On 
average, a trailer requires approximately 60 ft. of reflective tape and 
a truck tractor requires about 4 ft. The labels are to be placed at 
intervals varying between 150 mm and 300 mm on rolls of retroreflective 
conspicuity tape. Considering the length of tape required per trailer 
and truck tractor, and that the labeling is applied on average every 9 
in. (225 mm), a total number of 80 labels per trailer and 6 labels per 
truck tractor are required. Therefore, it is estimated that 190 million 
labels will be required annually (2.34 million trailers x 80 labels + 
0.54 million truck tractors x 6 labels).
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 3 hours.
    The compliance symbol labeling program imposes only a minor hour 
burden per respondent, or three total hours, for the collection or 
reporting based on a maximum time required to ensure that the correct 
inscription is being applied to the sheeting by the printing presses. 
The application of symbols is performed by automated equipment 
incorporated in the production process of the retroreflective sheeting.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Cost: $4,000.
    The cost to respondents is estimated based on information that was 
supplied by the respondents regarding the cost of supplying or 
modifying printing rollers to apply the label. The cost to 
manufacturers of applying the label requirement is the maintenance and 
amortization of printing rollers and the additional dye or ink 
consumed. The labels are printed during the normal course of steady 
flow manufacturing operations and do not add additional time to the 
production process.
    Two methods of printing the label are in use. One method uses the 
same roller that applies the dye to the red segments of the material 
pattern. The roller is resurfaced annually using a computerized etching 
technique. The label was incorporated in the software to drive the 
roller resurfacing in 1993, and there is no additional cost to continue 
the printing of the label. In fact, costs would be incurred to 
discontinue the label.
    The second method uses a separate roller and dye to apply the 
label. The manufacturer using this technique reported that the rollers 
have been in service for five years without detectable wear and 
predicted a service life of at least fifteen years. Four rollers 
costing about $2,500 each are used for a total of $10,000. If all three 
manufacturers chose to use this method, a total of 12 rollers would be 
used for a total cost of $30,000. A straight-line depreciation of the 
rollers over 15 years ($30,000 divided by 15 years) equals $2,000 per 
year. The total cost of the dye required is derived from the number of 
labels required to be printed yearly and the dye required for each 
label. The total number of labels printed annually is about 190 
million. Therefore, at a cost of approximately $40 per gallon of dye 
and using about 0.001 milliliters of dye per label, the total cost of 
dye to print all the labels is estimated to be $2,000 (190 million 
labels x $40/gal x 0.001 ml x 0.000264172 ml/gal). With the yearly cost 
to replace the rollers of $2,000 and an annual allowance of $2,000 for 
dye, the annual total industry cost of maintaining the label is about 
$4,000.
    Estimated annual cost burden:

Additional cost of maintaining printing rollers with added label--$0
Annual cost of separate printing rollers for label (where used)--$2,000
Annual cost of additional dye or ink--$2,000
Total annual respondent cost--$4,000

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                                                                                                         Total annual        Annual         Est. total
                 Number of rollers                    Cost of each      Total cost      Depreciation        labels       additional dye   annual cost to
                                                         roller          rollers       over 15 years      (million)        allowance     maintain  label
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12................................................          $2,500          $30,000           $2,000              190           $2,000           $4,000
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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 Department, 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 appropriate automated, electronic, 
mechanical, or other technological 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.

Raymond R. Posten,
Associate Administrator for Rulemaking.
[FR Doc. 2021-15521 Filed 7-20-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P