Hours of Service (HOS) of Drivers; Application for Renewal of American Pyrotechnics Association Exemptions From the 14-Hour Rule and the Electronic Logging Device Rule During Independence Day Celebrations

AGENCY:

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT.

ACTION:

Notice of applications for renewal; request for comments.

SUMMARY:

FMCSA announces that it has received applications from the American Pyrotechnics Association (APA) requesting renewal of exemptions from certain hours of service (HOS) regulations that expired on July 8, 2020. The requests are being made on behalf of 60 APA member companies. The exemption requests would allow drivers for its members to exclude off-duty and sleeper berth time of any length from the calculation of the 14-hour limit and to use paper records of duty status (RODS) in lieu of electronic logging devices (ELD) during the designated Independence Day periods. The requests are for the transportation of pyrotechnics from June 28 through July 8 of every year from 2021 through 2025.

DATES:

Comments must be received on or before June 3, 2021.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments identified by Federal Docket Management System Number FMCSA-2021-0052 by any of the following methods:

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: www.regulations.gov. See the Public Participation and Request for Comments section below for further information.
• Mail: Dockets Operations, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
• Hand Delivery or Courier: Dockets Operations, West Building, Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. E.T., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you, please call (202) 366-9317 or (202) 366-9826 before visiting Dockets Operations.
• Fax: (202) 493-2251.

Each submission must include the Agency name and the docket number for this notice: FMCSA-2021-0052. Note that DOT posts all comments received without change to www.regulations.gov,, including any personal information included in a comment. Please see the Privacy Act heading below.

Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or comments, go to www.regulations.gov at any time or visit Dockets Operations in Room W12-140 on the ground level of the West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC, 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) 366-9317 or (202) 366-9826 before visiting Dockets Operations.

Privacy Act: In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits comments from the public to better inform its rulemaking process. DOT posts these comments, without edit, including any personal information the commenter provides, to www.regulations.gov,, as described in the system of records notice (DOT/ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at www.dot.gov/privacy.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Ms. Pearlie Robinson, FMCSA Driver and Carrier Operations Division; Office of Carrier, Driver and Vehicle Safety Standards; (202) 366-4225; MCPSD@dot.gov. If you have questions on viewing or submitting material to the docket, contact Dockets Operations, (202) 366-9826.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Public Participation and Request for Comments

FMCSA encourages you to participate by submitting comments and related materials.

Submitting Comments

If you submit a comment, please include the docket number for this notice (FMCSA-2021-0052), indicate the specific section of this document to which the comment applies, and provide a reason for suggestions or recommendations. You may submit your comments and material online or by fax, mail, or hand delivery, but please use only one of these means. FMCSA recommends that you include your name and a mailing address, an email address, or a phone number in the body of your document so the Agency can contact you if it has questions regarding your submission.

To submit your comment online, go to www.regulations.gov and put the docket number, “FMCSA-2021-0052” in the “Keyword” box, and click “Search.” When the new screen appears, click on “Comment Now!” button and type your comment into the text box in the following screen. Choose whether you are submitting your comment as an individual or on behalf of a third party and then submit. If you submit your comments by mail or hand delivery, submit them in an unbound format, no larger than 81/2 by 11 inches, suitable for copying and electronic filing. If you submit comments by mail and would like to know that they reached the facility, please enclose a stamped, self-addressed postcard or envelope. FMCSA will consider all comments and material received during the comment period.

II. Legal Basis

FMCSA has authority under 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 31315(b) to grant exemptions from certain Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations. FMCSA must publish a notice of each exemption request in the Federal Register (49 CFR 381.315(a)). The Agency must provide the public an opportunity to inspect the information relevant to the application, including any safety analyses that have been conducted. The Agency must also provide an opportunity for public comment on the request.

The Agency reviews safety analyses and public comments submitted, and determines whether granting the exemption would likely achieve a level of safety equivalent to, or greater than, the level that would be achieved by the current regulation (49 CFR 381.305). The decision of the Agency must be published in the Federal Register (49 CFR 381.315(b)) with the reasons for denying or granting the application and, if granted, the name of the person or class of persons receiving the exemption, and the regulatory provision from which the exemption is granted. The notice must also specify the effective period (up to 5 years) and explain the terms and conditions of the exemption. The exemption may be renewed (49 CFR 381.300(b)).

III. Background

Current Requirements

The HOS rule in 49 CFR 395.3(a)(2) prohibits the driver of a property-carrying CMV from driving after the 14th hour after coming on duty following 10 consecutive hours off duty. Drivers required to prepare RODS must do so using ELDs. However, under 49 CFR 395.8(a)(1)(iii)( 1), a motor carrier may allow its drivers to record their duty status manually, rather than use an ELD, if the driver is operating a CMV “[i]n a manner requiring completion of a record of duty status on not more than 8 days within any 30-day period.”

Applicant's Requests

APA requests temporary relief from both provisions discussed above because employees for its member companies need to drive CMVs after the end of the 14-hour period and because the proposed exemption period from June 28 through July 8 is 11 days long, which exceeds the exception from the ELD requirement (up to 8 days in a 30 consecutive-day period). APA explains that without the extra time provided by the exemption from the 14-hour rule, safety would decline because APA drivers would be unable to return to their home base after each show. They would be forced to park the CMVs carrying HM 1.1G, 1.3G and 1.4G products in areas less secure than the motor carrier's home base.

Without the exemption from the ELD rule, these companies would be required to purchase/lease ELD systems for a limited period of 11 days. APA believes an equivalent level of safety will be achieved because the fireworks are transported over relatively short routes from distribution points to the site of the fireworks display, and normally in the early morning when traffic is light. APA also believes that fatigued driving is reduced and/or eliminated because drivers spend considerable time installing, wiring, and safety-checking the fireworks displays at the site, followed by several hours off duty in the late afternoon and early evening prior to the event; during this time, the drivers are allowed to rest or take a nap.

APA is requesting renewal of its HOS exemptions from the 14-hour rule for 58 of 61 member-companies included in the 2016 through 2020 waivers or exemptions; and from the ELD rule for the same member-companies included in the 2019 through 2020 waivers or exemptions. The HOS exemptions or waivers, for 61 of its members, expired on July 9, 2020. The current applications cover 58 members that previously held exemptions and 2 additional member-companies not previously covered by the exemptions. APA has advised that 3 member companies previously included in the 14-hour and ELD relief have been removed from the list, leaving 60 of its member companies applying for exemptions from the 14-hour rule and the ELD rule. Copies of the 2021 requests are included in the docket referenced at the beginning of this notice.

Various APA members have held 2-year exemptions during Independence Day periods from 2005 through 2014. On May 9, 2016, the current exemption for APA members was extended to July 8, 2020, pursuant to section 5206(b)(2)(A) of the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act. Copies of the initial request for an exemption from the 14-hour rule, subsequent renewal requests, and all public comments received may be reviewed at www.regulations.gov under docket numbers FMCSA-2005-21104 and FMCSA-2007-28043.

FMCSA granted APA's application for relief from the ELD rule on February 19, 2019, covering the Independence Day celebrations for 2019 and 2020. A copy of that request and the public comments received are located at www.regulations.gov under docket number FMCSA-2018-0140.

VI. Request for Comments

In accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31315(b), FMCSA requests public comment from all interested persons on APA's application for renewal of an exemption from 49 CFR 395.3(a)(2) and 395.8(a)(1)(i). All comments received before the close of business on the comment closing date indicated at the beginning of this notice will be considered and will be available for examination in the docket at the location listed under the Addresses section of this notice. Comments received after the comment closing date will be filed in the public docket and will be considered to the extent practicable. In addition to late comments, FMCSA will also continue to file, in the public docket, relevant information that becomes available after the comment closing date. Interested persons should continue to examine the public docket for new material.