
[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 196 (Tuesday, October 11, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 70273-70274]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-24446]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Office of the Secretary


Port Performance Freight Statistics Working Group

AGENCY: Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), Office of the 
Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology (OST-R), U.S. 
Department of Transportation (USDOT).

ACTION: Port Performance Freight Statistics Working Group: notice of 
public meeting and public comment period on draft work plan.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces an upcoming meeting of the Port 
Performance Freight Statistics Working Group (hereafter, ``Working 
Group''). The Working Group will provide advice and recommendations to 
the BTS Director pursuant to Section 6018 of the Fixing America's 
Surface Transportation (FAST) Act on matters related to port 
performance measures, including: (a) Specifications and data 
measurements to be used in the Port Performance Freight Statistics 
Program established under subsection 6018(a); and (b) a process for the 
Department to collect timely and consistent data, including identifying 
safeguards to protect proprietary information described in subsection 
6018(b)(2). The Working Group will operate in accordance with the 
provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) and the rules 
and regulations issued in implementation of that Act.
    This notice also announces the opening of a 14-day public comment 
period for the Working Group's draft Work Plan, available at http://www.bts.gov/bts/port_performance. This draft Work Plan identifies the 
schedule, agenda items, and anticipated follow-up actions for each of 
the Working Group's four meetings.

DATES: The Working Group meeting will be held on November 18, 2016, 
from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Eastern Standard Time.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be at the U.S. Department of 
Transportation; 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590. Any 
person requiring accessibility accommodations should

[[Page 70274]]

contact Matthew Chambers at (202) 366-1270 or via email at: 
portstatistics@dot.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: U.S. Department of Transportation, 
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology, Bureau 
of Transportation Statistics, Attn: Port Performance Freight Statistics 
Working Group, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Room # E32-342, Washington, 
DC 20590.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Background: The Port Performance Freight Statistics Working Group 
has been created in accordance with Section 6018 of the FAST Act (Pub. 
L. 114-94; Dec. 4, 2015; 129 Stat. 1312). The Working Group supports 
development of the newly-established BTS Port Performance Freight 
Statistics Program. The goal of the program is ``to provide nationally 
consistent measures of performance'' of the nation's largest ports, and 
to report annually to Congress on port capacity and throughput.
    The Working Group is established in the FAST Act to provide 
recommendations to the BTS Director on matters related to port 
performance measures; to identify a standard for port data; to specify 
standards for consistent port performance measures; to recommend 
statistics for measuring port capacity and throughput; and to develop a 
process to collect timely and consistent data. The FAST Act also 
identifies the membership of the Working Group, and sets a due date for 
recommendations to the BTS Director of December 4, 2016.
    Agenda: During the meeting, U.S. Department of Transportation 
(hereafter, ``Department'') staff will provide updates of the 
Department's progress in implementing its Port Performance Freight 
Statistics Program and related provisions. The Working Group will 
discuss its draft recommendations on the following topics:
    (a) Generally accepted industry standard for port data collection 
and reporting.
    (b) Standards for collecting data and reporting nationally 
consistent port performance measures.
    (c) Statistics measuring U.S. port capacity and throughput.
    (d) Process for the Department to collect timely and consistent 
data, including identifying safeguards to protect proprietary 
information.
    The final meeting agenda will be posted on the BTS Web site at 
www.bts.gov/port_performance in advance of the meeting.
    Public Participation: The meeting will be open to the public on a 
first-come, first served basis, especially because space is limited. 
Members of the public who wish to attend the meetings in-person are 
asked to send RSVPs, including name and affiliation to 
portstatistics@dot.gov, in order to request a seat and to facilitate 
entry. RSVPs are requested by November 14, 2016. Any person requiring 
accessibility accommodation, such as sign language interpretation, 
should contact the Matthew Chambers at (202) 366-1270 or via email at: 
portstatistics@dot.gov five (5) business days before the meeting.
    Written Comments: Persons who wish to submit written comments on 
the draft Work Plan or for consideration by the Working Group at its 
November meeting must send them via email to portstatistics@dot.gov or 
mail to Matthew Chambers, Designated Federal Officer, Port Performance 
Freight Statistics Working Group, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Room # 
E32-342, Washington, DC 20590. Written comments for the Working Group's 
November meeting must be received on or before November 14, 2016. 
Written comments on the draft Work Plan must be received on or before 
October 20, 2016. Comments on the Working Group's activities can be 
provided at any time to PortStatistics@dot.gov.

    Dated: October 3, 2016.
Michael Sprung,
Assistant Director, Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
[FR Doc. 2016-24446 Filed 10-7-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-9X-P


