[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 86 (Wednesday, May 4, 2022)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 26317-26319]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-09443]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

49 CFR Part 393

[Docket No. FMCSA-2022-0004]


Parts and Accessories Necessary for Safe Operations; Speed 
Limiting Devices

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), Department 
of Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Advance notice of supplemental proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: FMCSA announces its intent to proceed with a speed limiter 
rulemaking by preparing a supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking 
(SNPRM) to follow up on the National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration's (NHTSA) and FMCSA's jointly issued September 7, 2016 
notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) on this subject. The SNPRM will 
propose that motor carriers operating commercial motor vehicles

[[Page 26318]]

(CMVs) in interstate commerce with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) 
or gross vehicle weight (GVW) of 11,794 kilograms or more (26,001 
pounds or more), whichever is greater, that are equipped with an 
electronic engine control unit (ECU) capable of governing the maximum 
speed be required to limit the CMV to a speed to be determined by the 
rulemaking and to maintain that ECU setting for the service life of the 
vehicle. With this notice of intent, FMCSA requests public comments and 
data regarding the adjustment or reprogramming of ECUs.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before June 3, 2022.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Docket Number FMCSA-
2022-0004 using any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to https://www.regulations.gov/docket/FMCSA-2022-0004/document. Follow the online 
instructions for submitting comments.
     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, U.S. 
Department of Transportation, West Building, Ground Floor, Room W12-
140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 
p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
     Fax: (202) 493-2251.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Luke Loy, Office of Vehicle and 
Roadside Operations, FMCSA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 
20590-0001; (202) 366-0676; [email protected]. If you have questions on 
viewing or submitting material to the docket, call Dockets Operations 
at (202) 366-9826.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A. Submitting Comments

    If you submit a comment, please include the docket number for this 
notification of intent (NOI) (FMCSA-2022-0004), indicate the specific 
section of this document to which your comment applies, and provide a 
reason for each suggestion or recommendation. 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 that FMCSA can contact you if there are 
questions regarding your submission.
    To submit your comment online, go to https://www.regulations.gov/docket/FMCSA-2022-0004/document, click on this NOI, click ``Comment,'' 
and type your comment into the text box on the following screen.
    If you submit your comments by mail or hand delivery, submit them 
in an unbound format, no larger than 8\1/2\ 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.

Confidential Business Information (CBI)

    CBI is commercial or financial information that is both customarily 
and actually treated as private by its owner. Under the Freedom of 
Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552), CBI is exempt from public disclosure. 
If your comments responsive to the NOI contain commercial or financial 
information that is customarily treated as private, that you actually 
treat as private, and that is relevant or responsive to the NOI, it is 
important that you clearly designate the submitted comments as CBI. 
Please mark each page of your submission that constitutes CBI as 
``PROPIN'' to indicate it contains proprietary information. FMCSA will 
treat such marked submissions as confidential under the Freedom of 
Information Act, and they will not be placed in the public docket of 
the NOI. Submissions containing CBI should be sent to Mr. Brian Dahlin, 
Chief, Regulatory Analysis Division, Office of Policy, FMCSA, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590-0001. Any comments FMCSA 
receives not specifically designated as CBI will be placed in the 
public docket for this rulemaking.

B. Viewing Comments and Documents

    To view comments, as well as any documents mentioned in this NOI as 
being available in the docket, go to https://www.regulations.gov/docket/FMCSA-2022-0004/document and choose the document to review. To 
view comments, click this NOI, and click ``Browse Comments.'' If you do 
not have access to the internet, you may view the docket online by 
visiting Dockets Operations in Room W12-140 on the ground floor of the 
DOT West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590-
0001, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., 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.

C. Privacy Act

    DOT posts comments received 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.transportation.gov/privacy.

I. Background

    NHTSA and FMCSA jointly published in the Federal Register on 
September 7, 2016, at (81 FR 61942) proposed regulations that would 
require vehicles with a GVWR of more than 11,793.4 kilograms (26,000 
pounds) to be equipped with a speed limiting device set to a maximum 
speed to be specified in a final rule and would require motor carriers 
operating such vehicles in interstate commerce to maintain functional 
devices set to that speed for the service life of the vehicle (81 FR 
61942).
    Specifically, NHTSA proposed to establish a new Federal Motor 
Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) requiring each vehicle with a GVWR of 
more than 11,793.4 kilograms (26,000 pounds), as manufactured and sold, 
to have its device set to a speed not greater than a specified speed 
and to be equipped with means of reading the vehicle's current speed 
setting and the two previous speed settings (including the time and 
date the settings were changed) through its on-board diagnostic 
connection.
    FMCSA proposed a complementary Federal Motor Carrier Safety 
Regulation (FMCSR) requiring each multipurpose passenger vehicle, 
truck, and bus and school bus with a GVWR of more than 11,793.4 
kilograms (26,000 pounds) \1\ to be equipped with a speed limiting 
device meeting the requirements of the proposed FMVSS applicable to the 
vehicle at the time of manufacture, including the requirement that the 
device be set to a speed not greater than a specified speed. Motor 
carriers operating such vehicles in interstate commerce would be 
required to maintain the speed limiting devices for the service life of 
the vehicle.
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    \1\ The jurisdictional definitions of GVW and GVWR applicable to 
NHTSA regulations are slightly different from the FMCSA definitions 
applicable to the SNPRM.
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    At the time the 2016 NPRM was published, NHTSA and FMCSA stated 
that all vehicles with electronic engine control units (ECUs) are 
generally electronically speed governed to prevent engine or other 
damage to the vehicle. This is because the ECU monitors an engine's RPM 
(from which vehicle speed can be calculated) and also controls the 
supply of fuel to the engine.

[[Page 26319]]

The NPRM stated that the information NHTSA analyzed indicated that ECUs 
have been installed in most heavy trucks since 1999, although the 
Agency was aware that some manufacturers were still installing 
mechanical controls through 2003 (81 FR 61947). Based on this 
background, it is likely the required means of achieving compliance 
with a speed limiter requirement would be to use the ECU to govern the 
speed of the vehicle rather than installing a mechanical means of doing 
so.
    The Fall 2021 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory 
Actions,\2\ published December 10, 2021, lists both speed limiter 
rules, from NHTSA (Regulation Identification Number 2127-AK92) and 
FMCSA (Regulation Identification Number 2126-AB63), as long-term 
actions. This notice informs the public that FMCSA intends to move 
forward with a separate motor carrier-based speed limiter rulemaking. 
FMCSA believes that placing the requirement on motor carriers will 
ensure compliance with the rule, and potentially avoid confusion on who 
is responsible. FMCSA believes the requirements can be met by the motor 
carriers but asks questions below to validate that approach. FMCSA will 
continue to consult with NHTSA during the development of this rule. If 
necessary, NHTSA will evaluate the need for additional regulatory 
actions concerning CMV manufacturer requirements to address issues 
raised during implementation that are beyond the scope of FMCSA's 
authority.
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    \2\ ``Fall 2021 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory 
Actions.'' Current Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory 
Actions, https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/eAgendaMain?operation=OPERATION_GET_AGENCY_RULE_LIST Accessed 
December 22, 2021.
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FMCSA Intention

    FMCSA intends to issue an SNPRM that would, if adopted, impose 
speed limitations on certain CMVs subject to the FMCSRs. The rulemaking 
would propose that motor carriers operating certain commercial motor 
vehicles, as defined in 49 CFR 390.5, in interstate commerce that are 
equipped with an ECU capable of setting speed limits be required to 
limit the CMV to a speed to be determined by the rulemaking and to 
maintain that limit for the service life of the vehicle. The agency is 
considering making the rule only applicable to CMVs manufactured after 
a certain date, such as 2003, because this is the population of 
vehicles for which ECUs were routinely installed and may potentially be 
used to govern the speed of the vehicles. FMCSA seeks data below, to 
determine if that approach should be revised in the forthcoming SNPRM. 
The agency is considering whether a retrofit requirement would be 
necessary and requests information below.
    FMCSA is not yet proposing regulatory language to amend the FMCSRs 
in this notice. FMCSA does, however, solicit comments on the questions 
listed in Section II. REQUEST FOR PUBLIC COMMENTS, which will assist in 
the development of the SNPRM.

II. Request for Public Comments

    FMCSA requests comments on the programming or adjustment of ECUs 
that could be made to impose speed limits on CMVs, including responses 
to the questions below.

General Questions: Setting and Maintaining ECUs

    1. What percentage of the CMV fleet currently uses speed limiting 
devices?
    2. If in use, at what maximum speed are the devices generally set?
    3. What skill sets or training are needed for motor carriers' 
maintenance personnel to adjust or program ECUs to set speed limits?
    4. What tools or equipment are needed to adjust or program ECUs?
    5. How long would adjustment or reprogramming of an ECU take?
    6. Where can the adjustment or reprogramming of an ECU be 
completed?
    6.a. Can the adjustment or reprogramming of an ECU be made on-site 
where the vehicle is ordinarily housed or garaged, or would it have to 
be completed at a dealership?
    7. Do responses to questions 3 through 6 change based on the model 
year of the power unit?
    8. Since publication of the NPRM, how has standard practice or 
technology changed as it relates to the ability to set speed limits 
using ECUs?
    9. Are there any challenges or burdens associated with FMCSA 
publishing a rule without NHTSA updating the FMVSS?
    10. Should FMCSA revisit using the 2003 model year as the baseline 
requirement for the rule?
    11. Should FMCSA consider a retrofit requirement in the rule and, 
if so, should it be based on model year or other criteria, and what 
would the cost of such a requirement be?
    12. Should FMCSA include Classes 3-6 (i.e., 10,001-26,001 lbs. 
GVWR) in the SNPRM?

Robin Hutcheson,
Deputy Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2022-09443 Filed 5-3-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P


