Inspection, Repair, and Maintenance; Periodic Inspection of Commercial Motor Vehicles

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration

[FHWA Docket No. MC-89-10]

Inspection, Repair, and Maintenance; Periodic Inspection of

Commercial Motor Vehicles

AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice to motor carriers on State periodic inspection programs.

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SUMMARY: This notice adds the periodic inspection (PI) program of the

State of Connecticut to the list of programs which are comparable to,

or as effective as, the PI requirements contained in the Federal Motor

Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs). The FHWA has published a list of

such programs in the Federal Register, and this list has been revised

occasionally. Including Connecticut, there are 22 States, the Alabama

Liquefied Petroleum Gas Board, the District of Columbia, 10 Canadian

Provinces, and one Canadian Territory that have PI programs which the

FHWA has determined to be comparable to, or as effective as, the

Federal PI requirements.

DATES: This docket will remain open until further notice.

ADDRESSES: Submit written, signed comments to FHWA Docket No. MC-89-10,

Room 4232, HCC-10, Office of the Chief Counsel, Federal Highway

Administration, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590. All

comments received will be available for examination at the above

address from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., e.t., Monday through Friday,

except Federal holidays. Those desiring notification of receipt of

comments must include a self-addressed, stamped postcard.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Larry W. Minor, Office of Motor

Carrier Standards, HCS-10, (202) 366-4009; or Mr. Charles Medalen,

Office of the Chief Counsel, HCC-20, (202) 366-1354, Federal Highway

Administration, 400 Seventh Street SW., Washington, DC 20590. Office

hours are from 7:45 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., e.t., Monday through Friday,

except Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 210 of the Motor Carrier Safety Act

of 1984 (49 U.S.C. 31142) (the Act) requires the Secretary of

Transportation to prescribe standards for annual or more frequent

inspection of commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) unless the Secretary

finds that another inspection system is as effective as an annual or

more frequent inspection. On December 7, 1988, in response to the Act,

the FHWA published a final rule amending part 396 of the Federal Motor

Carrier Safety Regulations, entitled Inspection, Repair, and

Maintenance (53 FR 49402). That final rule requires that CMVs operating

in interstate commerce be inspected at least once a year. The

inspection is to be based on Federal inspection standards, or a State

inspection program determined by the FHWA to be comparable to, or as

effective as, the Federal standards. Accordingly, if the FHWA

determines that a State's PI program is comparable to, or as effective

as, the requirements of part 396, then a motor carrier must ensure that

any of its CMVs which are required by that State to be inspected

through the State's inspection program are so inspected. If a State

does not have such a program, the motor carrier is responsible for

ensuring that its CMVs are inspected using one of the alternatives

included in the final rule.

On March 16, 1989, the FHWA published a notice in the Federal

Register which requested States and other interested parties to

identify and provide information on the CMV inspection programs in

their States (54 FR 11020). Upon review of the information submitted,

the FHWA published a list of State inspection programs which were

determined to be comparable to the Federal PI requirements (54 FR

50726, December 8, 1989). This initial list included 15 States and the

District of Columbia. The list was revised on September 23, 1991, to

include the inspection programs of the Alabama Liquefied Petroleum Gas

(LPG) Board, California, Hawaii, Louisiana, Minnesota, all of the

[[Page 56184]]

Canadian Provinces, and the Yukon Territory (56 FR 47983). On November

27, 1992, the list was revised to include the Wisconsin bus inspection

program (57 FR 56400). The list was most recently revised on April 14,

1994, to include the Texas CMV inspection program (59 FR 17829).

Determination: State of Connecticut Bus Inspection Program

On July 1, 1995, the State of Connecticut (the State) implemented a

new inspection program for buses. The State requires buses with a

seating capacity of more than 16 passengers (including the driver) or a

gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of 11,794 kilograms (kg) (26,001

pounds) or more to be inspected every 6 months. State officials conduct

the inspections during the months of December and January while

inspections by authorized or licensed inspection stations are performed

during the months of June and July. The State has adopted Appendix G to

Subchapter B of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, as part of its

inspection criteria. Certain vehicle components and systems specific to

buses (e.g., interior lights, passenger seat anchors and upholstery,

emergency exits, etc.) are also covered under the State's inspection

program.

The FHWA has determined that the Connecticut bus inspection program

in effect as of July 1, 1995, is comparable to or as effective as the

Federal PI requirements. Therefore, motor carriers operating buses

which are subject to the State's program and which are subject to the

FMCSRs must use the State's program to satisfy the Federal PI

requirements. Motor carriers operating buses that fall below the

passenger-carrying and/or weight threshold for the Connecticut program,

but which meet the FHWA's definition of a CMV may continue to use

alternative means to satisfy the Federal PI requirements (e.g., self-

inspection, the use of a commercial garage or similar facility, or

passage of a roadside inspection that meets the requirements of 49 CFR

396.17).

It should be noted that in accepting the State's PI program, the

FHWA also accepts the recordkeeping requirements associated with the

inspection program. Both the State officials and the authorized

inspection facilities issue decals as well as copies of the inspection

report. The State inspection decal is considered by the FHWA as

satisfying the Federal requirement for proof of inspection on the CMV.

The FHWA also notes that the inspection decals issued by the State

government inspectors differ from the decals issued by the licensed

inspection facilities. Both decals, however, provide sufficient

information for State officials in other jurisdictions to make

inquiries about the validity of the decal and request copies of the

inspection reports.

States With Equivalent Periodic Inspection Programs

The following is a complete list of States with inspection programs

which the FHWA has determined are comparable to, or as effective as,

the Federal PI requirements.

Alabama (LPG Board)

Arkansas

California

Connecticut

District of Columbia

Hawaii

Illinois

Louisiana

Maine

Maryland

Michigan

Minnesota

New Hampshire

New Jersey

New York

Oklahoma

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

Texas

Utah

Vermont

Virginia

West Virginia

Wisconsin

In addition to the States listed above, the FHWA has determined

that the inspection programs of the 10 Canadian Provinces and the Yukon

Territory are comparable to, or as effective as, the Federal PI

requirements. All other States either have no PI programs for CMVs or

their PI programs have not been determined by the FHWA to be comparable

to, or as effective as, the Federal PI requirements. Should any of

these States wish to establish a program or modify their programs in

order to make them comparable to the Federal requirements, the State

should contact the appropriate FHWA regional office listed in 49 CFR

part 390.

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 31132, 31136, 31142, 31502, and 31504; 49

CFR 1.48.

Issued on: October 27, 1995.

Rodney E. Slater,

Federal Highway Administrator.

[FR Doc. 95-27503 Filed 11-6-95; 8:45 am]

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