Transportation of Household Goods; Consumer Protection Regulations

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration

49 CFR Parts 375 and 377

[Docket No. FHWA-97-2979]

RIN 2125-AE30

Transportation of Household Goods; Consumer Protection

Regulations

AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DOT.

ACTION: Extension and reopening of comment period.

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SUMMARY: The FHWA is extending and reopening this rulemaking's comment

period for an additional 60 day period of time. This is in response to

one petition received by the FHWA requesting an extension of the

comment period closing date. The petitioner based her request upon her

belief that the FHWA provided too brief an opportunity to enable

individual consumers, as opposed to industry lobbyists, to become aware

of the rulemaking, to digest the NPRM's contents and to respond to the

opportunity with comments. This NPRM is required, in part, by the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, because most of the information

collection burdens formerly imposed by the Interstate Commerce

Commission have never received Office of Management and Budget (OMB)

approval.

DATES: Comments to the NPRM should be received no later than October

13, 1998. The FHWA will consider late comments to the extent

practicable.

ADDRESSES: Signed, written comments should refer to the docket number

appearing at the top of this document and must be submitted to the

Docket Clerk, U.S. DOT Dockets, Room PL-401, 400 Seventh Street, SW.,

Washington, DC 20590-0001. All comments received will be available for

examination at the above address between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., e.t.,

Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. Those desiring

notification of receipt of comments must include a self-addressed,

stamped envelope or postcard.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Thomas Vining, Chief, Licensing

and Insurance Division (HIA-30), Office of Motor Carrier Information

Analysis, (202) 358-7055, Mr. Michael Falk, Motor Carrier Law Division,

Office of the Chief Counsel (HCC-20), (202) 366-1384, or Mr. David

Miller, Office of Motor Carrier Research and Standards (HCS-10), (202)

366-1790, Federal Highway Administration, Department of Transportation,

400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, D.C. 20590.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Electronic Access

Internet users may access all comments received by the U.S. DOT

Dockets, Room PL-401, by using the universal resource locator (URL):

http://dms.dot.gov. It is available 24 hours each day, 365 days each

year. Please follow the instructions on-line for more information and

help.

You may download an electronic copy of this document using a

personal computer, modem, and suitable communications software from the

Federal Register Electronic Bulletin Board Service at (202) 512-1661.

Internet users may reach the Federal Register's home page at URL:

http://www.nara.gov/fedreg and at the Government Printing Office's

databases at URL:http://www.access.gpo.gov/su__docs.

Background

On May 15, 1998, (63 FR 27126), the FHWA published an NPRM

requesting comments to a proposed rule. The proposed rule would

regulate motor carriers transporting household goods by requiring these

motor carriers to provide certain services to protect consumers.

Many customers of household goods carriers, particularly those

customers who move at their own expense and are infrequent users of

transportation services, are unsophisticated and less able to protect

themselves than commercial shippers. In order to ensure these consumers

are protected, the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) had prescribed

regulations governing the transportation of household goods. These

regulations were codified at 49 CFR part 1056.

Following the termination of the ICC, the responsibility for the

household goods regulations was delegated to the Secretary of

Transportation pursuant to the ICCTA, Pub. L. 104-88, 109 Stat. 803,

effective January 1, 1996. The Surface Transportation Board (STB) and

the FHWA transferred these regulations from 49 CFR chapter X, Part 1056

to 49 CFR chapter III, Part 375 on October 21, 1996. See 61 FR 54706.

On December 27, 1996 (61 FR 68162), the Secretary of Transportation

delegated to the Federal Highway Administrator the responsibilities to

carry out certain functions and exercise the authority vested in the

Secretary under the ICCTA, including 49 U.S.C. 14104, Household goods

carrier operations.

Enactment of the ICCTA requires deletion from the regulations of

all references to the former ICC and repealed sections of the

Interstate Commerce Act, revision of the regulations to codify the

transfer to the FHWA of oversight responsibilities for the household

goods moving industry, and other editorial corrections.

The FHWA also must seek and obtain OMB approval for the information

the FHWA proposes motor carriers and individual shippers must collect,

disseminate, and disclose in 49 CFR part 375. ``Controlling Paperwork

Burdens on the Public,'' 5 CFR part 1320, implements the Paperwork

Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13 (May 22, 1995). Part 1320

requires the FHWA to obtain OMB approval before the FHWA requires the

public to collect, disseminate, and disclose the information proposed

in 49 CFR part 375. The NPRM's 60-day comment period is serving as the

60-day period required under 5 CFR 1320.8(d), 1320.11, and 1320.12.

On July 3, 1998, the FHWA received a petition from Barbara R.

Kueppers, Esquire, to extend the comment period for an additional 60-

day period. She stated the original 60-day period allotted too brief an

opportunity ``to enable individual consumers, as opposed to industry

lobbyists, to be aware of the rulemaking, to digest the contents of the

proposed rules and to respond with meaningful comments.''

For the reason in the above paragraph, the FHWA finds good cause to

extend this NPRM comment period closing date until October 13, 1998, to

provide individual consumers and others additional time to digest the

NPRM's contents and to respond with salient comments.

[[Page 43129]]

List of Subjects in 49 CFR Part 375

Advertising, Arbitration, Consumer protection, Freight, Highways

and roads, Insurance, Motor carriers, Moving of household goods,

Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

List of Subjects in 49 CFR Part 377

Credit, Freight forwarders, Highways and roads, Motor carriers.

Authority: 23 U.S.C. 315 and 49 CFR 1.48.

Issued on: August 5, 1998.

Kenneth R. Wykle,

Federal Highway Administrator.

[FR Doc. 98-21610 Filed 8-11-98; 8:45 am]

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