Reports, Forms and Recordkeeping Requirements; Agency Information Collection Activity Under OMB Review

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Office of the Secretary

Reports, Forms and Recordkeeping Requirements; Agency Information

Collection Activity Under OMB Review

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, DOT.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501

et seq.), this notice announces that the Information Collection Request

(ICR) abstracted below has been forwarded to the Office of Management

and Budget (OMB) for three year extension. The ICR describes the nature

of the information collection and its expected burden.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before September 23, 1998.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION OR COPY OF COLLECTION OF INFORMATION CONTACT:

Michael Robinson, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 400

Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590; (202) 366-9456.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)

Title: Consolidated Justification of Owner's Manual Requirements

for Motor Vehicles and Motor Vehicle Equipment.

OMB No.: 2127-0541.

Type of Request: Extension of a currently approved collection.

Affected Public: Individuals, Households, Business, other-for-

profit, Not-for-profit, Farms, Federal Government and State, Local or

Tribal Government.

Abstract: 49 U.S.C. 30117 authorizes the Secretary to require that

manufacturers provide technical information, as for example information

directed for publication in a vehicle owner's manual, related to the

performance and safety specified in the Federal motor vehicle safety

standards for the purposes of educating the consumer and providing

safeguards against improper use. Using this authority, the agency

issued the following FMVSS and regulations, specifying that certain

safety precautions regarding items of motor vehicle equipment appear in

the owner's manual to aid the agency in achieving many of its safety

goals. FMVSS No. 108--Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated

Equipment. This standard requires that certain lamps and reflective

devices with certain performance levels be installed on motor vehicles

to assure that the roadway is properly illuminated, that vehicles can

be readily seen, and the signals can be transmitted to other drivers

sharing the road, during day, night and inclement weather. In this

particular case, a new manner of headlamp aiming is being allowed

whereby owners as well as traditional vehicle service personnel could

aim their vehicle's headlamps using equipment that is an integral part

of the headlamp system. Since the specific manner in which aim is to be

performed is not regulated (only the performance of the devices is),

aiming devices manufactured or installed by different vehicle and

headlamp manufacturers may work in significantly different ways. As a

consequence, instructions for proper use must be part of the vehicle as

a label, or optionally, in the vehicle owner's manual. Part 575 section

103--Camper Loading. This standard requires that manufacturers of

slide-in campers designed to fit into the cargo bed of pickup trucks

affix a label to each camper that contains information relating to

certification, identification and proper loading, and to provide more

detailed loading information in the

[[Page 45104]]

owner's manual of the truck. FMVSS No. 205--Glazing Materials. This

standard specifies requirement for all glazing material used in

windshields, windows, and interior partitions of motor vehicles. Its

purpose is to reduce the likelihood of lacerations and to minimize the

possibility of occupants penetrating the windshield in collision. More

detailed information regarding the care and maintenance of such glazing

items, as the glass-plastic windshield is required to be placed in the

owner's manual. FMVSS No. 208--Occupant Crash Protection. This standard

specifies requirements for both active and passive occupant crash

protection systems for passenger cars, multipurpose passenger vehicles,

trucks and small buses. Certain safety features, such as air bags, or

the care and maintenance of air bag systems, are required to be

explained to the owner by means of the owner's manual. For example, the

owner's manual must describe the vehicle's air bag system and provide

precautionary information about the proper positioning of the

occupants, including children. The owner's manual must also warn that

no objects, such as shotguns carried in police cars, should be placed

over or near the air bag covers. FMVSS No. 210--Seat Belt Assembly

Anchorages. This standard specifies requirements for seat belt assembly

anchorages to ensure effective occupant restraint and to reduce the

likelihood of failure in collisions. Manufacturers of vehicles that are

not equipped with lap belt assemblies at front outboard passenger

seating positions suitable for securing child restraints are required

to include information in the owner's manual on the correct location

and placement of seat belt anchorages which will provide this

protection. Part 575--Section 105--Utility Vehicles. This regulation

requires manufacturers of utility vehicles to alert drivers that the

particular handling maneuvering characteristics of utility vehicles

require special driving practices when these vehicles are operated on

paved roads. A statement is provided in the regulation which

manufacturers shall include, in its entirety or equivalent form, in the

owner's manual.

Estimated Annual Burden: 1,371 hours.

Address

Send comments to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs,

Office of Management and Budget, 725-17th Street, NW., Washington, DC

20503, Attention NHTSA Desk Officer. Comments are invited on: whether

the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper

performance of the functions of the Department, including whether the

information will have practical utility; the accuracy of the

Department's estimate of the burden of the proposed information

collection; ways to enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the

information to be collected; and ways to minimize the burden of the

collection of information on respondents, including the use of

automated collection techniques or other forms of information

technology.

A comment to OMB is best assured of having its full effect if OMB

receives it within 30 days of publication.

Issued in Washington, DC, on August 14,1998.

Vanester M. Williams,

Clearance Officer, United States Department of Transportation.

[FR Doc. 98-22638 Filed 8-21-98; 8:45 am]

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