2020-22903. Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, Small Business in Transportation Coalition Petitions for Rulemaking; Transparency in Property Broker Transactions

AGENCY:

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT.

ACTION:

Notice; extension of comment period.

SUMMARY:

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration extends the comment period for its August 19, 2020, notice requesting comments on the petitions by the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) and the Small Business in Transportation Coalition (SBTC) for rulemaking to amend certain requirements for property brokers. The Agency believes it is appropriate to extend the October 19, 2020, deadline for public comments to provide interested parties additional time to submit their responses to the docket. Therefore, the Agency extends the deadline for the submission of comments until November 18, 2020.

DATES:

Comments must be submitted by November 18, 2020.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments identified by Federal Docket Management System Number FMCSA-2020-0150 by any of the following methods:

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: www.regulations.gov. See the Public Participation and Request for Comments section below for further information.
• Mail: Docket 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: Docket Operations, West Building, Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. E.T., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
• Fax: [phone].

Each submission must include the Agency name and the docket number for this notice. Note that DOT posts all comments received without change to www.regulations.gov,, including any personal information included in a comment. Please see the Privacy Act heading below.

Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or comments, go to www.regulations.gov at any time or visit Docket Operations, Room W12-140 on the ground level of the West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., ET, Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you, please call [phone] or [phone] before visiting Docket Operations.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Ms. La Tonya Mimms, FMCSA Driver and Carrier Operations Division; Office of Carrier, Driver and Vehicle Safety Standards; [phone]; [e-mail]. If you have questions on viewing or submitting material to the docket, contact Docket Operations, [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Public Participation and Request for Comments

A. Submitting Comments

If you submit a comment, please include the docket number FMCSA-2020-150, indicate the specific section of the notice to which each 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 http://www.regulations.gov,, put the docket number, FMCSA-2020-0150, in the keyword box, and click “Search.” When the new screen appears, click on the “Comment Now!” button and type your comment into the text box on the following screen. Choose whether you are submitting your comment as an individual or on behalf of a third party and then submit.

If you submit your comments by mail or hand delivery, submit them in an unbound format, no larger than 81/2 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. Extension of the comment period will ensure a full opportunity for public participation.

Confidential Business Information

Confidential Business Information (CBI) is commercial or financial information that is both customarily and actually treated as private by its owner. Under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA, 5 U.S.C. 552), CBI is exempt from public disclosure. If your comments responsive to the notice 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 notice, 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 FOIA, and they will not be placed in the public docket for this notice. Submissions containing CBI should be sent to Mr. Brian Dahlin, Chief, Regulatory Analysis Division, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590. Any comments FMCSA receives which are not specifically designated as CBI will be placed in the public docket for this notice.

B. Viewing Documents and Comments

To view comments, as well as any documents mentioned in this notice as being available in the docket, go to http://www.regulations.gov. Insert the docket number, FMCSA-2020-0150 in the keyword box, and click “Search.” Next, click the “Open Docket Folder” button and choose the document to review. If you do not have access to the internet, you may view the docket online by visiting Docket 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. ET, Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you, please call [phone] or [phone] before visiting Docket Operations.

C. Privacy Act

In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits comments from the public to better inform its rulemaking process. DOT posts these comments, without edits, 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.dot.gov/​privacy.

II. Background

On August 19, 2020 (85 FR 51145), FMCSA published a notice requesting public comments on the petitions for rulemaking to amend certain requirements for property brokers submitted by the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) and the Small Business in Transportation Coalition (SBTC). OOIDA requests that FMCSA require property brokers to provide an electronic copy of each transaction record automatically within 48 hours after the contractual service has been completed, and prohibit explicitly brokers from including any provision in their contracts that requires a motor carrier to waive its rights to access the transaction records. SBTC requests that FMCSA prohibit brokers from coercing or otherwise requiring parties to brokers' transactions to waive their right to review the record of the transaction as a condition for doing business. SBTC also requests that FMCSA adopt regulatory language indicating that brokers' contracts may not include a stipulation or clause exempting the broker from having to comply with the transparency requirement. The notice set October 19, 2020 as the deadline by which comments should be submitted to the public docket.

III. Extension of the Public Comment Period

On October 13, 2020, FMCSA published a notice in the Federal Register announcing that it will host a listening session pertaining to property carrier brokers on October 28, 2020. Specifically, the Agency indicated that it would like to hear from members of the public on their views on the regulation of property carrier brokers in general, and on three separate petitions for rulemaking from OOIDA, SBTC and the Transportation Intermediaries Association concerning specific property carrier broker regulation issues.

The Agency believes it is appropriate to extend the comment period to provide interested parties additional time to submit their responses to the notice seeking public comment on the OOIDA and SBTC petitions. Therefore, the Agency extends the deadline for the submission of comments until November 18, 2020.

James W. Deck,

Deputy Administrator.