[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 144 (Monday, July 28, 1997)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 40317-40318]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-19608]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
36 CFR Part 4
RIN 1024-AC63
Safety Belt Use Within the National Park System
AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: The National Park Service (NPS) is proposing to amend its
regulations concerning safety belt use within units of the NPS.
Currently, the NPS has regulations requiring seat belt use by the
operator and each front seat passenger. On April 16, 1997, President
Clinton signed Executive Order 13043 directing the NPS to promulgate
regulations that require all occupants of motor vehicles to use safety
belts or child restraint devices at all times within units of the NPS
when the vehicle is in motion.
DATES: Written comments will be accepted until September 26, 1997.
ADDRESSES: Comments should be addressed to: Ranger Activities Division,
Suite 7408, National Park Service, 1849 C Street, NW, Washington, D.C.
20240.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dennis Burnett, Ranger Activities
Division, National Park Service, at (202) 208-4874.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The NPS administers 375 areas throughout the country under the
broad statutory mandates to promote and regulate their use; to conserve
the scenery, the natural and cultural objects and the wildlife therein;
and to provide for their enjoyment in such manner as will leave them
unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations. Although the nearly
300 million annual visitors to the National Park System use a variety
of access methods, the vast majority rely on motor vehicles and
roadways to reach park areas and to
[[Page 40318]]
circulate within them. Consequently, the NPS has major responsibilities
and program involvement in the areas of road construction and
maintenance, traffic safety and traffic law enforcement.
The NPS currently administers over 8,000 miles of roads within the
National Park System that are open to the public. These 8,000 miles
compare in magnitude to the State of Arizona's state road system,
except that they are scattered throughout the United States and its
territories. There is great variety in the nature and extent of park
roads, ranging from very short lengths of unpaved secondary roadways,
to well-developed road systems complete with spur roads, parking areas
and overlooks, to parkways running for hundreds of miles through
several States, to parkways used primarily as commuter routes in the
Washington, DC area. In addition, many park areas contain State and/or
county highways and roads over which the NPS may exercise varying
degrees of jurisdiction.
On December 13, 1989, the NPS promulgated a final rule (36 CFR
4.15) concerning the use of safety belts (54 FR 51199). That rule
requires the operator of a motor vehicle and each front seat passenger
to wear a safety belt at all times when the vehicle is in motion,
unless (1) the vehicle was not originally equipped by the manufacturer
with a safety belt or (2) the operator or front seat passenger has a
medical condition that prevents the use of a safety belt. The
regulation is applicable in park areas located within States that do
not have a mandatory seatbelt law in effect and can be enforced only
when another traffic violation had occurred. The regulation is
implemented primarily through signing, text in brochures and incidental
public contact.
Executive Order 13043, signed by President Clinton on April 16,
1997 (62 FR 19217, April 18, 1997), directed the NPS to propose rules
and take other appropriate measures within their existing programs to
further the use of safety belts in the national parks. This includes,
but is not limited to, conducting education, awareness and other
appropriate programs about the importance of wearing safety belts and
the consequences of not wearing them. In addition, the NPS is directed
to initiate rulemaking to consider regulatory changes with respect to
enhanced safety belt use requirements and standard (primary)
enforcement of such requirements in park areas and to widely publicize
and actively enforce such regulations. Under the proposed rule, each
operator and passenger occupying any seating position of a motor
vehicle in a park area, whose seat is equipped with a seat belt or
child restraint system, shall have the seat belt or child restraint
system properly fastened at all times when the vehicle is in motion.
Primary enforcement means that a motor vehicle may be stopped when the
operator or any occupant is not wearing their seatbelt. The proposed
rule would not require another traffic violation to occur before the
vehicle may be stopped. The seatbelt regulation in this rulemaking is
intended to apply in all NPS areas.
The President, the Department of the Interior and the NPS strongly
support the use of appropriate restraint systems by all motor vehicle
occupants and view the potential reduction in personal injuries and
fatalities that might result from the promulgation of this regulation
as highly desirable. The benefits of wearing seatbelts have been
documented extensively.
Public Participation
It is the policy of the Department of the Interior, whenever
practicable, to afford the public an opportunity to participate in the
rulemaking process. Accordingly, interested persons may submit written
comments regarding this proposed rule to the address noted at the
beginning of this rulemaking. The NPS will review all comments and
consider making changes to the rule based upon analysis of the
comments.
Drafting Information
The primary author of this rule is Dennis Burnett, Ranger
Activities Division, National Park Service, Washington, D.C. 20240.
Paperwork Reduction Act
This rulemaking does not contain collections of information
requiring approval by the Office of Management and Budget under the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.
Compliance With Other Laws
This rule was not subject to Office of Management and Budget review
under Executive Order 12866. The Department of the Interior determined
that this document will not have a significant economic effect on a
substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory Flexibility
Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et. seq.). The economic effects of this rulemaking
are negligible.
NPS has determined and certifies pursuant to the Unfunded Mandates
Reform Act, 2 U.S.C. 1502 et seq., that this rule will not impose a
cost of $100 million or more in any given year on local, State or
tribal governments or private entities.
The NPS has determined that this rulemaking will not have a
significant effect on the quality of the human environment, health and
safety because it is not expected to:
(a) Increase public use to the extent of compromising the nature
and character of the area or causing physical damage to it;
(b) introduce incompatible uses which compromise the nature and
characteristics of the area or cause physical damage to it;
(c) conflict with adjacent ownership or land uses; or
(d) cause a nuisance to adjacent owners or occupants.
Based on this determination, this rulemaking is categorically
excluded from the procedural requirements of the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) by Departmental guidelines in 516 DM 6 (49 FR 21438).
As such, neither an Environmental Assessment nor an Environmental
Impact Statement has been prepared.
List of Subjects in 36 CFR Part 4
National parks, Traffic regulations.
In consideration of the foregoing, 36 CFR Chapter I is proposed to
be amended as follows:
PART 4--VEHICLES AND TRAFFIC SAFETY
1. The authority citation for Part 4 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1, 3, 9a, 462(k).
2. Section 4.15 is revised to read as follows:
Sec. 4.15 Safety belts.
(a) Each operator and passenger occupying any seating position of a
motor vehicle in a park area will have the safety belt or child
restraint system properly fastened at all times when the vehicle is in
motion. The safety belt and child restraint system will conform to
applicable United States Department of Transportation standards.
(b) This section does not apply to an occupant in a seat that was
not originally equipped by the manufacturer with a safety belt nor does
it apply to anyone with a medical condition that prevents restraint by
a safety belt or other occupant restraining device.
Dated: July 1, 1997.
Joseph E. Doddridge,
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks.
[FR Doc. 97-19608 Filed 7-25-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-70-P
