Inside This Issue...

A bill (HR 5913) introduced in the House on July 26, 2006 would amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to require an individual to provide proof that the individual is a citizen of the United States and to present a government-issued photo identification as a condition of casting a ballot in an election for federal office, and for other purposes.

On July 25, the House passed H Con Res 235, a concurrent resolution expressing the sense of the Congress that states should require candidates for driver's licenses to demonstrate an ability to exercise greatly increased caution when driving in the proximity of a potentially visually impaired individual under suspension of rules. Specifically, each state should require any candidate for a driver's license to demonstrate, as a condition of obtaining one, an ability to: (1) associate the use of the white cane and guide dog with visually impaired individuals; and (2) exercise greatly increased caution when driving in proximity to a potentially visually impaired individual. H. Con. Res. 235 is a sense of Congress Resolution and therefore does not have the force of law. It was referred to the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.

A bill (HR 5913) introduced in the House on July 26, 2006 would amend the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to require an individual to provide proof that the individual is a citizen of the United States and to present a government-issued photo identification as a condition of casting a ballot in an election for federal office, and for other purposes.

The U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has made a grant available for the purpose of providing administrative support and assistance to the Unified Carrier Registration Board in accomplishing its independent responsibilities under the Unified Carrier Registration Act of 2005. Eligible recipients are state agencies, local governments, and organizations representing government agencies or officials that use and train qualified officers and employees in coordination with state motor vehicle safety agencies. Estimated total program funding is $600,000. For more information, contact Bryan Price, FMCSA, at (412) 395-4816.

This interim rule announces that a commercial motor vehicle driver licensed in Canada or Mexico who holds a Free and Secure Trade (FAST) program card may use that card as an acceptable credential to transport placarded amounts of hazardous materials or any quantity of a material listed as a select agent or toxin in 42 CFR part 73 within the United States. The Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) requires that, as of Aug. 10, 2006, commercial motor vehicle drivers licensed in Canada or Mexico who transport hazardous materials in the United States must undergo a background check similar to the one required of U.S.-licensed operators with a hazardous materials endorsement (HME) on a commercial driver's license (CDL). The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has determined that the background check required to obtain a credential under the FAST program meets the background check requirements of SAFETEA-LU. TSA invites comment on any other existing background check programs that satisfy the requirements under SAFETEA-LU. This interim rule also removes pre-existing procedures for commercial drivers who transport explosives into the United States from Canada, and replaces it with a revised provision that applies to commercial drivers who transport explosives, as well as other hazardous materials, into and within the United States. This rule is effective on Aug. 10, 2006. Comments must be received by Oct. 6, 2006. You may submit comments, identified by TSA Docket No. TSA-2006-25541, to this rulemaking through the docket Web site at http://dms.dot.gov or the Federal eRulemaking portal at http://www.regulations.gov.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is republishing the Privacy Act system of records notice for the Automated Biometric Identification System in order to expand its scope and authority to serve all or most programs that collect biometrics as part of their mission. As previously published, this system stored biometric information as a result of encounters pursuant to the Immigration and Nationality Act. As now proposed, this system will store biometric and limited biographic data collected for all national security, law enforcement, immigration, intelligence, and other mission-related functions. Written comments identified by Docket No. DHS-2006-0036 must be submitted on or before Aug. 28, 2006. Submit using the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov. For further information, contact Steve Yonkers, US-VISIT Privacy Officer, 245 Murray Lane, SW., Washington, DC 20538, at (202) 298-5200.

Pursuant to the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), Public Law 109-59, Aug. 10, 2005, the Secretary of Transportation is establishing a technical advisory committee to collect and evaluate technical input as directed in section 1909(b)(8) of the SAFETEA-LU. Section 1909(b) of SAFETEA-LU also established the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission (Revenue Commission). The purpose of this notice is to invite interested parties, organizations, and individuals, to submit applications to be considered for representation on the technical advisory committee. Comments and/or applications for membership or nominations for membership, or a letter of intent to submit an application or nomination, on the technical advisory committee must be received on or before Aug. 23, 2006 (Docket No. OST-2006-25493). If a letter of intent is submitted, the application or nomination must be received on or before Sept. 1, 2006. For more information, contact Alla C. Shaw, Attorney-Advisor, Federal Highway Administration, Office of the Chief Counsel, at (202) 366-1042 or alla.shaw@fhwa.dot.gov .

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has published a final rule that adopts fees for Fiscal Year (FY) 2007 and until further notice, as authorized by 49 U.S.C. 30141, relating to the registration of importers and the importation of motor vehicles not certified as conforming to the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS). These fees are needed to maintain the registered importer (RI) program. NHTSA is decreasing the fees for the registration of a new RI from $830 to $677 and the annual fee for renewing an existing registration from $745 to $570. These fees include the costs of maintaining the RI program. The fee required to reimburse the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (Customs) for conformance bond processing costs will increase from $9.30 to $9.77 per bond. The agency is also increasing the fees assessed against the importer of each vehicle covered by the decision to grant import eligibility. The amendments established by this final rule will become effective on Oct. 1, 2006, the beginning of FY 2007. Petitions for reconsideration must be received by NHTSA no later than Sept. 18, 2006. Petitions for reconsideration of this final rule should refer to Docket No. NHTSA 2006-24128 and Notice 3, and be submitted to: Administrator, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590. It is requested, but not required, that 10 copies of the petition be submitted. The petition must be received no later than 45 days after publication of this final rule in the Federal Register.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has announced the Fifteenth Public Meeting of members of the Crash Injury Research and Engineering Network. CIREN is a collaborative effort to conduct research on crashes and injuries at eight Level 1 Trauma Centers linked by a computer network. Researchers can review data and share expertise, which could lead to a better understanding of crash injury mechanisms and the design of safer vehicles. Seven presentations on current research based on CIREN cases will be presented. The agenda will be posted to the CIREN Web site three weeks prior to the meeting. The meeting is scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Wed., Sept. 20, 2006. This meeting will be hosted by the Froedtert Hospital and the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) CIREN Center and held at the Radisson Hotel, 2300 N. Mayfair Road, Milwaukee, WI 53226. To register, contact Judy Citta at (414) 266-6435 or _WICIREN@MCW.edu (Underscore precedes WICIREN). Please provide name, affiliation, phone number and e-mail address. You must register by Sept. 5, 2006. Late registrations or those not registered are still welcome to attend the public meeting but you may not be able to attend the special demonstrations.

The AAA Foundation's deadline for pre-proposals is Friday, Aug. 18. The organization is interested in ideas for new projects in 2007. Where is traffic safety headed in the future? What pressing traffic safety issues do you think would benefit from AAA Foundation research or education? Of particular interest are pre-proposals related to aging and mobility this year. If you'd like to refresh yourself on what the Foundation is currently doing or has done recently, see the foundation's Web site.

 

Effective immediately, General Motors Acceptance Corporation’s legal name has changed to GMAC. As a result, GMAC should be substituted for General Motors Acceptance Corporation if General Motors Acceptance Corporation was listed previously as an acceptable owner or lien holder on a vehicle title. GMAC has asked that we share this notice with our motor vehicle administrators. Please review this notice in its entirety for acceptable action on AAMVA's Web site.

This information is being collected on behalf of Jim Davis, FMCSA. Please take a few minutes to respond to this brief two-question survey. If you have any questions regarding this survey, please contact Karen Morton at kmorton@aamva.org. Thank you for taking the time to complete the survey.

• AAMVA – Non-Resident CDL (Ends 8/11/2006)

The fall 2006 issue of MOVE magazine will include a feature article titled "Serving the Noncitizen." The article will address how motor vehicle agencies deal with noncitizens and how they can meet the needs of this group. If you or anyone you know has had experience with this topic, please contact the writer, Lauren DeAngelis, at ldeangelis@aamva.org. As always, AAMVA and the magazine staff greatly appreciate any help you can offer.

Starting with the fall 2006 issue, AAMVA members and magazine subscribers will notice a few changes to AAMVA's flagship publication, MOVE. In honor of the magazine's tenth anniversary, AAMVA is bringing you a more personal, modern, and environmentally-friendly MOVE. We'll be reaching out to our members for photos to go on future magazine covers (based on the theme for each issue), so brush up on your photography skills. Look for more information on AAMVA's new Web site in the next few weeks.