Inside This Issue...

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) announces public listening sessions to obtain feedback from interested parties on the agency’s Jan. 18, 2007 notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to establish new performance standards for Electronic On-Board Recorders (EOBRs), require the use of these devices by certain motor carriers, and to provide incentives for the voluntary use of such devices by the industry. The listening sessions will provide all interested parties with an opportunity to share their views on the agency’s EOBR rulemaking. All oral comments will be transcribed and placed in the public docket identified at the beginning of this notice. The listening sessions will be held on March 27, 2007, from 9:30 am to 4:30 pm, and on April 2, 2007, from 9:30 am to 4:30 pm. Individuals who wish to make a formal presentation at either of the meetings should contact Deborah Freund at (202) 366-4009 or deborah.freund@dot.gov no later than 5 pm ET on March 23, 2007, for the March 27 meeting, and no later than 5 pm ET on March 29 for the April 2 meeting. The March 27, 2007, meeting will be held at the Crowne Plaza West Hotel, 2532 West Peoria Avenue, Phoenix, Arizona 85029. The April 2, 2007, meeting will be held at the Harold Washington Library, 400 South State Street, Chicago, Illinois 60605-1203. You may also submit comments to the DOT Docket Management System (DMS), referencing Docket Number FMCSA-2004-18940 at http://dms.dot.gov or http://www.regulations.gov.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) intends to seek OMB approval for an information collection titled "Criminal Penalty Safe Harbor Provision." Each person seeking safe harbor protection from criminal penalties under 49 U.S.C. 30170 related to an improper report or failure to report is required to submit the following information to NHTSA: (1) A signed and dated document that identifies (a) each previous improper report and each failure to report as required under 49 U.S.C. 30166, including a regulation, requirement, request or order issued thereunder, for which protection is sought and (b) the specific predicate under which the improper or omitted report should have been provided; and (2) the complete and correct information that was required to be submitted but was improperly submitted or was not previously submitted, including relevant documents that were not previously submitted to NHTSA or, if the person cannot do so, provide a detailed description of that information and/or the content of those documents and the reason why the individual cannot provide them to NHTSA. Comments must be submitted on or before May 14, 2007. Comments must refer to docket number NHTSA-2001-9779; Notice 3. Documents may be filed electronically by logging onto the Docket Management System Web site at http://dms.dot.gov.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration(FMCSA) announces a meeting and public listening session of the agency’s Medical Review Board (MRB). The MRB members will continue deliberations about current FMCSA medical standards, as well as consider recommendations for new science-based standards and guidelines to ensure that the physical condition of drivers is adequate to enable them to safely operate commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) in interstate commerce. In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), the MRB meeting is open to the public. The MRB meeting will be held from 9 am to 3:30 pm on April 25, 2007. The public may offer oral comments and ask questions of the MRB members relative to the medical and scientific issues discussed from 1:30 pm to 3:30 pm. The meeting will take place at the Crown Plaza Hotel, 1375 South Broadway, Lexington, KY 40504-2703. You may submit comments identified by DOT Docket Management System (DMS) Docket Number FMCSA-2007-27186 using at http://dmses.dot.gov/submit or http://www.regulations.gov.

On March 16, the U.S. Coast Guard requested comments on draft specifications for biometric card readers and smart cards in order to jumpstart the Transportation Worker Identification Card (TWIC) program. TWIC requires the collection of biographical and biometric information for transportation workers. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) conducts security threat assessments using the data, and ID cards are only issued to workers who pass the background checks. One of the recommended specifications does not require cardholders’ fingerprint images to be encrypted in the smart card, but would instead allow the cardholders’ templates to be read when a contactless reader energizes the cards. A second recommended specification would require the encryption of the cardholders’ fingerprint images. Information on the cards could only be accessed when the magnetic stripe is read and authorized by a reader. The Coast Guard is looking for general feedback on both recommended specifications.

According to the National Association of Public Health Statistics and Information Systems (NAPHSIS), the database used to verify birth certificates and considered key to the secure driver's licenses manadated by the Real ID Act will not be ready by May 11, 2008, but would have been ready if granted $3 million earlier. By May 11, 2008, states are required to comply with minimum security standards for issuing driver’s licenses or identification cards. The birth certificate database, known as the Electronic Verification of Vital Events (EVVE), could be ready by the extended Real ID deadline of December 2009.

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved a measure on March 1 that would extend the Single State Registration System (SSRS) through the end of 2007. The committee’s correction bill also alters a number of earmarked projects that were part of the 2005 highway reauthorization. SSRS was repealed Jan. 1, 2007 as part of the 2005 bill, but its replacement, the Unified Carrier Registration (UCR), is not yet ready for implementation. The measure now moves to the full House for consideration. We will continue to monitor this and will share any updates as soon as we receive them.

Take your training to a higher level! Sign up today for a course with AAMVA University. Following are upcoming courses to be held in Arlington, Virginia. Or, AAMVA University can personalize training for your jurisdictional facility. Visit www.aamva-u.org for details or to register online!

• VDEC Course: May 7-8; cut off April 20
• VDEC Instructor Course: June 4-7; cut-off May 18 (prerequisite: VDEC Course)
• Working with Customers Instructor Course: April 30-May 3; cut-off April 13
• FDR Instructor Certification Course: May 21-25; cut-off May 4 (prerequisite: FDR Level II Course)

As part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) invites the general public and other federal agencies to comment on an information collection requirement concerning the Application—Alternative Inspection Services/FAST Commercial Driver Application. This request for comment is being made pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13; 44 U.S.C. 3505(c)(2)). Written comments should be received on or before May 14, 2007, to be assured of consideration. Direct all written comments to Bureau of Customs and Border Protection, Information Services Group, Attn.: Tracey Denning, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Room 3.2.C, Washington, DC 20229.

Truck carriers participating in the ACE Truck Manifest Test and electing to use third parties to submit manifest information to the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) via the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) Secure Data Portal are no longer required to have ACE portal accounts. Thus, truck carriers without ACE portal accounts, while participating in the test of the ACE truck manifest system, may now use third parties (such as Customs brokers or other truck carriers) with ACE portal accounts to electronically transmit truck manifest information, via the ACE portal, on their behalf. Truck carriers participating in the ACE Truck Manifest Test without ACE portal accounts may use third parties with ACE portal accounts to electronically transmit truck manifest information via the ACE portal, on their behalf, beginning March 15, 2007.

The redesigned website for the Model Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria (MMUCC) voluntary crash data guidelines has gone online and offers traffic safety professionals new resources and information. The site gives visitors instant access to the MMUCC data elements, web-based training and background information. First developed in 1998 by a team of traffic records experts, MMUCC is a set of voluntary guidelines for states to collect more accurate, consistent crash data that are more effective for identifying traffic safety problems, establishing goals and performance measures, and monitoring the progress of problems. A panel of experts has updated the MMUCC data elements every five years since they were established, and the next updated version will be released in 2008. In the months leading up to the release of the updated MMUCC guidelines, an expert panel will hold a series of meetings to develop the new data set. In addition to NHTSA and GHSA, other groups that are helping to update MMUCC include the Federal Highway Administration, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and USDOT’s Research and Innovative Technology Administration.  The MMUCC team encourages states that are updating their crash reporting forms to include the MMUCC data elements and recommends that anyone who shares a stake in highway safety to bookmark www.mmucc.us for an invaluable traffic safety resource.