Motor Carrier Financial and Operating Information; Requests for
Exemptions From Public Release of Reports
Federal Register Notice
June 14, 2000
Volume 65, Number 115
AGENCY: Bureau of Transportation Statistics, DOT.
ACTION: Notice.
SUMMARY: Class I and Class II motor carriers of property and household
goods are required to file annual and quarterly reports with the Bureau
of Transportation Statistics (BTS). As provided by statute, carriers
may request that their reports be withheld from public release. BTS has
received three requests covering the 1999 annual report, which also
request an exemption from public release of the 2000 quarterly reports.
BTS invites comments on these requests.
DATES: Comments must be submitted by July 14, 2000.
ADDRESSES: Please direct comments to the Docket Clerk, Docket No. BTS-
00-7489, Department of Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Room
PL-401, Washington, DC 20590, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through
Friday, except federal holidays.
Comments should identify the docket number and be submitted in
duplicate to the address listed above. Commenters wishing the
Department to acknowledge receipt of their comments must submit with
those comments a self-addressed stamped postcard on which the following
statement is made: Comments on Docket BTS-00-7489. The Docket Clerk
will date stamp the postcard and mail it back to the commenter.
If you wish to file comments using the Internet, you may use the US
DOT Dockets Management System website at
http://dms.dot.gov. Please
follow the instructions online for more information.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David Mednick, K-1, Bureau of
Transportation Statistics, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC
20590; (202) 366-8871; fax: (202) 366-3640; e-mail:
david.mednick@bts.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under 49 U.S.C. 14123 and its implementing
regulations at 49 CFR 1420, BTS collects financial and operating
information from for-hire motor carriers of property and household
goods. The data are collected on annual Form M, filed by Class I and
Class II carriers, and quarterly Form QFR, filed only by Class I
carriers. The data are used by the Department of Transportation, other
federal agencies, motor carriers, shippers, industry analysts, labor
unions, segments of the insurance industry, investment analysts, and
the consultants and data vendors that support these users. Among the
uses of the data are: (1) Developing the U.S. national accounts and
preparing the quarterly estimates of the Gross Domestic Product, which
help us better understand the U.S. economy and the motor carrier
industry's role in it; (2) measuring the performance of the for-hire
motor carrier industry and segments within it; (3) monitoring carrier
safety; (4) benchmarking carrier performance; and (5) analyzing motor
carrier safety and productivity.
Generally, all data are made publicly available. A carrier can,
however, request that its report be withheld from public release, as
provided for by statute, 49 U.S.C. 14123(c)(2), and its implementing
regulations, 49 CFR 1420.9. BTS will grant a request upon a proper
showing that the carrier is not a publicly held corporation or that the
carrier is not subject to financial reporting requirements of the
Securities and Exchange Commission, and that the exemption is necessary
to avoid competitive harm and to avoid the disclosure of information
that qualifies as trade secret or privileged or confidential
information under 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4).
The carrier must submit a written request containing supporting
information. BTS must receive the request by the report's due date,
unless it is postmarked by the due date or there are extenuating
circumstances. Requests covering the quarterly reports must be received
by the due date of the annual report that relates to the prior year. In
its request, a carrier may want or need to present information that is
itself confidential. In this case, the carrier must clearly identify
the information contained in its submittal that it believes should be
protected from public release and provide information supporting its
claim of confidential treatment. If BTS agrees, it will withhold the
identified information.
In accordance with our regulations, after each due date of each
annual report BTS then publishes a notice, such as this one, in the
Federal Register requesting comments on any requests it has received.
After considering the requests and comments, BTS will decide to grant
or deny each request no later than 90 days after the request's due
date. While a decision is pending, BTS will not publicly release the
report except as allowed under 49 CFR 1420.10(c).
Request for Comments
BTS invites comments on several carrier requests for exemption from
public release. These requests cover the 1999 annual report and the
2000 quarterly reports. Comments should be made within the context of
the governing regulations at 49 CFR 1420.9, which were published in the
Federal Register on March 23, 1999 (64 FR 13916). We are inviting your
comments on requests from the following carriers:
H&R Transport, Inc. (MC 148000)
PGT Trucking, Inc. (MC 155377)
Reliable Carriers, Inc. (MC 172994)
If you wish to read their exemption requests and the comments
submitted in response to this Notice, use the DOT Dockets Management
System. This is located at the Department of Transportation, 400
Seventh Street, SW., Room PL-401, Washington, DC 20590, and is open
from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, except federal
holidays. Internet users can access the Dockets Management System at
http://dms.dot.gov. Please follow the instructions online for more
information and help.
You must also use to Dockets Management System if you wish to
comment on one or more exemption requests. Please follow the
instructions listed above under ADDRESSES.
Ashish Sen,
Director.
[FR Doc. 00-14990 Filed 6-13-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-FE-P
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