Hours of Service (HOS) of Drivers; American Pyrotechnics Association (APA); Request To Include an Additional Member Company to Current APA HOS Exemptions

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Choosing an item from suggestions will bring you directly to the content. You may be interested in this older document that published on 06/26/2025 with action 'Notice of final disposition; grant of application for exemptions.' Hours of Service (HOS) of Drivers; American Pyrotechnics Association (APA); Request To Include an Additional Member Company to Current APA HOS Exemptions Thank you for taking the time to create a comment. Your input is important. Once you have filled in the required fields below you can preview and/or submit your comment to the Transportation Department for review. All comments are considered public and will be posted online once the Transportation Department has reviewed them. Comments must be received on or before July 20, 2026. Table of Contents Enhanced Content - Table of Contents This table of contents is a navigational tool, processed from the headings within the legal text of Federal Register documents. This repetition of headings to form internal navigation links has no substantive legal effect. This PDF is FR Doc. 2026-12312 as it appeared on Public Inspection on 06/17/2026 at 8:45 am. It was viewed 4 times while on Public Inspection. If you are using public inspection listings for legal research, you should verify the contents of the documents against a final, official edition of the Federal Register. Only official editions of the Federal Register provide legal notice of publication to the public and judicial notice to the courts under 44 U.S.C. 1503 & 1507. Learn more here. Published Document: 2026-12312 (91 FR 36937) This document has been published in the Federal Register. Use the PDF linked in the document sidebar for the official electronic format. AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), Department of Transportation (DOT). ACTION: Notice of application for exemptions; request for comments. SUMMARY: FMCSA requests public comment on the American Pyrotechnics Association's (APA) application requesting extension of its current exemptions from the Agency's hours-of-service (HOS) regulations to one new member, North Star Fireworks LLC. FMCSA is required by statute to publish a notice explaining each exemption request. This notice does not indicate what decision FMCSA will ultimately reach on the request. After reviewing the application, safety analyses, and public comments submitted, FMCSA will grant or deny the exemption. DATES: Comments must be received on or before July 20, 2026. ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Docket Number FMCSA-2021-0052 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: Dockets Operations, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, W58-213 West Building, Washington, DC 20590-0001. Hand Delivery or Courier: 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, W58-213 West Building, Washington, DC 20590-0001, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. Fax: (202) 493-2251. Each submission must include the Agency name and the docket number (FMCSA-2021-0052) 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. Privacy Act: In accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31315(b), DOT solicits comments from the public to better inform its exemption process. DOT posts these comments, including any personal information the commenter provides, to www.regulations.gov, as described in ( printed page 36938) the system of records notice DOT/ALL-14 FDMS (Federal Docket Management System (FDMS)), which can be reviewed at https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/privacy/privacy-act-system-records-notices. The comments are posted without edit and are searchable by the name of the submitter. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Pearlie Robinson, FMCSA Driver and Carrier Operations Division; Office of Carrier, Driver and Vehicle Safety Standards, pearlie.robinson@dot.gov. If you have questions on viewing or submitting material to the docket, contact Dockets Operations at (202) 366-9826. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. Public Participation and Request for Comments FMCSA encourages you to participate by submitting comments and related materials. A. Submitting Comments If you submit a comment, please include the docket number for this notice (FMCSA-2021-0052), indicate the specific section of this document to which the comment applies, and provide a reason for your suggestions or recommendations. 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 the Agency can contact you if it has questions regarding your submission. If you submit your comments by mail or hand delivery, submit them in an unbound format, no larger than 8 1/2 by 11 inches, suitable for copying and electronic filing. FMCSA will consider all comments and material received during the comment period. Comments received after the comment closing date will be filed in the public docket and will be considered to the extent practicable. B. Confidential Business Information (CBI) CBI is commercial or financial information that is both customarily and actually treated as private by its owner. Under the Freedom of Information Act (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 Freedom of Information Act, and they will not be placed in the public docket of the notice. Submissions containing CBI should be sent to Brian Dahlin, Chief, Regulatory Evaluation Division, Office of Policy, FMCSA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590-0001 or via email at brian.g.dahlin@dot.gov. At this time, you need not send a duplicate hardcopy of your electronic CBI submissions to FMCSA headquarters. Any comments FMCSA receives not specifically designated as CBI will be placed in the public docket for this notice. C. Viewing Comments and Documents To view comments, as well as any documents mentioned in this preamble as being available in the docket, go to https://www.regulations.gov, insert FMCSA-2021-0052 in the keyword box, select the document tab and choose the document to review. To view comments, click this notice, then click “Browse Comments.” If you do not have access to the internet, you may view the docket by visiting Dockets Operations in Room W58-213 of the DOT West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, Washington, DC 20590-0001, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you, please call (202) 366—9317 or (202) 366-9826 before visiting Dockets Operations. II. Legal Basis FMCSA has authority under 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 31315(b) to grant exemptions from Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs). FMCSA must publish a notice of each exemption request in the Federal Register (49 CFR 381.315(a)). The Agency must provide the public an opportunity to inspect the information relevant to the application, including the applicant's safety analyses. The Agency must provide an opportunity for public comment on the request. The Agency reviews the application, safety analyses, and public comments submitted and determines whether granting the exemption would likely achieve a level of safety equivalent to, or greater than, the level that would be achieved absent such exemption, pursuant to the standard set forth in 49 U.S.C. 31315(b)(1). The Agency must publish its decision in the Federal Register (49 CFR 381.315(b)). If granted, the notice will identify the regulatory provision(s) from which the exempted party will be exempt, the effective period, and all terms and conditions of the exemption (49 CFR 381.315(c)(1)). If the exemption is denied, the notice will explain the reasons for the denial (49 CFR 381.315(c)(2)). The exemption may be renewed (49 CFR 381.300(b)). III. Applicant's Request The APA is a trade association representing the domestic fireworks industry. On June 26, 2025, FMCSA granted the APA exemptions from the requirements of 49 CFR 395.3(a)(2) and 395.8(a)(1)(i) for 44 of its member companies each year from June 28 through July 8 (the “Independence Day period”), for 2025 through 2029 (90 FR 27372). One of the 44 APA member companies, Vermont Fireworks Co, dba North Star Fireworks Company Inc., DOT # 310632, no longer requires the exemptions, leaving the total number of companies currently covered by the exemptions at 43. APA has requested the HOS exemptions be extended to a different motor carrier with a similar name, North Star Fireworks LLC, DOT # 3753525. The exemptions for this APA carrier, if granted, would expire on July 8, 2029. Like the 43 current companies covered by the exemptions, this carrier would be subject to all of the terms and conditions of the exemptions set forth in the June 26, 2025 decision [90 FR 27372]. APA member companies have held waivers or exemptions during Independence Day periods each year since 2005. Copies of the initial request for an exemption, subsequent renewal requests, and all public comments received may be reviewed at www.regulations.gov under docket numbers FMCSA-2005-21104, FMCSA-2007-28043, FMCSA-2018-0140, and FMCSA-2021-0052. A copy of the APA's application for exemptions and attachments is available for review in the docket for this notice. IV. Request for Comments In accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31315(b), FMCSA requests public comment from all interested persons on APA's application for exemptions from the requirements in 49 CFR 395.3(a)(2) and 395.8(a)(1)(i). All comments received before the close of business on the comment closing date indicated at the beginning of this notice will be ( printed page 36939) considered and will be available for examination in the docket at the location listed under the Addresses section of this notice.