Action
Notice of final disposition; renewal of exemption.
Summary
FMCSA announces its final decision to renew the U.S. Custom Harvesters, Inc. (USCHI) exemption from the intrastate restriction ("K") on commercial driver's licenses (CDLs) for custom harvester drivers operating in interstate commerce for a two-year period, with additional terms and conditions. FMCSA's regulations currently provide an exception to the minimum age requirements for drivers of commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) engaged in custom harvesting operations in interstate commerce. However, under the Agency's CDL regulations, States may impose an intrastate-only (or "K") restriction for these drivers. On October 11, 2023, FMCSA announced its decision to provisionally renew USCHI's exemption for two years, pending a review of any comments received in response to that notice. After reviewing the four comments submitted to the docket, which are discussed later in this notice, the Agency believes that drivers who qualify for the exemption will likely achieve a level of safety that is equivalent to, or greater than, the level of safety that would be achieved by complying with the "K" restriction.