[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 31 (Wednesday, February 17, 1999)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 7813-7814]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-3625]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Office Of The Secretary
49 CFR Part 1
[OST Docket No. 1; Amdt. 1-297]
Organization and Delegation of Powers and Duties Delegation to
the Commandant, United States Coast Guard, the Federal Railroad
Administrator, and the Federal Highway Administrator
AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, DOT.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Secretary is delegating his authority under section 346 of
the Department of Transportation and Related Agencies Appropriations
Act, 1998, Pub. L. 105-66 (October 27, 1997) to the Commandant of the
U. S. Coast Guard, the Federal Railroad Administrator, and the Federal
Highway Administrator. Section 346 authorizes the Secretary of
Transportation to establish, operate, and manage a nationwide system to
be known as the ``Nationwide Differential Global Positioning System''
(NDGPS) as soon as practicable, to integrate the NDGPS reference
stations into the Continuously Operating Reference Station (CORS)
system of the National Geodetic Survey of the Department of Commerce,
and to investigate the use of the NDGPS reference stations for the
Global Positioning System Integrated Precipitable Water Vapor System of
the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the Department
of Commerce.
EFFECTIVE DATE: February 17, 1999.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Macaluso, Office of the Secretary
of Transportation (P-7), Department of Transportation, 400 Seventh
Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590. Phone: (202) 366-0362.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: With the two exceptions noted later in this
document, the authority of the Secretary in Section 346 to establish,
operate, and manage the NDGPS, should be delegated to the Commandant of
the Coast Guard,
[[Page 7814]]
because the USCG has the expertise and staff to carry out these
functions in accordance with the statutory requirements. The pertinent
actions of this delegation include, but are not limited to: (1) Taking
receipt of such equipment and sites of the Ground Wave Emergency
Network (GWEN) and reusing them as necessary for the establishment of
the NDGPS, (2) installing the NDGPS by using contractor services to the
maximum extent practicable, (3) modifying the positioning system
operated by the Coast Guard to integrate it with the NDGPS, (4)
ensuring that the reference stations are compatible with, and
integrated into, the Continuously Operating Reference Station (CORS)
system in cooperation with the National Geodetic Survey of the
Department of Commerce, (5) investigating the use of the NDGPS
reference stations for the Global Positioning System Integrated
Precipitable Water Vapor System of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration, of the Department of Commerce (6) cooperating with
appropriate agencies within the Defense Department to ensure that the
use of the NDGPS is denied to any enemy of the United States, (7)
maintaining the sites and equipment of the NDGPS including entering
into contracts to provide for maintenance where it is cost effective,
(8) acting as lead agency, in cooperation with the Federal Railroad
Administrator and Federal Highway Administrator, in the investigation
of improvements to the NDGPS, in the development of standards for the
NDGPS, and in the sponsorship of the development of new applications
for the NDGPS, (9) providing for the continual upgrading of the NDGPS
to improve performance, and (10) acting as a cooperating agency in
matters relating to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
The first exception to the delegation to the Commandant of the
Coast Guard is that the determination of the Federal requirements for
the NDGPS, as a necessary function in the Secretary of Transportation's
authority to establish, operate, and manage the NDGPS, is delegated to
the Federal Railroad Administrator. This is because the Federal
Railroad Administration will determine these requirements based upon
its utility to the FRA's Positive Train Control and related
initiatives.
The second exception to the delegation to the Commandant of the
Coast Guard is that the function of acting as the lead DOT agency for
matters relating to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which
are pertinent to the Secretary of Transportation's authority to
establish and manage the NDGPS, is delegated to the Federal Highway
Administrator. This is because the Federal Highway Administration has
the expertise, regulations, and staff to carry out these functions in
accordance with the statutory requirements.
This delegation does not affect the authority or responsibility of
the Secretary for policy development. Since this amendment relates to
departmental organization, procedure and practice, notice and comment
on it are unnecessary under 5 U.S.C. 553(b). Further, since the
amendment expedites the Department of Transportation's ability to meet
the statutory intent of Section 346 of the Department of Transportation
and Related Agencies Appropriation Act, 1998, the Secretary finds good
cause under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3) for the final rule to be effective on
the date of publication in the Federal Register.
List of Subjects in 49 CFR Part 1
Authority delegations (Government agencies), Organization and
functions (Government agencies).
In consideration of the foregoing, Part 1 of Title 49, Code of
Federal Regulations, is amended, effective upon publication, to read as
follows:
PART 1--[AMENDED]
1. The authority citation for Part 1 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 49 U.S.C. 2104(a); Pub. L. 101-552; 28 U.S.C. 2672,
31 U.S.C. 3711(a)(2), 46 U.S.C. 2104(a).
2. In Sec. 1.46 (Delegations to Commandant of the Coast Guard), the
paragraph (qqq) is added to read as follows:
Sec. 1.46 Delegations to Commandant of the Coast Guard.
* * * * *
(qqq) Carry out the functions and exercise the authority vested in
the Secretary by section 346 of Pub. L. 105-66, titled the Department
of Transportation and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1998, to
establish, operate, and manage the Nationwide Differential Global
Positioning System (NDGPS), except for the related function of
determining the Federal requirements for the NDGPS, which is delegated
to the Federal Railroad Administrator, and except for the related
function of acting as lead DOT agency in matters relating to the
National Environmental Policy Act, which is delegated to the Federal
Highway Administrator.
3. In Sec. 1.48 (Delegations to Federal Highway Administrator),
paragraph (ll) is added to read as follows:
Sec. 1.48 Delegations to Federal Highway Administrator.
* * * * *
(ll) Carry out the function of acting as the lead DOT agency in
matters relating to the National Environmental Policy Act pertinent to
the authority vested in the Secretary to establish, operate, and manage
the Nationwide Differential Global Positioning System (NDGPS) by
section 346 of Pub. L. 105-66, titled the Department of Transportation
and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1998.
4. In Sec. 1.49 (Delegations to Federal Railroad Administrator),
paragraph (ll) is added at the end thereof.
Sec. 1.49 Delegations to Federal Railroad Administrator.
* * * * *
(ll) Carry out the function of determining the Federal requirements
for the Nationwide Differential Global Positioning System (NDGPS) as a
necessary part of the Secretary's authority to establish, operate, and
manage the NDGPS granted by Section 346 of Public Law 105-66, titled
the Department of Transportation and Related Agencies Appropriations
Act, 1998.
Issued in Washington, DC, this 8th day of February, 1999.
Rodney E. Slater,
Secretary of Transportation.
[FR Doc. 99-3625 Filed 2-16-99; 8:45 am]
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