[Federal Register: September 28, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 187)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 57869-57874]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr28se04-19]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
49 CFR Part 594
[Docket No. NHTSA 2004-17987; Notice 2]
RIN 2127-AJ34
Schedule of Fees Authorized by 49 U.S.C. 30141
AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), DOT.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: This document adopts fees for Fiscal Year (FY) 2005 and until
further notice, relating to the registration of importers and the
importation of motor vehicles not certified as conforming to the
Federal motor vehicle safety standards (FMVSS).
DATES: The amendments established by this final rule will become
effective on October 1, 2004, the beginning of FY 2005. Petitions for
reconsideration must be received by NHTSA not later than November 12,
2004.
ADDRESSES: Petitions for reconsideration should refer to the docket and
notice numbers above and be submitted to the Administrator, National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 400 Seventh Street, SW.,
Washington, DC 20590, with a copy to the docket. You may provide a copy
of your petition by any of the following methods:
Web site: http://dms.dot.gov. Follow the instructions for
submitting comments on the DOT electronic docket site. Please note, if
you are submitting petitions electronically as a PDF (Adobe) file, we
ask that the documents submitted be scanned using Optical Character
Recognition (OCR) process, thus allowing the agency to search and copy
certain portions of your submissions. Please also note that anyone is
able to search the electronic form of all comments received into any of
our dockets by the name of the individual submitting the comment (or
signing the comment, if submitted on behalf of an association,
business, labor union, etc.). You may review DOT's complete Privacy Act
Statement in the Federal Register published on April 11, 2000 (Volume
65, Number 70; Pages 19477-78) or you may visit http://dms.dot.gov.
Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
Mail: Docket Management Facility; U.S. Department of
Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Nassif Building, Room PL-401,
Washington, DC 20590-001.
Hand Delivery: Room PL-401 on the plaza level of the
Nassif Building, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC, between 9 am
and 5 pm, Monday through Friday, except Federal Holidays.
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov
.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For non-legal issues: Coleman Sachs,
Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance, National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590 (202-366-
5291). For legal issues: Michael Goode, Office of Chief Counsel,
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 400 Seventh Street,
SW., Washington, DC 20590 (202-366-5263).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
A. Introduction
The amendments we are adopting in this rule increase the fees for
the registration of a new registered importer (RI) from $655 to $830
and the annual fee for renewing an existing registration from $455 to
$745. These fees include the costs of maintaining the RI program. We
are also increasing, from $550 to $827, the fee for inspecting a
vehicle that is the subject of an import eligibility petition when we
are asked to conduct such an inspection by the petitioner. The fee
required to reimburse the U.S. Department of Homeland
[[Page 57870]]
Security (Customs) for conformance bond processing costs will increase
from $6.20 to $9.30 per bond. We are also increasing the fees assessed
against the importer of each vehicle covered by the decision to grant
import eligibility. For vehicles determined eligible based on their
substantial similarity to a U.S. certified vehicle, the fee is
increased from $105 to $150. For vehicles determined eligible based on
their capability of being modified to comply with all applicable FMVSS,
the fee is increased from $125 to $150. The fee that a RI must pay as a
processing cost for review of each conformity package that it submits
to NHTSA will remain at $18 per certificate. If the vehicle has been
entered electronically with Customs through the Automated Broker
Interface and the registered importer has an e-mail address, the fee
for processing the conformity package will continue to be $6, provided
the fee is paid by credit card. However, if NHTSA finds that the
information in the entry or the conformity package is incorrect, the
processing fee will increase from $18 to $48.
This rule was preceded by a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM)
that NHTSA published in the Federal Register on June 9, 2004 (69 FR
32312). The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act, as amended
by the Imported Vehicle Safety Compliance Act of 1988, and recodified
as 49 U.S.C. 30141-30147 (``the Act''), provides for fees to cover the
costs of the importer registration program, the cost of making import
eligibility determinations, and the cost of processing the bonds
furnished to Customs. Certain fees became effective on January 31,
1990, and have been in effect, with modifications, since then. On June
24, 1996, we published a notice at 61 FR 32411 that discussed the
rulemaking history of 49 CFR Part 594 and the fees authorized by the
Act. The reader is referred to that notice for background information
relating to this rulemaking action.
We last amended the fee schedule in 2002. See final rule published
on September 26, 2002, at 67 FR 60596 (corrected on October 9, 2002, at
67 FR 62897). Those fees applied to Fiscal Years 2003 and 2004.
The fees adopted by this final rule are based on actual time and
costs associated with the tasks for which the fees are assessed and
reflect the slight increase in hourly costs in the past two fiscal
years attributable to the approximately 4.27 and 4.42 percent raises
(including the locality adjustment for Washington, D.C.) in salaries of
employees on the General Schedule that became effective on January 1,
2003, and on January 1, 2004, respectively.
B. Comments
Two comments were submitted in response to the notice of proposed
rulemaking. The first of these was from Ms. Barb Sachau. In her
comments, Ms. Sachau expressed the opinion that the proposed fees
should cover the entire costs of the RI program and that taxpayers
should not be burdened with any share of those costs. Ms. Sachau
generally recommended that the RI program fees be tripled. She also
specifically proposed an increase in the fee for reviewing certificates
of conformity to a minimum of $200, and an increase in the fee for a
vehicle inspection to $2,127. Ms. Sachau also recommended that an
importer who petitions the agency to determine a vehicle eligible for
importation should pay all costs associated with processing the
petition, rather than sharing those costs with the importers of the
vehicle.
Ms. Sachau's concern that taxpayers should not be burdened with the
costs of the RI program is consistent with the statute on which the
program is based and the manner in which it is conducted by NHTSA.
Section 30141(a)(3) of Title 49, U.S. Code requires registered
importers to pay ``for the costs of carrying out the registration
program * * * and any other fees the Secretary of Transportation
establishes to pay for the costs of (A) processing bonds * * * and (B)
making [import eligibility] decisions * * *'' As reflected in the
agency's regulations at 49 CFR 594.2, the purpose of these fees is ``to
ensure that NHTSA is reimbursed for costs incurred in administering the
RI program'' and carrying out associated functions.
Ms. Sachau did not provide the calculations that served as the
basis for her proposal to triple the RI program fees, and the specific
amounts that she recommended for reviewing certificates of conformity
and performing vehicle inspections. In preparing the NPRM, we
calculated the costs incurred in administering the RI program and
proposed fees that would reimburse the Federal government for its
actual expenses.
To avoid burdening a single RI with all costs associated with
making an import eligibility decision, NHTSA decided in 1990 to
allocate those costs, on a pro rata basis, among all RIs who import the
vehicle to which the decision relates. In that manner, the agency's
costs for making an import eligibility decision are borne in part by
the petitioner and in part by the importers of vehicles imported under
the petition. This approach accomplishes what Ms. Sachau desires in
that it provides ample means for the agency to recover the costs
incurred for the eligibility decisions that it makes.
The second comment was submitted by Mr. Jeffrey A. Beyer, Vice
President, BCB International, Incorporated, a Customs Broker in
Buffalo, New York. Mr. Beyer objected to the proposed fee increase for
processing a conformity package in situations where an error is
committed in submitting information through the Automated Broker
Interface (ABI). Mr. Beyer stated that when an RI is charged increased
fees for such an error, the RI, in turn, expects to be compensated for
the extra fee by the Customs Broker who made the entry. Mr. Beyer
expressed the belief that it is unfair to increase the fees in this
circumstance because no mechanism is presently available in the Customs
ABI system to correct or update an entry.
Mr. Beyer's concerns relate to his business dealings with Customs
and the ABI system that Customs controls. While we are sensitive to Mr.
Beyer's professed inability to correct or update an entry made into the
Customs software, once an error is made, NHTSA must expend a
considerable amount of additional effort to correct the entry. These
efforts result in significantly greater costs to the agency. Consistent
with the statutory requirement for the agency to recover the actual
costs it incurs in administering the RI program, it is entirely
appropriate for NHTSA to increase its fee for processing submissions in
which errors are made.
C. Requirements of the Fee Regulation
Section 594.6--Annual Fee for Administration of the Importer
Registration Program.
Section 30141(a)(3) of Title 49, U.S. Code provides that RIs must
pay the annual fee the Secretary of Transportation establishes ``* * *
to pay for the costs of carrying out the registration program for
importers. * * *'' This fee is payable both by new applicants and by
existing RIs. To maintain its registration, each RI, at the time it
submits its annual fee, must also file a statement affirming that the
information it furnished in its registration application (or in later
submissions amending that information) remains correct (49 CFR
592.5(e)).
In compliance with the statutory directive, we reviewed the
existing fees and their bases in an attempt to establish fees that
would be sufficient to recover the costs of carrying out the
registration program for importers for at least the next two fiscal
years. The
[[Page 57871]]
initial component of the Registration Program Fee is the fee
attributable to processing and acting upon registration applications.
We will decrease this fee from $395 to $293 for new applications. We
have also determined that the fee for the review of the annual
statement will be increased from $195 to $208. These fee adjustments
reflect our time expenditures in reviewing both new applications and
annual statements with accompanying documentation, as well as the
inflation factor attributable to Federal salary increases and locality
adjustments in the two years since the regulation was last amended.
We must also recover costs attributable to maintenance of the
registration program that arise from the need for us to review a
registrant's annual statement and to verify the continuing validity of
information already submitted. These costs also include anticipated
costs attributable to the possible revocation or suspension of
registrations and reflect the amount of time that we have devoted to
those matters in the past two years.
Based upon our review of these costs, the portion of the fee
attributable to the maintenance of the registration program is
approximately $537 for each RI, an increase of $277. When this $537 is
added to the $293 representing the registration application component,
the cost to an applicant comes to $830, which is the fee we are
adopting. This represents an increase of $186 over the existing fee.
When the $537 is added to the $208 representing the annual statement
component, the total cost to the RI comes to $745, which represents an
increase of $290.
Section 594.6(h) enumerates indirect costs associated with
processing the annual renewal of RI registrations. The provision states
that these costs represent a pro rata allocation of the average salary
and benefits of employees who process the annual statements and perform
related functions, and ``a pro rata allocation of the costs
attributable to maintaining the office space, and the computer or word
processor.'' The indirect costs that were previously calculated at
$14.85 per man-hour are being increased by $5.22, to $20.07.
Sections 594.7 and 594.8--Fees To Cover Agency Costs in Making
Importation Eligibility Determinations
Section 30141(a)(3) also requires registered importers to pay other
fees the Secretary of Transportation establishes to cover the costs of
``* * * (B) making the decisions under this subchapter.'' This includes
decisions on whether the vehicle sought to be imported is substantially
similar to a motor vehicle that was originally manufactured for
importation into and sale in the United States and certified by its
original manufacturer as complying with all applicable FMVSS, and
whether the vehicle is capable of being readily altered to meet those
standards. Alternatively, where there is no substantially similar U.S.
certified motor vehicle, the decision is whether the safety features of
the vehicle comply with or are capable of being altered to comply with
the FMVSS based on destructive test information or such other evidence
NHTSA deems to be adequate. These decisions are made in response to
petitions submitted by RIs or manufacturers, or on the Administrator's
own initiative.
The fee for a vehicle imported under an eligibility decision made
in response to a petition is payable in part by the petitioner and in
part by other importers. The fee to be charged for each vehicle is the
estimated pro rata share of the costs in making all the eligibility
determinations in a fiscal year.
Inflation and General Schedule raises must also be taken into
account in the computation of costs. We have reduced processing costs
through issuing a single Federal Register notice to announce import
eligibility decisions made on multiple vehicles and achieved other
efficiencies through improved computerization methods. Despite the cost
savings that have accrued from these practices, we have had to devote
an increasing share of staff time in the past two years to the review
and processing of import eligibility petitions owing to a
proportionately greater number of comments being submitted in response
to these petitions, as well as complications that result when the
petitioner or one or more commenters request confidentiality for
information they submit to the agency. Additional staff time is also
needed to analyze the petitions and any comments received owning to new
requirements being adopted in the FMVSS. Despite the additional
resources that are needed to review import eligibility petitions, we
are not increasing the current fee of $175 that covers the initial
processing of a ``substantially similar'' petition. Instead, as
discussed below, we are addressing these additional costs by increasing
the pro-rata share of petition costs that are assessed against the
importer of each vehicle covered by the decision to grant import
eligibility. Likewise, we are also maintaining the existing fee of $800
to cover the initial costs for processing petitions for vehicles that
have no substantially similar U.S.-certified counterpart.
In the event that a petitioner requests an inspection of a vehicle,
the fee for such an inspection will increase to $827 from $550 for
vehicles that are the subject of either type of petition. This $277
increase reflects current per diem and airfare costs.
Importers of vehicles determined to be eligible for importation
pay, upon the importation of those vehicles, a pro-rata share of the
total cost for making the eligibility decision. The importation fee
varies depending upon the basis on which the vehicle is determined to
be eligible. For vehicles covered by an eligibility decision on the
agency's own initiative (other than vehicles imported from Canada that
are covered by VSA Nos. 80-83, for which no eligibility decision fee is
assessed), the fee will remain $125. NHTSA determined that the costs
associated with previous eligibility determinations on the agency's own
initiative were fully recovered by October 1, 2000. We apply the fee of
$125 per vehicle only to vehicles covered by determinations made by the
agency on its own initiative on or after October 1, 2000.
The agency's costs for making an import eligibility decision
pursuant to a petition are borne in part by the petitioner and in part
by the importers of vehicles imported under the petition. In 2003, the
most recent year for which complete data exists, the agency expended
over $99,000 in making import eligibility decisions based on petitions.
The petitioners paid nearly $9,000 of that amount in the processing
fees that accompanied the filing of their petitions, leaving the
remaining $90,000 to be recovered from the importers of the nearly 600
vehicles imported that year pursuant to petition-based import
eligibility decisions. Dividing $90,000 by 600 yields a pro-rata fee of
$150 for each vehicle imported pursuant to an eligibility decision that
resulted from the granting of a petition. The agency is proposing this
as the pro-rata fee to be paid by the importer of each such vehicle.
The same $150 fee would be paid regardless of whether the vehicle was
petitioned under 49 CFR 593.6(a), based on the substantial similarity
of the vehicle to a U.S.-certified model, or was petitioned under 49
CFR 593.6(b), based on the safety features of the vehicle complying
with, or being capable of being modified to comply with all applicable
FMVSS. This represents an increase of $45 over the $105 that is
currently paid by the importers of vehicles determined eligible based
on their substantial similarity to a U.S.-certified vehicle, and an
increase of $25 over the $125 that is currently paid by the importers
of vehicles determined
[[Page 57872]]
eligible based on their capability of being modified to comply.
Section 594.9--Fee To Recover the Costs of Processing the Bond
Section 30141(a)(3) also requires a registered importer to pay any
other fees the Secretary of Transportation establishes ``* * * to pay
for the costs of--(A) processing bonds provided to the Secretary of the
Treasury * * *'' upon the importation of a nonconforming vehicle to
ensure that the vehicle will be brought into compliance within a
reasonable time, or if it is not brought into compliance within such
time, that it be exported, without cost to the United States, or
abandoned to the United States.
Customs now exercises the functions associated with the processing
of these bonds. The statute contemplates that we will make a reasonable
determination of the cost that Customs incurs in processing the bonds.
In essence, the cost to Customs is based upon an estimate of the time
that a GS-9, Step 5 employee spends on each entry, which Customs has
judged to be 20 minutes.
Based on General Schedule salary and locality raises that were
effective in January 2003 and 2004 and the inclusion of costs for
benefits that were previously omitted, we are increasing the processing
fee by $3.10, from $6.20 per bond to $9.30. This fee would more closely
reflect the direct and indirect costs that are actually associated with
processing the bonds.
Section 594.10--Fee for Review and Processing of Conformity Certificate
Each RI is currently required to pay $18 per vehicle to cover the
costs the agency incurs in reviewing a certificate of conformity. We
have found that these costs continue to average $18 per vehicle for
vehicles for which a paper entry and fee payment is made, and we
therefore are not changing this fee. However, if a RI enters a vehicle
through the Automated Broker Interface (ABI) system, has an e-mail
address to receive communications from NHTSA, and pays the fee by
credit card, the cost savings that we realize allow us to significantly
reduce the fee to $6.00. We are maintaining the fee of $6.00 per
vehicle if all the information in the ABI entry is correct. Errors in
ABI entries not only eliminate any timesavings, but also require
additional staff time to be expended in reconciling the erroneous ABI
entry information to the conformity data that is ultimately submitted.
Recent experience with these errors has shown that staff members must
examine records, make time-consuming long distance telephone calls, and
often consult supervisory personnel to resolve the conflicts in the
data. We have calculated this staff and supervisory time, as well as
the telephone charges, to amount to approximately $42 for each
erroneous ABI entry. Adding this to the $6 fee for the review of
conformity packages on automated entries yields a total of $48,
representing a $30 increase over the fee that is currently charged when
there are errors to resolve in the entry or in the statement of
conformity. We are adopting this $48 fee to review each conformity
package for which there are one or more errors in the ABI entry or in
the statement of conformity.
Effective Date
NHTSA is required under 49 U.S.C. 30141(e) to ``review and make
appropriate adjustments at least every 2 years in the amounts of the
fees'' relating to the registration of importers, the processing of
bonds, and making decisions concerning the importation of nonconforming
vehicles. The statute further requires the agency to ``establish the
fees for each fiscal year before the beginning of that year.'' Fiscal
year 2005 begins on October 1, 2004. In the NPRM, we proposed to make
this rule effective October 1, 2004, and did not receive any comments
on this issue. In order to meet the statutory deadline, the agency
finds under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3) that it has good cause to make this
final rule effective less than thirty days after its publication in the
Federal Register. Accordingly, the effective date of this final rule is
October 1, 2004.
Rulemaking Analyses and Notices
A. Executive Order 12866 and DOT Regulatory Policies and Procedures
NHTSA has considered the impact of this rulemaking action under
Executive Order 12866 and the Department of Transportation's regulatory
policies and procedures. This rulemaking is not significant.
Accordingly, the Office of Management and Budget has not reviewed this
rulemaking document under Executive Order 12886. Further, NHTSA has
determined that the rulemaking is not significant under Department of
Transportation's regulatory policies and procedures. Based on the level
of the fees and the volume of affected vehicles, NHTSA currently
anticipates that the costs of the final rule will be so minimal as not
to warrant preparation of a full regulatory evaluation. The action does
not involve any substantial public interest or controversy. There will
be no substantial effect upon State and local governments. There will
be no substantial impact upon a major transportation safety program. A
regulatory evaluation analyzing the economic impact of the final rule
establishing the registered importer program, adopted on September 29,
1989, was prepared, and is available for review in the docket.
B. Regulatory Flexibility Act
The agency has also considered the effects of this rulemaking
action under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). I
certify that this action will not have a significant economic impact
upon a substantial number of small entities.
The following is NHTSA's statement providing the factual basis for
the certification (5 U.S.C. 605(b)). The amendments adopted in this
final rule will primarily affect entities that currently modify
nonconforming vehicles and which are small businesses within the
meaning of the Regulatory Flexibility Act; however, the agency has no
reason to believe that these companies will face significant problems
paying the fees adopted as a result of this action. In most instances,
these fees will be only modestly increased (and in some instances
decreased) from the fees previously paid by these entities. Moreover,
consistent with prevailing industry practices, these fees should be
passed through to the ultimate purchasers of the vehicles that are
altered and, in most instances, sold by the affected registered
importers. The cost to owners or purchasers of nonconforming vehicles
that are altered to conform to the FMVSS may be expected to increase
(or decrease) to the extent necessary to reimburse the registered
importer for the fees payable to the agency for the cost of carrying
out the registration program and making eligibility decisions, and to
compensate Customs for its bond processing costs.
Governmental jurisdictions will not be affected at all since they
are generally neither importers nor purchasers of nonconforming motor
vehicles.
C. Executive Order 13132 (Federalism)
Executive Order 13132 on ``Federalism'' requires NHTSA to develop
an accountable process to ensure ``meaningful and timely input by State
and local officials in the development of regulatory policies that have
Federalism implications.'' Executive Order 13132 defines the term
``policies that have federalism implications'' to include regulations
that have ``substantial direct effects on the States, on the
relationship between the national government and the States, or on the
distribution of power and
[[Page 57873]]
responsibilities among the various levels of government.'' Under
Executive Order 13132, NHTSA may not issue a regulation that has
federalism implication, that imposes substantial direct compliance
costs, and that is not required by statute, unless the Federal
government provides the funds necessary to pay the direct compliance
costs incurred by State and local governments, or NHTSA consults with
State and local officials early in the process of developing the
proposed regulation.
The amendments adopted in this rule will not have substantial
direct effects on the States, on the relationship between the national
government and the States, or on the distribution of power and
responsibilities among the various levels of government as specified in
Executive Order 13132. Thus, the requirements of section 6 of the
Executive Order do not apply to this rulemaking action.
D. National Environmental Policy Act
NHTSA has analyzed this action for purposes of the National
Environmental Policy Act. The action will not have a significant effect
upon the environment because it is anticipated that the annual volume
of motor vehicles imported through registered importers will not vary
significantly from that existing before promulgation of the rule.
E. Executive Order 12778 (Civil Justice Reform)
This rule will not have any retroactive or preemptive effect.
Judicial review of this rule may be obtained pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 702.
That section does not require that a petition for reconsideration be
filed prior to seeking judicial review.
F. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995
The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-4) requires
agencies to prepare a written assessment of the costs, benefits, and
other effects of proposed or final rules that include a Federal mandate
likely to result in the expenditure by State, local, or tribal
governments, in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of more than
$100 million annually (adjusted for inflation with the base year of
1995). Because this final rule will not require the expenditure of
resources beyond $100 million annually, no Unfunded Mandates assessment
has been prepared.
G. Plain Language
Executive Order 12866 and the President's memorandum of June 1,
1998, require each agency to write all rules in plain language.
Application of the principles of plain language includes consideration
of the following questions:
--Have we organized the material to suit the public's needs?
--Are the requirements in the proposed rule clearly stated?
--Does the proposed rule contain technical language or jargon that is
unclear?
--Would a different format (grouping and order of sections, use of
heading, paragraphing) make the rule easier to understand?
--Would more (but shorter) sections be better?
--Could we improve clarity by adding tables, lists, or diagrams?
--What else could we do to make the rule easier to understand?
No responses to these questions were included in the comments
submitted on the notice of proposed rulemaking. We have endeavored to
abide by these principles in the preparation of this final rule.
H. Paperwork Reduction Act
Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, a person is not required
to respond to a collection of information by a Federal agency unless
the collection displays a valid OMB control number. This rule requires
no information collections.
I. Executive Order 13045
Executive Order 13045 applies to any rule that (1) is determined to
be ``economically significant'' as defined under E.O. 12866, and (2)
concerns an environmental, health, or safety risk that NHTSA has reason
to believe may have a disproportionate effect on children. If the
regulatory action meets both criteria, we must evaluate the
environmental health or safety effects of the planned rule on children,
and explain why the planned rule is preferable to other potentially
effective and reasonably feasible alternatives considered by us. This
rulemaking is not economically significant.
List of Subjects in 49 CFR Part 594
Imports, Motor vehicle safety, Motor vehicles.
0
In consideration of the foregoing, Part 594, Schedule of Fees
Authorized by 49 U.S.C. 30141, in Title 49 of the Code of Federal
Regulations is amended as follows:
PART 594--SCHEDULE OF FEES AUTHORIZED BY 49 U.S.C. 30141
0
1. The authority citation for part 594 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 49 U.S.C. 30141, 31 U.S.C. 9701; delegation of
authority at 49 CFR 1.50.
0
2. Section 594.6 is amended by;
0
a. Revising the introductory text of paragraph (a);
0
b. Revising paragraph (b);
0
c. Revising paragraph (d);
0
d. Revising the final sentence of paragraph (h); and
0
e. Revising paragraph (i) to read as follows:
Sec. 594.6 Annual fee for administration of the registration program.
(a) Each person filing an application to be granted the status of a
Registered Importer pursuant to part 592 of this chapter on or after
October 1, 2004, must pay an annual fee of $830, as calculated below,
based upon the direct and indirect costs attributable to: * * *
* * * * *
(b) That portion of the initial annual fee attributable to the
processing of the application for applications filed on and after
October 1, 2004, is $537. The sum of $537, representing this portion,
shall not be refundable if the application is denied or withdrawn.
* * * * *
(d) That portion of the initial annual fee attributable to the
remaining activities of administering the registration program on and
after October 1, 2004, is set forth in paragraph (i) of this section.
This portion shall be refundable if the application is denied, or
withdrawn before final action upon it.
* * * * *
(h) * * * This cost is $20.07 per man-hour for the period beginning
October 1, 2004.
(i) Based upon the elements and indirect costs of paragraphs (f),
(g), and (h) of this section, the component of the initial annual fee
attributable to administration of the registration program, covering
the period beginning October 1, 2004, is $537. When added to the costs
of registration of $293, as set forth in paragraph (b) of this section,
the costs per applicant to be recovered through the annual fee are
$830. The annual renewal registration fee for the period beginning
October 1, 2004, is $745.
0
3. Section 594.7 is amended by revising paragraph (e) to read as
follows:
Sec. 594.7 Fee for filing petitions for a determination whether a
vehicle is eligible for importation.
* * * * *
(e) For petitions filed on and after October 1, 2004, the fee
payable for seeking a determination under paragraph (a)(1) of this
section is $175.
[[Page 57874]]
The fee payable for a petition seeking a determination under paragraph
(a)(2) of this section is $800. If the petitioner requests an
inspection of a vehicle, the sum of $827 shall be added to such fee. No
portion of this fee is refundable if the petition is withdrawn or
denied.
* * * * *
0
4. Section 594.8 is amended by revising paragraph (b) and by revising
the first sentence of paragraph (c) to read as follows:
Sec. 594.8 Fee for importing a vehicle pursuant to a determination by
the Administrator.
* * * * *
(b) If a determination has been made pursuant to a petition, the
fee for each vehicle is $150. The direct and indirect costs that
determine the fee are those set forth in Sec. 594.7(b), (c), and (d).
(c) If a determination has been made on or after October 1, 2004,
pursuant to the Administrator's initiative, the fee for each vehicle is
$125. * * *
0
5. Section 594.9 is amended by revising paragraph (c) to read as
follows:
Sec. 594.9 Fee for reimbursement of bond processing costs.
* * * * *
(c) The bond processing fee for each vehicle imported on and after
October 1, 2004, for which a certificate of conformity is furnished, is
$9.30.
0
6. Section 594.10 is amended by revising paragraph (d) to read as
follows:
Sec. 594.10 Fee for review and processing of conformity certificate.
* * * * *
(d) The review and processing fee for each certificate of
conformity submitted on and after October 1, 2004 is $18. However, if
the vehicle covered by the certificate has been entered electronically
with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security through the Automated
Broker Interface and the registered importer submitting the certificate
has an e-mail address, the fee for the certificate is $6, provided that
the fee is paid by a credit card issued to the registered importer. If
NHTSA finds that the information in the entry or the certificate is
incorrect, requiring further processing, the processing fee shall be
$48.
Jeffrey W. Runge,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 04-21723 Filed 9-23-04; 3:56 pm]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P