80 FR 56381 - Drawbridge Operation Regulation; Snake Creek, Islamorada, FL

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Coast Guard

Federal Register Volume 80, Issue 181 (September 18, 2015)

The Coast Guard is modifying the operating schedule that governs the Snake Creek Bridge across Snake Creek, Islamorada, FL. This temporary interim rule will change the drawbridge operation schedule to determine whether a permanent change to the schedule is needed. This temporary interim rule will allow Snake Creek Bridge to open on signal, except that from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., the draw need open only on the hour. The Bridge owner, Florida Department of Transportation, and local officials requested this action to assist in reducing vehicle traffic caused by frequent bridge openings.

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 181 (Friday, September 18, 2015)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 56381-56384]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2015-23537]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

33 CFR Part 117

[Docket No. USCG-2015-0046]
RIN 1625-AA09


Drawbridge Operation Regulation; Snake Creek, Islamorada, FL

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Temporary interim rule and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Coast Guard is modifying the operating schedule that 
governs the Snake Creek Bridge across Snake Creek, Islamorada, FL. This 
temporary interim rule will change the drawbridge operation schedule to 
determine whether a permanent change to the schedule is needed. This 
temporary interim rule will allow Snake Creek Bridge to open on signal, 
except that from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., the draw need open only on the hour. 
The Bridge owner, Florida Department of Transportation, and local 
officials requested this action to assist in reducing vehicle traffic 
caused by frequent bridge openings.

DATES: This temporary interim rule will be effective from 8 a.m. on 
September 18, 2015 to 6 p.m. on May 10, 2016.
    Comments and related material must reach the Coast Guard on or 
before January 15, 2016. Requests for public meetings must be received 
by the Coast Guard on or before November 1, 2015.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by docket number USCG-
2015-0046 using any one of the following methods:
    (1) Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
    (2) Fax: 202-493-2251.
    (3) Mail or Delivery: Docket Management Facility (M-30), U.S. 
Department of Transportation, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 
1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001. Deliveries 
accepted between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except 
federal holidays. The telephone number is 202-366-9329.
    See the ``Public Participation and Request for Comments'' portion 
of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below for instructions on 
submitting comments. To avoid duplication, please use only one of these 
methods.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions on this 
temporary interim rule, call or email Coast Guard Sector Key West 
Waterways Management Division; telephone 305-292-8772, email [email protected]. If you have questions on viewing or 
submitting material to the docket, call Cheryl Collins, Program 
Manager, Docket Operations, telephone 202-366-9826.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Table of Acronyms

CFR Code of Federal Regulations
DHS Department of Homeland Security
FR Federal Register
Sec.  Section Symbol
U.S.C. United States Code

A. Public Participation and Request for Comments

    We encourage you to participate in this rulemaking by submitting 
comments and related materials. All comments received will be posted, 
without change, to http://www.regulations.gov and will include any 
personal information you have provided.

1. Submitting Comments

    If you submit a comment, please include the docket number for this 
rulemaking (USCG-2015-0046), indicate the specific section of this 
document to which each comment applies, and give the reason for each 
suggestion or recommendation. You may submit your comments and material 
online, or by fax, mail or hand delivery, but please use only one of 
these means. If you submit a comment online via http://www.regulations.gov, it will be considered received by the Coast Guard 
when you successfully transmit the comment. If you fax, hand deliver, 
or mail your comment, it will be considered as having been received by 
the Coast Guard when it is received at the Docket Management Facility. 
We recommend that you include your name and a mailing address, an email 
address, or a phone number in the body of your document so that we can 
contact you if we have questions regarding your submission.
    To submit your comment online, go to http://www.regulations.gov, 
type the

[[Page 56382]]

docket number [USCG-2015-0046] in the ``SEARCH'' box and click 
``SEARCH.'' Click on ``Submit a Comment'' on the line associated with 
this rulemaking. 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. If you submit them by mail 
and would like to know that they reached the Facility, please enclose a 
stamped, self-addressed postcard or envelope. We will consider all 
comments and material received during the comment period and may change 
this rule based on your comments.

2. Viewing Comments and Documents

    To view comments, as well as documents mentioned in this preamble 
as being available in the docket, go to http://www.regulations.gov, 
type the docket number (USCG-2015-0046) in the ``SEARCH'' box and click 
``SEARCH.'' Click on Open Docket Folder on the line associated with 
this rulemaking. You may also visit the Docket Management Facility in 
Room W12-140 on the ground floor of the Department of Transportation 
West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590, 
between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays.

3. Privacy Act

    Anyone can 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 a Privacy Act notice 
regarding our public dockets in the January 17, 2008, issue of the 
Federal Register (73 FR 3316).

4. Public Meeting

    We do not now plan to hold a public meeting. But you may submit a 
request for one on or before November 1, 2015, using one of the methods 
specified under ADDRESSES. Please explain why one would be beneficial. 
If we determine that one would aid this rulemaking, we will hold one at 
a time and place announced by a later notice in the Federal Register.
Regulatory History and Information
    On March 27, 2015, we published a test deviation entitled 
``Drawbridge Operation Regulations; Snake Creek, Islamorada, FL'' in 
the Federal Register (80 FR 16280). The comment period for the test 
deviation remains open until September 14, 2015.
    The Coast Guard is issuing this temporary interim rule without 
prior notice and opportunity to comment pursuant to authority under 
section 4(a) of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) (5 U.S.C. 
553(b)). This provision authorizes an agency to issue a rule without 
prior notice and opportunity to comment when the agency for good cause 
finds that those procedures are ``impracticable, unnecessary, or 
contrary to the public interest.'' Under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), the Coast 
Guard finds that good cause exists for not publishing a notice of 
proposed rulemaking (NPRM) with respect to this rule because delaying 
an amendment to the Snake Creek Bridge schedule would be impracticable 
and contrary to public interest. Pursuant to the temporary deviation 
published on March 27, 2015, the Snake Creek Bridge operating schedule 
was modified to determine if vehicular traffic congestion could be 
reduced while accommodating the reasonable needs of navigation. While 
the comment period for that deviation remains open, the Coast Guard is 
implementing this rule and seeks additional comment because the test 
deviation did not offer insight on the impacts of an alternate 
operating schedule during fall or winter months. Preliminary evidence 
shows that the revised schedule is beneficial to the commuting public 
and reverting to the schedule published in 33 CFR 117.331 may not be 
necessary to provide for the reasonable needs of navigation on Snake 
Creek.
    Under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3), the Coast Guard finds that good cause 
exists for making this rule effective less than 30 days after 
publication in the Federal Registerfor the same reasons discussed 
above.

B. Basis and Purpose

    The Snake Creek Bridge in Islamorada, Florida has a vertical 
clearance of 27 feet in the closed position. The normal operating 
schedule as published in 33 CFR 117.331 is as follows: The draw of the 
Snake Creek Bridge, at Islamorada, Florida, shall open on signal, 
except that from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., the draw need open only on the hour 
and half-hour. This schedule has been in effect since 2001.
    The Bridge owner, Florida Department of Transportation, and local 
officials requested a change in the operating schedule to assist in 
reducing vehicle traffic caused by frequent bridge openings.
    The Coast Guard initiated a test of a new schedule for the Snake 
Creek Bridge that was based on the following input:
    1. As reported by village and city councils, vehicle traffic near 
the Snake Creek Bridge has negatively impacted Islamorada and 
surrounding communities during peak vehicle traffic time periods. A 
temporary deviation initiated a test of a new bridge operation schedule 
to reduce vehicle traffic caused by bridge openings.
    2. On January 8-10, 2013, the Florida Department of Transportation 
conducted a traffic monitoring study 1400 feet south of the Snake Creek 
Bridge on US-1. The study found peak traffic volumes occurring at 8:45 
a.m. and between 12:15 p.m. and 3:15 p.m. By reducing the number of 
scheduled openings between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., this rule seeks to reduce 
vehicle traffic on US-1 while maintaining the reasonable needs of 
navigation on Snake Creek.
    The types of vessels navigating Snake Creek include sport fishing 
vessels and catamaran sailboats.
    During the test deviation, vessels signaled the bridge to open on 
the top of the hour from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
    Any vessel that can safely transit under the Snake Creek Bridge 
while closed may continue to navigate under the bridge during this 
deviation.
    Vessel operators may also consider the use of Channel Five, a 
navigable channel above Long Key, Florida 5.7 nautical miles southwest 
of Snake Creek Bridge. The fixed US-1 bridge across Channel Five has a 
vertical clearance of 65 feet.

C. Discussion of the Temporary Interim Rule

    A test deviation published on March 27, 2015 allowed the Snake 
Creek Bridge to remain closed with the exception of on-demand openings 
once an hour schedule between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. seven days a week. The 
deviation called for on-demand openings at all other times. The Coast 
Guard is initiating this temporary interim rule to allow the time 
necessary to review the impacts of the test schedule and how it will 
impact all modes of traffic during seasonal traffic.
    Comments on the temporary deviation as well as any others received 
during the temporary interim rule comment period may be used to 
determine if a final rule should be implemented to modify the operating 
schedule.

D. Regulatory Analyses

    We developed this temporary interim rule after considering numerous 
statutes and executive orders related to rulemaking. Below we summarize 
our analyses based on these statutes or executive orders.

[[Page 56383]]

1. Regulatory Planning and Review

    This rule is not a significant regulatory action under section 3(f) 
of Executive Order 12866, Regulatory Planning and Review, as 
supplemented by Executive Order 13563, Improving Regulation and 
Regulatory Review, and does not require an assessment of potential 
costs and benefits under section 6(a)(3) of Order 12866 or under 
section 1 of Executive Order 13563. The Office of Management and Budget 
has not reviewed it under those Orders. This rule is not a significant 
regulatory action because it allows for openings every hour and meets 
the reasonable needs of navigation while helping to decongest vehicular 
traffic on US-1. Vessels capable of transiting under the Bridge may do 
so at any time.

2. Impact on Small Entities

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (RFA), 5 U.S.C. 601-612, as 
amended, requires federal agencies to consider the potential impact of 
regulations on small entities during rulemaking. The term ``small 
entities'' comprises small businesses, not-for-profit organizations 
that are independently owned and operated and are not dominant in their 
fields, and governmental jurisdictions with populations of less than 
50,000. The Coast Guard certifies under 5 U.S.C. 605(b) that this rule 
will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of 
small entities.
    This action will not have a significant economic impact on a 
substantial number of small entities because it will allow for once an 
hour openings and vessels that can safely transit under the bridge may 
do so at any time.

3. Assistance for Small Entities

    Under section 213(a) of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement 
Fairness Act of 1996 (Pub. L. 104-121), we want to assist small 
entities in understanding this rule. If the rule would affect your 
small business, organization, or governmental jurisdiction and you have 
questions concerning its provisions or options for compliance, please 
contact the person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, 
above.
    Small businesses may send comments on the actions of Federal 
employees who enforce, or otherwise determine compliance with, Federal 
regulations to the Small Business and Agriculture Regulatory 
Enforcement Ombudsman and the Regional Small Business Regulatory 
Fairness Boards. The Ombudsman evaluates these actions annually and 
rates each agency's responsiveness to small business. If you wish to 
comment on actions by employees of the Coast Guard, call 1-888-REG-FAIR 
(1-888-734-3247). The Coast Guard will not retaliate against small 
entities that question or complain about this rule or any policy or 
action of the Coast Guard.

4. Collection of Information

    This rule calls for no new collection of information under the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520).

5. Federalism

    A rule has implications for federalism under Executive Order 13132, 
Federalism, if it has a substantial direct effect 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. We have analyzed this rule under that Order and have 
determined that it does not have implications for federalism.

6. Protest Activities

    The Coast Guard respects the First Amendment rights of protesters. 
Protesters are asked to contact the person listed in the FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT section to coordinate protest activities so that 
your message can be received without jeopardizing the safety or 
security of people, places or vessels.

7. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act

    The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1531-1538) 
requires Federal agencies to assess the effects of their discretionary 
regulatory actions. In particular, the Act addresses actions that may 
result in the expenditure by a State, local, or tribal government, in 
the aggregate, or by the private sector of $100,000,000 (adjusted for 
inflation) or more in any one year. Though this rule will not result in 
such an expenditure, we do discuss the effects of this rule elsewhere 
in this preamble.

8. Taking of Private Property

    This rule will not cause a taking of private property or otherwise 
have taking implications under Executive Order 12630, Governmental 
Actions and Interference with Constitutionally Protected Property 
Rights.

9. Civil Justice Reform

    This rule meets applicable standards in sections 3(a) and 3(b)(2) 
of Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice Reform, to minimize litigation, 
eliminate ambiguity, and reduce burden.

10. Protection of Children

    We have analyzed this rule under Executive Order 13045, Protection 
of Children from Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks. This rule 
is not an economically significant rule and does not create an 
environmental risk to health or risk to safety that might 
disproportionately affect children.

11. Indian Tribal Governments

    This rule does not have tribal implications under Executive Order 
13175, Consultation and Coordination with Indian Tribal Governments, 
because it does not have a substantial direct effect on one or more 
Indian tribes, on the relationship between the Federal Government and 
Indian tribes, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities 
between the Federal Government and Indian tribes.

12. Energy Effects

    This rule is not a ``significant energy action'' under Executive 
Order 13211, Actions Concerning Regulations That Significantly Affect 
Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use.

13. Technical Standards

    This rule does not use technical standards. Therefore, we did not 
consider the use of voluntary consensus standards.

14. Environment

    We have analyzed this rule under Department of Homeland Security 
Management Directive 023-01 and Commandant Instruction M16475.lD, which 
guides the Coast Guard in complying with the National Environmental 
Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA)(42 U.S.C. 4321-4370f), and have made a 
determination that this action is one of a category of actions which do 
not individually or cumulatively have a significant effect on the human 
environment. This rule simply promulgates the operating regulations or 
procedures for drawbridges. This rule is categorically excluded, under 
figure 2-1, paragraph (32)(e), of the Instruction.
    Under figure 2-1, paragraph (32)(e), of the Instruction, an 
environmental analysis checklist and a categorical exclusion 
determination are not required for this rule.

List of Subjects in 33 CFR Part 117

    Bridges.

    For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Coast Guard amends 
33 CFR part 117 as follows:

[[Page 56384]]

PART 117--DRAWBRIDGE OPERATION REGULATIONS

0
1. The authority citation for part 117 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  33 U.S.C. 499; 33 CFR 1.05-1; Department of Homeland 
Security Delegation No. 0170.1.


0
2. Effective 8 a.m. on September 18, 2015 to 6 p.m. on May 10, 2016, 
suspend Sec.  117.331 and add Sec.  117.T331 to read as follows:


Sec.  117.T331  Snake Creek.

    The draw of the Snake Creek Bridge, at Islamorada, Florida will 
open on signal, except that from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., the draw need open 
only on the hour.

    Dated: September 8, 2015.
S. A. Buschman,
Rear Admiral, U.S. Coast Guard, Commander, Seventh Coast Guard 
District.
[FR Doc. 2015-23537 Filed 9-17-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9110-04-P