News and Announcements


 

ATA Files Petition for Review of HOS:  February 16, 2012

Last week, the American Trucking Association filed a petition with the U.S. Circuit Court of Appealsfor the District of Columbia asking the court to review the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) recently published final rule changing the HOS regs for commercial truck drivers. ATA is taking issue both with certain provisions of the latest hours-of-service (HOS) rule and the regulatory analysis that underlies its provisions. The petition (Docket No. 12-1092) specifically seeks for the court to do no less than “set aside the final rule as arbitrary and capricious and contrary to law.”

 

Specifically, ATA is objecting to two things; (1) the reduction of total driver hours from 82 to 70 per week; and (2) the 34-hour restart provision. “The law is clear about what steps FMCSA must undertake to change the rules and we cannot allow this rulemaking, which was fueled by changed assumptions and analyses that do not meet the required legal standards, to remain unchallenged,” ATA President Bill Graves said in a statement.

 

Before a decision can be made, the petition must work its way through the court system, which will take a while. According to ATA spokesperson Sean McNally, the association at this point “hopes to get a final decision before the new HOS rule goes into effect in July of 2013.” McNally also noted that ATA was “not aware at this point about other [trucking] interest groups petitioning the court.

 

The move is not a surprise to those who have been following this issue closely. There has been an almost constant stream of lawsuits regarding hours of service over the last decade. FMCSA was sued by industry players in 2003, 2006 and 2009. Indeed, the latest rule was prompted by the settlement agreement of the 2009. In the earlier cases, FMCSA has put the new rule on hold while they fight the suit.

 

ATA stated that it will continue to work with FMCSA to implement rules and programs that are based on sound research, and that will have a meaningful, demonstrated impact on highway safety. ATA will support FMCSA’s move toward mandated electronic on-board recorders to ensure greater compliance with the current, effective HOS rules, and to facilitate better enforcement of those effective rules.

 

OTA will continue to bring you the latest information on this petition as it moves through the judicial review process. Watch for further updates

  

 

 

Now Published: HOS Timeline-January 9, 2012

 

The new HOS rules were published to the Federal Register on Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2012. This means the process to transition to the new rules has kicked in. As such, certain provisions of the new rules will be effective on Feb. 27, 2012. To clarify, the majority of the new rules will be implemented later. Below is a breakdown of what to expect and when:

 

Provisions effective on Feb. 27, 2012:  

On-duty time:

No longer includes the time resting in a parked CMV. In a moving property-carrying CMV, does not include up to 2 hours in passenger seat immediately before or after 8 consecutive hours in sleeper-berth. Also applies to passenger-carrying drivers.


Clarification: The rule refers to On-Duty time (time spent driving, unloading, etc.) The only exception to this is for hazmat drivers who may include in attendance time (but no other work) as off-duty time. Again, the time spent reviewing invoices in the client's loading bay does not count as off-duty time; the time spent in a sleeper berth or at rest in another location does.

 

Penalties:

Driving (or allowing a driver to drive) 3 or more hours beyond the driving-time limit may be considered an egregious violation and subject to the maximum civil penalties. Also applies to passenger-carrying drivers.

 

Oilfield Exemption:

"Waiting time" for certain drivers at oilfields must be shown on logbook or electronic equivalent as off duty and identified by annotations in "remarks" or a separate line added to "grid."


 

Remaining provisions will be effective on July 1, 2013. This includes the mandatory breaks every 8 hours and the limit on 34-hour restart rule.

 

 

FMCSA Issues Final Hours of Service Ruling-December 26, 2011

 

Last week, the FMCSA issued the final Hours of Service ruling. As soon as the news was announced, OTA relayed a summary of the changes. After taking more time to analyze and assess, we can now provide you with further details and opinions on what this ruling means for our industry. In a news release, ATA expressed its frustration and disappointment in the Obama administration and called this decision "...an unjustified final rule governing hours-of-service that will do nothing to improve highway safety, but will very likely increase the risk of truck-involved crashes."

ATA President and CEO Bill Graves went on to say that while the announcement was unsurprising, what is surprising is "...that for the first time in the agency's history, FMCSA has chosen to eschew a stream of positive safety data and cave in to a vocal anti-truck minority and issue a rule that will have no positive impact on safety. From the beginning of this process in October 2009, the agency set itself on a course to fix a rule that's not only not broken, but by all objective accounts is working to improve highway safety. Unfortunately, along the way, FMCSA twisted data and, as part of this final rule, is using unjustified causal estimates to justify unnecessary changes."

 

OTA President Debra Dunn joined with other state executives for a conference call with the ATA to discuss the ruling, reactions and determine the next steps to take. Now that the final ruling has been issued, those in the trucking industry need to evaluate how these changes impact their business routine and determine both monetary and productivity costs.

 

"There is no doubt these new rules will impact productivity at a time when our industry is already facing a severe driver shortage," commented Dunn, "More drivers will be needed for the extra trucks that will be on the road as a result of these changes and additional costs will be felt by everyone, from drivers to consumers."

 

Per ATA's press release, by mandating drivers to include two periods between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. as part of a 'restart' period, FMCSA is assuring that every day as America is commuting to work, thousands of truck drivers will be joining them, creating additional and unnecessary congestion and putting motorists and those professional drivers at greater risk. The largest percentage of truck involved crashes occurs between 6 a.m. and noon, so this change not only effectively destroys the provision of the current rule most cited by professional drivers as beneficial, but it will put more trucks on the road during the statistically riskiest time of the day.

 

OTA Chair Dale Lemmons noted, "The single piece of positive news from this ruling is that they left the 11-hour driving time alone and are allowing drivers to record time spent in a parked CMV as off-duty time."

 

Click here for a full comparison of the old versus new HOS rules.

 

ATA is discussing next steps with their HOS sub-committee and OTA will remain actively engaged as things develop, bringing you the latest news through the Express, on our website and through other further informational outreach. OTA does want to know your reaction to this ruling. How will these changes impact you? What is your biggest concern as a result of the FMCSA's action? Send your thoughts and concerns to Debra Dunn at dunn@ortrucking.org.

 

 

Final HOS Rules Released-December 22, 2011
 

As expected, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) announced its final rule on Hours of Service (HOS) today. It is important to note that carriers do not need to comply until July 2013.

 

Highlights from the newly finalized rule include:

 

FMCSA's new HOS final rule reduces by 12 hours the maximum number of hours a truck driver can work within a week. Under the old rule, truck drivers could work on average up to 82 hours within a seven-day period. The new HOS final rule limits a driver's work week to 70 hours.

 

In addition, truck drivers cannot drive after working eight hours without first taking a break of at least 30 minutes. Drivers can take the 30-minute break whenever they need rest during the eight-hour window.

 

The final rule retains the current 11-hour daily driving limit. FMCSA will continue to conduct data analysis and research to further examine any risks associated with the 11 hours of driving time.

 

The rule requires truck drivers who maximize their w.eekly work hours to take at least two nights' rest when their 24-hour body clock demands sleep the most - from 1:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. This rest requirement is part of the rule's "34-hour restart" provision that allows drivers to restart the clock on their work week by taking at least 34 consecutive hours off-duty. The final rule allows drivers to use the restart provision only once during a seven-day period. 

  

Again, carriers will not need to comply with the above until July 2013

 

Click here to read the full FMCSA statement.

 

The rule is being sent to the Federal Register today and is currently available on FMCSA's Web site at www.fmcsa.dot.gov/HOSFinalRule.

 

 

NTSB Proposes Total Cell Phone Ban- December 19, 2011

 

While truck drivers are already experiencing a ban on handheld cell phones, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is now proposing to stop the use of cell phones of any kind. The NTSB recently recommended that all cell phones, handheld or hands free, should be banned for all users; car drivers as well as truckers. This would be the biggest ban of its kind since drunk driving laws were created and fortified. For the time being, this new recommendation is just that - a recommendation. There will be no impact to current regulations as the board does not have the ability to make laws or regulations, merely to advise government through research. The DOT would first have to convince the States to create laws of their own and to enforce them.
 

The DOT does have the authority to regulate cell phone usage for motor carriers (because of the Federal Government's right to regulate commerce), there maybe increased regulations for motor carriers, although not anytime soon. There is no clear consensus from the government that a hands free ban is necessary. Even the FMCSA final rule banning handheld cell phones rejected the idea that hands free is particularly dangerous. For now, at least, a full ban is a long way off, but drivers can expect increased enforcement of the current laws and regulations.

 

 

It's Official: Ban of Hand-Held Cell Phones

 

U.S. Transportation Secretary LaHood has announced the final rule specifically prohibiting interstate truck and bus drivers from using hand-held cell phones while operating their vehicles. The joint rule from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) is the latest action by the U.S. Department of Transportation to end distracted driving. The final rule prohibits commercial drivers from using a hand-held mobile telephone while operating a commercial truck or bus. Drivers who violate the restriction will face federal civil penalties of up to $2,750 for each offense and disqualification from operating a commercial motor vehicle for multiple offenses. Additionally, states will suspend a driver's commercial driver's license (CDL) after two or more serious traffic violations. Commercial truck and bus companies that allow their drivers to use hand-held cell phones while driving will face a maximum penalty of $11,000.

  

Specifically the rule allows for the continued use of hands free devices stating,"The Agency (FMCSA) does not believe sufficient data exist to justify a ban of both hand-held and hands-free use of mobile telephones by drivers operating CMVs in interstate commerce." Note also that the rule bans the use of push-to-talk technology which the agencies consider to be cell phone technology but does not ban the use of CB radios because "The use of CB and two-way radios and other electronic devices by CMV drivers for other functions is outside the scope of consideration in this rulemaking."

 

"OTA's reaction is a mixed one. While OTA supports steps to reduce distracted driving we have consistently supported push to talk capabilities when using cell phones, CBs and two-way radios.  Mobile communication in freight delivery is essential," said OTA President Debra Dunn.

 

This more complete rule follows the Sept. 2010 FMCSA regulation that banned text messaging while operating a commercial truck or bus and the Feb. 2011 companion regulation from PHMSA banning texting by intrastate hazardous materials drivers. Several of the largest truck and bus companies also implemented company policies that banning their drivers from using hand-held phones.

 

While results of driver distraction studies remain mixed, FMCSA research shows that using a hand-held cell phone while driving causes a commercial driver to take several risky steps beyond what is required if using a hands-free mobile phone, including searching and reaching for the phone. 

 

Approximately four million commercial drivers will be affected by this final rule. Click here to read the full text of the rule.

 

 

More on Medical Certifications & CDL-November 30, 2011 

 

At a recent Motor Carrier Transportation Advisory meeting, OTA President Debra Dunn received further clarification on the impact of the new federal rules and state law that requires drivers to maintain medical qualifications while holding a CDL. These changes that go into effect Jan. 30, 2012 mean Oregon DMV will require commercial truck and bus drivers to submit a photocopy of their medical certificate to continue holding a commercial driver license. The federal regulations require that state DMVs withdraw commercial driving privileges for drivers who do not maintain medical qualifications for their type of commercial vehicle operation.The Department of Motor Vehicles distributed a handout to the meeting attendees. Click here for a scanned copy of the handout. You can also find more details and answers to frequently-asked questions online on the ODOT website. Please contact Debra Dunn at dunn@ortrucking.org or 503/513-0005 with any questions.

 

In related news,  truck drivers must continue to keep a copy of their medical certificate with them for another year, while states gear up to implement an electronic system for tracking the certificates. The possession requirement was supposed to end January 30, 2012, but the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said it needs to give states more time to get the automated system in place. In that system, drivers will submit their certificates to the state licensing bureaus, which will in turn add the medical data to Commercial Driver Licensing Information System database, which roadside enforcement officials can access. A number of states will not be able to get the data transmitted in time to meet the 2012 deadline, so FMCSA is pushing it back to January 30, 2014.

 

New CDL Medical Certification Requirements-FAQs-November 30, 2011