Florida Sets Anti-Idling Rule; Compliance Delayed Until December

Florida’s Environmental Regulation Commission has approved a rule barring heavy-duty trucks from idling longer than five minutes.

The commission approved the rule with an amendment that delayed the effective date until Dec. 15, which Florida Trucking Association President Mary Lou Rajchel said “was very important in order to begin the educational outreach process about the rule requirements.”

Rajchel said FTA and the Department of Environmental Protection were working together on education and compliance assistance and expected that DEP would develop a penalty schedule by the time the rule is formally filed and re-published.

Under DEP’s general enforcement authority, an air regulation violation carries a $1,000 fine.

Drivers in sleeping berths are exempted until 2013, and other exemptions include idling during vehicle inspections, during necessary functions such as operating a lift, crane, pump or drill, or for a safety or health emergency.