FMCSA Denies HOS Delay
This story appears in the March 4 print edition of Transport Topics.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration announced it won’t delay the July 1 start date for enforcing the latest changes to its hours-of-service rule for truck drivers.
American Trucking Associations in January asked FMCSA not to enforce parts of the rule until three months after pending litigation ends. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is scheduled to hear oral arguments in the case March 15.
“Mere uncertainty over the possible outcome of the litigation, which you recognize is a matter over which the parties differ, does not create likelihood that the industry or the enforcement community will suffer harm due to wasted training resources or confusion,” FMCSA responded in a Feb. 22 letter to ATA, which the agency provided to Transport Topics.
Following FMCSA’s decision, ATA said driver training, software updates and other preparations for the July implementation date will cost the trucking industry $320 million — money that will be wasted if the court overturns or changes the rule.
“At a time of rising diesel prices, increased equipment and labor costs, the decision by the head of FMCSA to reject a reasonable request for a brief delay in enforcing this rule is unbelievable,” ATA President Bill Graves said in a statement.
ATA said the $320 million figure does not include costs to shippers and others in the supply chain, nor costs to state enforcement agencies that must spend taxpayer money to adapt to the changes.
However, FMCSA said it believes the rule is valid and not likely to be delayed if ATA asked a federal court to impose a stay, or court-ordered delay.
ATA opposes a provision of the rule that restricts use of the 34-hour restart. It allows truck drivers to reset their weekly driving limits of 60 hours in seven days, or 70 hours in eight days, if they rest for 34 hours. Truck drivers will now be able to use the restart only once every seven days, and the restart will have to include two periods from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m.
Additionally, drivers will now have to take 30-minute breaks before driving more than eight hours continuously, another provision ATA is seeking to have overturned.
The agency used the wrong standard to judge whether it should delay the rule, ATA General Counsel Prasad Sharma said in a reply to FMCSA. Instead of determining whether ATA showed good cause for the delay, FMCSA made its conclusion based on whether it believed the court would delay it.
ATA said it is considering options for additional action, including asking the court to force a delay.
The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance requested the same delay as ATA, saying law enforcement agencies preferred to avoid “potentially duplicative and unnecessary training.”
“We’re disappointed about it,” said Steve Keppler, the group’s executive director. “We think that the potential of having to train and retrain people is problematic, and it’s a potential big impact on the use of resources.”
Law enforcement agencies take months to train for regulatory changes. Keppler said those agencies will probably train as if the rule will take effect July 1 and alter the schedule only if the court decision merits it.
The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, which is participating in ATA’s litigation, had said it agreed with ATA’s request.
OOIDA was “disappointed” to learn that FMCSA refused to delay enforcement, spokeswoman Norita Taylor said.
Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety did not take a position on ATA’s request, said Henry Jasny, Advocates’ general counsel.
Along with the Truck Safety Coalition and Public Citizen, Advocates also seeks to overturn the latest changes, arguing they should be more restrictive and daily driving hours should be cut to 10 from 11.
“It makes sense that they decided to stick with their legal position that they’re right, and everybody else is wrong,” Jasny said about FMCSA’s decision. “If they grant that, then it looks like they’re showing a sign that they feel they might lose the case, and they don’t want to do that.”
The current court challenge is the fourth lawsuit against the hours-of-service rule in the last decade.
After FMCSA added the 11th driving hour, Public Citizen and its allies convinced the D.C. court in 2004 and 2007 to overturn the changes. Both times, however, the agency issued a similar new rule after the court’s decision.
Public Citizen settled another lawsuit in 2009 after FMCSA agreed to reconsider the rule again. The agency published its most recent changes in December 2011.
