Hours Reform Must Come From New Carrier Office, ATA Tells Slater

American Trucking Associations has asked the federal government to wait until a new motor carrier administration is in place before moving ahead on proposing the long-awaited changes in hours-of-service rules.

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ATA President Walter B. McCormick Jr. told Transportation Secretary Rodney Slater recently that his group would like to see the rulemaking – now tentatively scheduled to be issued by the end of this year – be proposed by the new modal agency, and not the current department. The House has passed legislation to create the National Motor Carrier Administration, while the Senate will not take up the bill before 2000.

“We’re looking for final action” on the new hours rule, McCormick said. “Proposed rules most quickly move when they are credible and when the agency promulgating them is fully involved in the process of developing them.

“Given the fact that Congress is now creating the agency that will be ultimately responsible for finalizing and enforcing these rules, we believe it should also be the agency that’s allowed to propose them.”

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