Video: CVTA Urges No Further Delays to Entry-Level Driver Training Rule
Delaying the publication of an entry-level driver training rule again would take time away from states needing to comply with the rule, the head of a group representing truck driving schools said April 11.
“The effect of not implementing the effective date means that the state legislatures can’t technically adopt the rule because it hasn’t completely been finalized, yet,” Don Lefeve, president and CEO of the Commercial Vehicle Training Association, told Transport Topics.
CVTA took issue with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s announcement in March that it would delay the publication of the driver training rule until May 22. The agency had rescheduled the rule’s publication date to March 21 after it had indicated it would publish the rule in February. The agency cited a need to review the rule under a directive by the Trump White House.
“I think generally if it goes much beyond that (May 22), I think you’re going to see, you’ll probably see some more legal action,” he added.
Lefeve wrote to Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao on March 22 to say that the rule did not fall under the White House’s directive issued in January.
“Even if the Feb. 1 delay had been appropriate, the March 21 delay was not,” he wrote. The secretary’s office had not responded to the association about his letter, Lefeve said.
In a statement shortly after the latest delay, FMCSA said: “The ELDT rule is part of the DOT’s ongoing regulatory review. It is scheduled to go into effect on May 22, 2017.”
When it is formally unveiled, stakeholders will have until February 2020 to comply. The rule requires that behind-the-wheel proficiency of an entry-level truck and bus driver be determined solely by the instructor’s evaluation of how well the driver-trainee performs the fundamental vehicle control skills and driving procedures set forth in courses.
The final rule is a requirement under the 2012 MAP-21 highway law.
