With wildfires still threatening Wyoming’s landscape and livestock, Gov. Mark Gordon has renewed two emergency orders to streamline the transportation of animals and their feed.

Extreme cold weather prompts efforts to prevent shortages. Although some states issued orders several days ago that soon expire, others with longer duration emergency orders are Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, South Dakota and Tennessee. 

A rule recently adopted by FMCSA cuts from 30 to 14 the maximum number of days a state may waive HOS regulations during a state of emergency, a move that has drawn criticism from stakeholders.

Diesel and gasoline shortages prompted the governors of Nebraska and South Dakota to issue emergency executive orders temporarily waiving federal HOS mandates for fuel haulers.

Changes to the HOS rule that went into effect in late 2020 may have increased flexibility for truck drivers, but the percentage of violations rose “significantly higher," according to FMCSA.

The governors of Nebraska and Iowa temporarily waived federal mandates for truck drivers amid greater fuel demand for harvest season and diesel shortages.

In an effort to ease the commercial transport of lobster, a group of Maine lawmakers submitted a request to federal government officials asking to clarify the definition of “livestock” in a recently issued interim final rule.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is proposing to revise regulatory guidance related to how truck drivers record yard moves as part of their hours of service.

FMCSA officials addressed concerns related to the final rule on hours-of-service regulations during an online question-and-answer session on the final rule Dec. 17.

Before the federal government’s revised hours-of-service rules went into effect Sept. 29, suppliers of electronic logging devices were busy updating their software.