New Truck Driver HOS Deadline Looms - What's Next?
The past month has provided the trucking industry with plenty of drama surrounding a pending Hours of Service (HOS) rule change. As the agreed upon deadline continues to draw nearer, there have been numerous conflicting reports on whether the deadline will be met and whether we’ll actually even see a change of any significance.
October 28 Deadline
The FMCSA has yet to budge from the October 28 deadline to publish a new HOS rule for truck drivers. The regulatory process requires the rule to be vetted by the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which can take as long as 60-90 days to review a rulemaking and make recommendations for changes. As of October 20, the new rule has not yet been sent to OMB for review.
Some believe that DOT and OMB have been in constant conversation concerning the final rule. However, at this point, it’s hard to believe we’ll see a new rule on or before October 28, even though the OMB has agreed to “fast track” the new rule. In a recent statement, FMCSA Administrator Anne Ferro indicated that they are still working toward meeting the deadline: “OMB has its review process that it has to go through…we’re all working to get a final rule as close as we can to October 28.”
Letter-Writing
The proposed HOS rule has been a political “hot potato”. Members of the Republican Party have been vocal in their opposition to the HOS rule, whereas Democrats have been generally supportive.
Republican leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives have asked President Obama to withdraw the administration’s proposed changes to the hours-of-service rules for commercial drivers. House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA), in an Oct. 5 letter, asked President Obama to withdraw the pending rewrite and stick with the current rules. This followed an even stronger letter by Rep. John Mica (R-FL), Chairman of the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, warning that the Committee will challenge any changes to the current rules.
Not to be outdone, highway safety advocates and the Teamsters Union have joined in the letter-writing campaign, asking President Obama to “expeditiously move forward” on the new HOS rule. Their Oct. 7 letter said the “proposed HOS reform rule will have an overdue and positive impact on highway safety, create more industry jobs, and improve the overall health of truck drivers.” In addition, the letter stated that the proposed rule will save the American public more than $2 billion.
Amendment
Senator Kelly Ayotte (R-NH), a member of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, recently introduced an amendment to the fiscal 2012 transportation spending bill that would cut off funds to enforce or implement the new HOS rule. The Ayotte amendment to HR2112 would ensure that none of the funds be used to “finalize, enforce or implement the hours-of-service regulations proposed by the FMCSA on December 29, 2010.”
Sen. Ayotte labeled the effort to rewrite the HOS rule as "yet another heavy-handed federal regulation that would disrupt business operations and increase costs for the trucking industry and consumers”.
More Letter-Writing
In response to the amendment, DOT Secretary Ray LaHood sent a letter to Sen. Ayotte urging her not to pursue the amendment.
The contents of LaHood’s letter hint at significant changes to HOS: “This administration is in the final stages of issuing a final rule that will address the critical safety issues of the rules governing work hours for professional truck drivers. In the interest of highway safety, I urge you not to introduce this amendment.” The letter went on to state that, “the amendment would prevent the FMCSA from applying the most comprehensive and up-to-date data and analysis to the issue of driver fatigue and allowable hours of service.”
LaHood said the final rule would give some carriers “new operational flexibility,” and any “disruption to the regulatory process would sacrifice those benefits...the final rule, if put in jeopardy, potentially undermines the entire regulatory process.”
What’s Next?
If LaHood’s letter is any indication, it appears we’ll be seeing unwelcome HOS changes. However, with the Oct. 28 deadline rapidly approaching, it seems that the earliest the HOS rule will be published is sometime late in 2011. Once the rule is published, there will likely be an implementation delay of perhaps 3-6 months to allow carriers, drivers, shippers and enforcement officials to readjust their schedules and compliance programs. Of course, it is also likely that the final rule will be challenged in federal court (the rule has already been challenged in court three times since 2003). The court of appeals may issue of a stay of any changes in the rule until the court can decide the merits of the appeal.
Stay Tuned!
Driving Ambition is a premier CDL truck driver staffing company serving Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Since 2001, we have specialized in matching safe, experienced CDL drivers for our customers and great job opportunities for our professional truck drivers.
Our commitment to safety and building solid working relationships with both customers and CDL drivers has allowed us to earn an unparalleled reputation with our Proven Drivers and Exceptional Service.