Amendment to suspend part of HOS regulations is approved by House and Senate

With the United States Senate following the lead of the House of Representatives, last week it signed off on the $1.1 trillion fiscal year 2015 appropriations bill, which will now head to President Obama to be signed into law.

As previously reported, the bill includes a one-year suspension of certain components of the federal motor carriers hours-of-service (HOS) rule.

The suspension is tied to the HOS rule’s restart provisions that took effect on July 1, 2013. The restart rules drafted by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration require truckers who maximize their weekly work hours must take at least two nights’ rest when their 24-hour body clock demands sleep the most—from 1:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m.

This rest requirement allows drivers to restart the clock on their workweek by taking at least 34 consecutive hours off-duty. The final rule allows drivers to use the restart provision only once during a seven-day period.

Since the new HOS rules, especially the aforementioned restart rule, took effect roughly 18 months ago trucking stakeholders have cited lost productivity due to the restart that has crimped capacity, which was already tight for various reasons, including a significant driver shortage.

The impetus for the temporary suspension of the HOS restart provision stems from a June 2014 amendment from Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine) that was approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee ahead of signing off on a $54.4 billion Fiscal Year 2015 federal transportation bill.

The goal of the mandate is to suspend the new HOS restart rules for one year and during that time have the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration study the rule during that time to analyze its safety benefits and provide an understanding if how the restart changes impact drivers, as well as safety and productivity issues in trucking.

Critics of the current 34-hour restart rule that requires drivers to take two consecutive periods of 1:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. say that it pushes drivers into riskier daytime driving, with, the one-year suspension lifting the restriction on using the restart more than once every 168 hours or one week.

News of both chambers of Congress voting to approve this bill was warmly welcomed by the American Trucking Associations (ATA).

“We have known since the beginning that the federal government did not properly evaluate the potential impacts of the changes it made in July 2013,” said ATA President and CEO Bill Graves. “Now, thanks to the hard work of Senator Collins and many others, we have a common sense solution. Suspending these restrictions until all the proper research can be done is a reasonable step.”

Deutsche Bank analyst Robert Salmon wrote in a research note that the relief provided by suspending the consecutive rest shifts “could effectively increase capacity for carriers currently complying with the HOS rules though the effective net increase will vary depending on mix (we expect the impact to be roughly 2-3 percent on average in today’s freight market for carriers that are following the letter of the law (and no impact for fleets that are operating rogue) though some TLs estimate the impact to be closer to 1 percent.”

The ATA’s Graves explained that self-appointed trucking industry critics have used “deceptive tactics and outright lies to paint what, by any measure, is a reasonable resolution to a potentially serious safety problem.”

The ATA has repeatedly said that the primary issue with the restart rules is that they push more trucks onto the road during daytime hours, which they said is a consequence the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration failed to fully analyze from a safety standpoint.

Mike Regan, chief relationship officer at TranzAct Technologies, said that the ATA’s efforts and the Collins’ amendment are “common sense solutions” that can help the industry.

“The 34 hour restart [rule] is a drain on both the carrier community and the shipper one, ultimately, resulting in impacts to the end consumer,” said Jeff Brady, director of transportation for Harry & David, a multi-channel specialty retailer. “Trucking impacts the entire economy and with the last several decades of no cohesive highway infrastructure plans; the increases in congestion, at critical times of the day none the less, is impacting capacity. Capacity in trucking, or lack thereof, creates higher costs to get capacity commitments from an ever shrinking carrier base.”

Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Anthony Foxx wrote in a letter to Representative Hal Rogers (R-Ky.), and Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), chairs of the House and Senate Appropriations committees that he strongly opposes the Collins amendment that would suspend the 34-hour restart provision.

“I am compelled by the evidence available to me to implore you to reject any such suspension, he wrote. “The provision at issue is a central element of a comprehensive rule that ensures that truck drivers have adequate rest when operating on our highways. It is essential for the safety of our truck drivers and the safety of families and loved ones who share the road with them. This regulatory provision (like all other aspects of the rule) was developed based on sound data and analysis. The evidence clearly shows that truck drivers are better rested and more alert after two nights of sleep than one night, and that unending 80-hour work weeks lead to driver fatigue and compromise highway safety.”