Acting FMCSA chief says progress is being made on final HOS rule

While the motor carrier hours-of-service (HOS) final rule has ostensibly been on the back burner since the Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration issued a notice of proposed rule making (NPRM) geared towards HOS rule changes, with an emphasis on increasing safety through updating existing commercial motor vehicle driver regulations last August, it appears now that the wheels may be turning on the potential next steps for a final rule.

That was made clear in an announcement made by FMCSA Acting Administrator Jim Mullen at this week’s Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) conference in Atlanta, which were provided to LM by FMCSA officials.

“After carefully reviewing these comments, I am pleased to announce today that FMCSA is moving forward with a final rule on hours-of-service and that the Agency has sent a final rule to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review,” said Mullen. “While I can’t go into the specifics of this final rule, please know that the goal of this process from the beginning has been to improve safety for all motorists and to increase flexibility for commercial drivers.”

When the HOS final rule NPRM was issued last August, DOT Secretary Elaine Chao said that this proposed rule seeks to enhance safety by giving America’s commercial drivers more flexibility while maintaining the safety limits on driving time. And former FMCSA Administrator Ray Martinez added, at the time, that FMCSA wants drivers and all CMV stakeholders to share their thoughts and opinions on the proposed changes to hours of service rules that it is putting forward today.

FMCSA officials said that when the NPRM was issued that this proposal would not increase driving time and would continue to prevent CMV operators without at least a 30-minute change in duty status. They also said that the proposed rule is estimated to provide $274 million in savings for the United States economy and its consumers.

The FMCSA’s proposed HOS rule is focused on the following areas:

• increasing safety and flexibility for the 30 minute break rule by tying the break requirement to eight hours of driving time without an interruption for at least 30 minutes, and allowing the break to be satisfied by a driver using on duty, not driving status, rather than off duty;
• modifying the sleeper-berth exception to allow drivers to split their required 10 hours off duty into two periods: one period of at least seven consecutive hours in the sleeper berth and the other period of not less than two consecutive hours, either off duty or in the sleeper berth. Neither period would count against the driver’s 14‑hour driving window;
• allowing one off-duty break of at least 30 minutes, but not more than three hours, that would pause a truck driver’s 14-hour driving window, provided the driver takes 10 consecutive hours off-duty at the end of the work shift;
• modifying the adverse driving conditions exception by extending by two hours the maximum window during which driving is permitted; and
• a change to the short-haul exception available to certain commercial drivers by lengthening the drivers’ maximum on‑duty period from 12 to 14 hours and extending the distance limit within which the driver may operate from 100 air miles to 150 air miles

In July 2019, the Associated Press reported that the DOT was taking steps to “relax” the current HOS rules, which many view as another example of the Trump administration’s de-regulation efforts, which are viewed favorably by business interests, if not safety interests.

While motor carriers yearn for more flexibility in current HOS rules, in order to be more efficient, the report made it clear that safety concerns remain paramount, citing a May report issued by the FMCSA, which said there were 4,657 large trucks involved in fatal crashes in 2017, a 10% increase over 2016.  

At the Mid-America Trucking Show (MATS) in Louisville, Ky. in May 2019, DOT Secretary Chao said that the DOT has listened to truckers screaming for more flexibility in HOS regulations and that the department has reacted.

DOT also is mulling some changes to HOS. Specifically, DOT is considering whether to expand the current 100 air-mile “short-haul” exemption from 12 hours on-duty to 14 hours on-duty, in order to be consistent with the rules for long-haul truck drivers; this would mostly help the LTL sector, which is pushing the change.

Jeff Mercadante, vice president of safety for Pitt Ohio, which perennially ranks at the top of listings of the safest fleets in America, says the 100 air-mile short-haul exemption would be favorable to many less-than-truckload (LTL) carriers.

“That’s great for the short haul industry,” Mercadante  said. “It helps the LTL sector but doesn’t do much for truckload carriers, which have different types of operations. We’re in favor of that. If you look at all our drivers, only 3% of city drivers get into 12 hours of driving.”

Another change DOT is considering is whether to extend the current 14-hour on-duty limitation by up to two hours when a truck driver encounters adverse driving conditions. This would mostly help truckload drivers who get detained by weather or accidents.

A major force to changing the 14-hour on-duty limitation has been the OOIDA who says owner-operators specifically need more flexibility. Since law enforcement began strict enforcement of the electronic logging devices (ELDs) in April of last year, independent owner-operators say the 14-hour on-duty clock has been an issue.

Currently, truck drivers may drive a maximum of 11 hours after 10 consecutive hours off duty. But truckers may not drive beyond the 14th consecutive hour after coming on duty, following 10 consecutive hours off duty. Off-duty time does not extend the 14-hour period.

Truckers may not drive after 60/70 hours on duty in 7/8 consecutive days. A driver may restart a 7/8 consecutive day period after taking 34 or more consecutive hours off duty. A previous requirement that drivers must include at least two breaks when driving at night between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. has been suspended for the time being.