Cramer: New Hours of Service Rules a Good Step Forward in Bringing Permanent Relief to State Truckers

Statement

Congressman Kevin Cramer issued the following statement on proposed revisions to four areas of regulations for commercial truck drivers. The new Hours of Service and Electric Logging Device (ELD) rules issued today by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), cover short-haul operations, adverse driving conditions, 30-minute break, and split sleeper-berth restrictions. Comments will be accepted on the proposed rules for the next 30 days.

"During Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao's visit to Bismarck on Aug. 6, I was able to share with her again how devastating these new hours of service rules have been especially to North Dakota producers and small commercial truckers. It is clear she listened, just like this Administration has been doing for the past few years, and I'm pleased to see these revised rules proposed. They are a good step forward in bringing relief to commercial truckers. I have taken every opportunity in the House to relieve this regulatory burden, and will continue to work to pass a permanent solution to these unreasonable regulations. It is perhaps the issue I have heard most about in the last several months in my talk radio townhalls and other formats. In fact, I was even lobbied by two truck drivers as I walked through the State Fair parade shaking hands with people. It's a big issue and I'm glad to see the Trump Administration making some moves to provide relief."

The FMCSA's proposed rules include the following:

Expanding 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;

Extending the current 14-hour on-duty limitation by up to two hours when a truck driver encounters adverse driving conditions;

Revising the current mandatory 30-minute break for truck drivers after 8-hours of continuous driving; and

Reinstating the option for splitting up the required 10-hour off-duty rest break for drivers operating trucks that are equipped with a sleeper-berth compartment.

Cramer has supported ongoing efforts in Congress to ensure ELD and Hours of Service regulations do not negatively impact livestock haulers. He supported the provision in the March Omnibus Bill, which guarantees livestock haulers a reprieve from the ELD mandate through the end of the Fiscal Year 2018. Last December, Cramer signed a letter to House Leadership to exempt livestock haulers from the mandate and was an early co-sponsor of H.R. 3282, the ELD Extension Act, to delay the rule by two years.

In addition, Cramer signed a letter to FMCSA to exempt small trucking businesses with exemplary safety records from the mandate for a period of five years. The application stipulates only motor carriers with a record of no at-fault crashes would be exempted and those with an "unsatisfactory" safety rating from the agency would not be eligible.

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