A highly anticipated electronic onboard recorder (EOBR) rulemaking has moved another step closer to finality. The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) recently finished its review of the rule and has returned it to the Department of Transportation (DOT). The final EOBR rule is expected to be published in the Federal Register by the end of March.
If publication comes soon enough, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) would be able to discuss the new rule at its fifth Hours of Service (HOS) listening session on March 26 at the Mid-America Trucking Show (MATS) in Louisville, Ky.
Although details are not yet available, motor carriers who demonstrated a history of serious noncompliance with the HOS rules and other safety issues would be subject to mandatory installation of EOBRs. The motor carrier would then be required to install EOBRs in all of its CMVs and to use the devices for HOS recordkeeping for a period of two years. In addition, FMCSA would also encourage industry-wide voluntary use of EOBRs by providing incentives for motor carriers, and will spell out new performance standards for the EOBR devices that will be used.
The EOBR issue isn't settled once FMCSA publishes this rule, however. The FMCSA has said it will consider further expanding the number of motor carriers required to install EOBRs as part of a rulemaking that also will address supporting documents for HOS compliance. FMCSA says it will consider reducing or eliminating paperwork burdens associated with supporting documents in favor of expanded EOBR use.
In another development, FMCSA sent its proposal for banning text messaging while driving over to the White House OMB, as part of its effort to combat distracted driving. Earlier this year, FMCSA issued regulatory guidance outlawing texting by drivers, but said they would also be issuing a series of rules to support that guidance. Several states have said they either cannot, or do not, intend to enforce the ban until there is a firm rule in place.
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.
On March 11, 2010, the Indianapolis Traffic Club (ITC) held their first major event of the year. Former FMCSA Administrator John Hill spoke to a sellout crowd in Indianapolis as he discussed CSA 2010 and other FMCSA initiatives we can expect in the year ahead.
Driving Ambition, Inc. and National Transportation, Inc. co-sponsored the seminar that kept nearly 100 attendees captivated as John Hill gave his unique perspective on the FMCSA's goals in 2010.
Trucking companies as well as CDL drivers will benefit from the information presented by Mr. Hill. To view the entire presentation, please click here.
Left to right: Jeremy Reymer, President & CEO of Driving Ambition; Former FMCSA Administrator John Hill; Ryan Walter, Corporate Rental Manager of Palmer Leasing Group.
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.
The American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) has been commissioned to collect and analyze motor carrier safety and operational data to help inform the upcoming Hours-of-Service (HOS) rulemaking process. All fleets are encouraged to complete the short survey, which can be found on the
ATRI website, by March 24, 2010.
The data collected by ATRI from this effort will be cleansed of identifying information and aggregated to ensure that the results are not attributable to any one company. The results will be used by ATA to continue to educate FMCSA leadership and staff on driver and carrier operational practices and safety experience under the current rule.
FMCSA agreed to "review and reconsider" the HOS rules to settle a lawsuit brought on by Public Citizen and other groups. As part of this process, FMCSA will review the entire rule, with a special focus on the 11-hour driving limit and the 34-hour restart provision. FMCSA must prepare a proposed rule and submit it to the White House's Office of Management and Budget (OMB) by mid-July 2010.
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.
Last week, the FMCSA issued regulatory guidance saying that states that participate in the Unified Carrier Registration Agreement (UCRA) could collect fees for 2010 at the rates in effect for 2009, if the states did not include trailer equipment in the fee calculation. Then states could go back and reassess carriers for any difference once the federal rulemaking to set the 2010 fees is completed later this year.
On March 11, the UCRA Board of Directors held its first meeting since FMCSA's notice, and voted 10 to 1 to prohibit states from collecting any UCRA fees for 2010 until FMCSA publishes a final rule resetting fees for the program, or until further notice from the Board.
Based on the discussion at the Board meeting, it was decided that attempting to collect under the FMCSA guidance would lead to severe administrative problems for the program. The Board's resolution has been circulated to all of the states that participate in the UCRA. The federal rulemaking to set the 2010 fees is now at the federal Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for final review, and its issuance is anticipated this summer.
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.
By Les Nugen, Marvin Johnson & Associates
The "good driver" has been given a bad name in a lot of companies. So much so that I am ready to proclaim that the "good driver" will be the one that puts you out of business. But Les, don't we all want good drivers working for us you ask? How can a good driver possibly put us out of business? Well, the answer depends on whose definition of a good driver that you use.
Let me give some all too frequent examples of how a good driver is defined:
- A driver tests positive on a drug test. The company wants to make an exception to their zero tolerance policy and keep him because - he is a "good driver".
- A driver has 3 out of service inspections, several speeding stops, and a following too closely showing on Safestat in just over a year and the company wants to keep her because - she is a "good driver".
- We analyze your collisions over the past several years and find that the same drivers show up several times in preventable accidents and they are kept around because - they are "good drivers".
When did the definition of a good driver get so twisted around anyway? A good driver does not behave anything like the scenarios listed above. A good driver does not put themselves, the people around them, or your company at risk. The drivers in the scenarios above repeatedly put all of these at risk.
The drivers in these scenarios are poison to company morale. Many drivers that are actually good drivers do not want to drive for companies who retain these types of drivers. If you have policies in place that are meant to control these types of behaviors then making exceptions to them to keep one of these drivers only makes the other drivers frustrated and untrusting of management.
With the changes coming about due to CSA 2010 these "good drivers" are going to lead to all kinds of interventions and interactions with the FMCSA. Eventually this can only lead to bad outcomes if enough of these interventions take place. Another issue that is starting to worry many legal experts in the industry is that with the new information that will be available to you on drivers' histories that there could be increases in accident settlements and negligent hiring or retention law suits. It is easier to make the case for this when the attorney can show that the driver had a pattern of violations and the company ignored it.
Knowing all of this, let's quit giving the actual good drivers in the industry a bad name. Drivers who have bad safety records are not good drivers no matter how many loads they will deliver on time or when dispatch is in a pinch. A truly good driver delivers the freight AND does it safely. In fact, why don't you go tell your drivers that really are good drivers how much you appreciate the job that they do for you. These drivers are the key to your company's success going forward.
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.
The FMCSA will hold another Hours of Service (HOS) public listening session at the
Mid-America Trucking Show (MATS)in Louisville, KY. This will be the fifth such session the agency has held in preparation for revisions to the current HOS rule. The session will take place on Friday, March 26, from 10am until 6pm, and will allow for public comment.
Pre-registration for the fifth HOS listening session is not required. Participants will register at MATS, but once inside, there is no registration required for the listening session. Participants will need to indicate at the registration desk whether or not they will be making a 10-minute presentation. There will be no advantage in the speaking schedule by arriving early for registration. The contractor coordinating the listening sessions will decide the order of presentations. Each session will continue until all participants have been given the opportunity to speak. For registration and attendee information for MATS, please click here.
FMCSA personnel will present the typical opening comments. There will not be a Q & A session directed at FMCSA personnel. The agency will listen to what the participants have to say. The questions raised in the Federal Register notice will not be specifically addressed. The participants can choose to respond to these questions or not.
The FMCSA aims to complete a draft rewrite of the HOS rule by the middle of July. The draft will go to the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for vetting, and then be published as a proposed rule (NPRM) and opened to public comment. For more detailed information on the five listening sessions, visit the FMCSA's HOS page by clicking here.