U.S. Representative Richard Hanna (R.-N.Y.) and 51 Members of Congress have sent a letter to Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx reiterating concerns about the Hours-of-Service (HOS) final rule and the fact that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has yet to complete a required field study.
The letter asks Secretary Foxx to establish and provide the date on which the efficacy study on the newly revised 34-hour restart provision required by MAP-21 will be completed and submitted to Congress. The signatories request a response by Sept. 12, 2013.
This is the second letter sent by Congress in recent weeks.
The Members of Congress said the new regulations were enacted without proper study and strictly limit the use of the 34-hour restart provisions, mandate inflexible rest periods, decrease driver flexibility, and raise costs for the trucking industry that would be passed on to American small businesses and consumers.
“The government has an obligation to properly study the economic and safety impact of regulations it enacts on industries such as commercial trucking, asphalt, concrete and other construction businesses. These rules have real-world implications for small businesses, workers, and consumers,” Rep. Hanna said. “FMCSA enacted these new HOS rules without even completing a valid field study. The Department should commit to a timeline for completing the study and submitting its report to Congress so that lawmakers can properly consider the costs and benefits of the rule and whether or not it makes sense moving forward.”
MAP-21 directed FMCSA to conduct a statistically-valid field study by March 31, 2013. Although FMCSA missed this deadline, it finalized and enacted a new HOS rule for commercial truck drivers on July 1.
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