Examining the options after US rules overturned

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WASHINGTON, DC — Now that the new US hours of service regulations have been deemed “illegal” and ordered back to the drawing board, what will happen next?

The Canadian Trucking Alliance advises that within the next few days the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit will issue its formal decision on the matter, which will give the date on which it will become effective; and then the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) will have 45 days to consider its course of action. There appear to be three obvious courses of action that FMCSA can take:

– An appeal to the United States Supreme Court but this can only be done on constitutional grounds
– To rescind the current rules and revert to the previous rules and eventually promulgate new rules within a specified period of time
– To continue with the current rules and promulgate new rules within a specified period of time.

FMCSA administrator, Annette Sandberg, pointing out that under the court’s rules of procedure, the FMCSA will have 45 days to review the decision and choose its next course of action, said federal authorities and state law enforcement partners will be advised they are to continue complying with and enforcing the current HOS rules.

Under the current HOS rules, drivers’ hours of service on-duty time was reduced from 15 hours to 14 hours in any 24-hour period. But actual driving time was increased one hour from 10 to 11 hours.

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Truck News is Canada's leading trucking newspaper - news and information for trucking companies, owner/operators, truck drivers and logistics professionals working in the Canadian trucking industry.


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