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HOS Court Battle Starts Next Month


By TruckingInfo Staff

The court battle over the hours-of-service rule gets under way in July, according to a schedule posted last week by the appeals court.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has consolidated lawsuits by a number of trucking groups that believe the rule is too restrictive, and by several safety advocacy groups that believe the rule is too liberal.

Briefs are due starting July 24. Reply briefs are due October 24, and final briefs are due November 21. The date for oral arguments is not yet set.

American Trucking Associations last February asked the court to set aside the rule as arbitrary and capricious. It said the agency overstated the safety benefits of the new rule and that the costs outweigh the claimed benefits.

Specifically, ATA objects to the restart provision, which requires two rest breaks between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. with 34 hours and which limits the use of the restart to once every 168 hours. The association also objects to 30-minute rest-break requirement.

The Owner Operator Independent Drivers Association and the Truckload Carriers Association intervened in the case in support of ATA.

The safety advocacy groups, including Public Citizen and Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, charge that the rule falls short by not cutting the daily driving limit from 11 to 10 hours. They also object to the restart provision, which they say promotes cumulative fatigue.

Related Stories:

1/30/2012 Hours of Service: Did FMCSA Find a Sweet Spot?

2/15/2012 ATA Suing to Overturn Hours of Service Rule

2/27/2012 Safety Groups Go to Court Over New HOS Rule

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In the House highway bill unveiled yesterday, Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., finally revealed what he meant when he said he will challenge the new hours of service rule. The bill could force the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to rewrite the 34-hour restart provision of the rule, which limits the restart to once a week with two sleep periods from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m….
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2/1/2012 – House Highway Bill Would Allow Heavier Trucks

The House of Representatives yesterday unveiled its version of a new highway program that would spend $260 billion over five years. The bill trims the Department of Transportation by consolidating or eliminating programs, gives states a greater say in how they spend federal money and speeds up the project approval process….
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1/31/2012 – EPA Sets Penalties for Emissions Non-Compliance
Navistar Inc. may have to pay penalties of up to $1,900 per engine if it cannot meet heavy diesel emission standards, according to a new Environmental Protection Agency rule….
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1/30/2012 – Hours of Service: Did FMCSA Find a Sweet Spot?
Almost no one is happy about the new hours of service rule. Maybe that means the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration made the moves that will lead to stability, at long last.

Or maybe not….
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1/30/2012 – BTS Releases Interactive State Transportation Facts and Figures
The Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics released State Transportation Facts and Figures, an interactive web transportation mapping application that allows customers to find and download state-by-state transportation data, comparisons and rankings….
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1/26/2012 – Carriers Responding to New Health Care Costs
More than 80% of carriers report that recent health care changes will adversely affect them, according to the recent fourth quarter national Business Expectations Survey by Transport Capital Partners….
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1/26/2012 – FMCSA Clarifies Push-to-Talk Guidance
FMCSA released updated FAQs on its new handheld mobile telephone ban to clarify that the use of the push-to-talk function on mobile phones is permitted, under certain limited conditions….
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1/26/2012 – House Readies Highway Bill
House Republicans will introduce a highway bill next week, said Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., chairman of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Mica’s announcement followed President Obama’s call in his State of the Union address for funding the highway program with money not spent on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan….
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1/23/2012 – Judge Rejects Navistar Bid for SCR Engine Recall

A federal judge rejected Navistar’s bid to have the Environmental Protection Agency recall 2010 engines that use selective catalytic reduction to meet emission standards.

The judge, Colleen Kollar-Kotelly of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, said Navistar’s arguments for the recall are not persuasive and dismissed the case….
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1/19/2012 – Measure Would Allow Truckers to Go 75 mph in Idaho
A senator in northern Idaho wants to allow truckers to drive 75 mph in the state. The current speed limit for semis in Idaho is 65 mph while cars are allowed to drive 75 mph….
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1/19/2012 – Booz Allen: America Needs to ‘Reimagine’ Infrastructure
As the nation prepares for Obama’s 2012 State of the Union address, Booz Allen Hamilton, a strategy and technology consulting firm, outlined items it says should be included in any discussion about the country’s aging infrastructure….
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1/19/2012 – Obama Rejects Keystone XL Pipeline Proposal
President Obama announced that his administration is rejecting the controversial proposal for the Keystone XL oil sands pipeline, which would have transported 700,000 barrels of oil daily from Canada, Montana and the Dakotas to U.S. refineries in Houston….
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1/18/2012 – CSA BASIC Fact Sheets Available on the Web
The Compliance, Safety, Accountability(CSA) program released a new Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Category (BASIC) fact sheet series on its website….
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1/18/2012 – ATRI Updates Online Idling Regulations Compendium
The American Transportation Research Institute has updated the list of idling regulations, both state and local, on its website, atri-online.org….
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1/16/2012 – Minnesota Governor Addresses Infrastructure Problems With New Task Force
The day after announcing a $775 million jobs plan for Minnesota, Gov. Mark Dayton announced plans to establish the Commissioner’s Transportation Finance Advisory Group, a task force that will be responsible for recommending new ways to finance a better state infrastructure….
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1/16/2012 – NC Opens More Roads to Doubles
The North Carolina Department of Transportation will now allow the operation of double-trailer combinations on several freeway routes in the eastern part of the state plus the Triangle area….
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1/12/2012 – TRALA-Supported Virginia Legislation Addresses Motor Vehicle Rental Tax
Delegate James Massie (R-Henrico) has introduced Virginia legislation, sponsored by the Truck Renting and Leasing Association, that would limit the types of revenue taxed under the commonwealth’s 10% motor vehicle rental tax….
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1/11/2012 – New Jersey Assemblyman Alex DeCroce dies at 75
New Jersey Assembly Majority Leader Alex DeCroce, 75, died suddenly late Monday night at the Statehouse, just after the 214th Legislature held its final voting session….
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1/9/2012 – FMCSA Reminds Carriers to Update VMT, Power Unit Data
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is reminding commercial motor carriers they they need to update their Vehicle Miles Travelled (VMT) and Power Unit (PU) data on their Motor Carrier Registration form, known as the MCS-150….
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1/6/2012 – NY Crossover Mirror Law Effective Friday, Jan. 13
A New York law requiring trucks to have crossover mirrors will go into effect next Friday, Jan. 13….
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1/6/2012 – In State of the State, Cuomo Reveals Plans to Better NY Roads and Bridges
In Gov. Cuomo’s state of the state address yesterday, he introduced a plan for the New York Works Fund and Task Force, an entity that would make all the funding decisions for roads, bridges, parks, flood control and municipal water systems….
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1/3/2012 – Former FMCSA Supervisor Jailed for Accepting Bribes
A DOT official in New York State was sentenced Thursday to 18 months in prison after pleading guilty to felony bribe-taking….
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1/3/2012 – Cell Phone Restrictions Now in Effect
Interstate truck and bus drivers are prohibited from using handheld cell phones while driving as of today, Jan. 3, under a final rule posted by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration….
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12/29/2011 – Poll Finds Tolls More Popular Than Higher Fuel Taxes
In a Reason-Rupe poll of 1,200 adults, 58% of respondents said they would rather pay tolls if and when they use a particular lane or highway, rather than paying higher fuel taxes….
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12/28/2011 – New HOS Rule Will Cause Delays for Manufacturers and Cost the Economy
National Association of Manufacturers has come out against trucking’s new hours-of-service rule, saying the rule will have a negative impact on manufacturers’ supply chains, distribution operations and productivity….
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12/28/2011 – Motorcoach Drivers May be Next to Get New HOS Rules
First, airline pilots were handed a new set of HOS rules. Then trucking got new marching orders from FMCSA. Bus drivers may be next. FMCSA has published a public listening session notice for motorcoach HOS….
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12/27/2011 – California Reminds Truck Owners of Jan. 1 Clean Air Deadline
The California Air Resources Board is reminding owners of heavier diesel trucks and buses that new emission reducing regulations go into effect Jan. 1, 2012, and many businesses may need to report compliance online….
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12/23/2011 – New Hours Rule Likely Headed Back to Court
There’s a good chance the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s new hours of service rule is going back to court.

Just hours after the new rule was released, Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety indicated that it may resume its challenge of the 11-hour limit on driving….
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12/22/2011 – Clean Ports Bill Introduced in Senate

A bill that would give ports more authority over drayage operations has been introduced in the Senate. Among other things, the bill would clear the way for ports to ban owner-operators and require all drivers to be employees of companies. …
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12/22/2011 – Final HOS Rule Retains 11-Hour Driving Limit
The long-awaited final rule on revised hours of service has been released, keeping the current 11-hour daily driving limit but cutting by 12 hours the maximum number of hours a truck driver can work within a week….
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Tax, Accounting, Consulting - Emil Estafanous, CPA, CFF, CGMA