NPGA Urges Congress to Resolve Hours of Service Issue

NPGA joined a coalition of nearly 100 organizations in urging Congress to support a technical fix that retains the use of the truck driver 34-hour restart.  The Senate is beginning consideration of the Department of Transportation appropriations bill, and currently included in that legislation is language that clarifies the status of the 34-hour restart.  This is necessary due to ambiguity caused by previous legislative efforts to address the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s 2013 rule.

The 2013 FMCSA rule would limit the use of the 34-hour restart to once per week and require that it include two 1:00am – 5:00am periods.  NPGA has worked closely with other trucking groups in opposition of this rule, arguing that the restrictions placed by FMCSA are arbitrary and would severely limit our industry’s ability to serve our customers.

Included in last year’s Omnibus funding legislation was language that prevented FMCSA from implementing the 2013 rule until a Congressionally-mandated study that examined the effectiveness of such a rule was completed.  However, that bill did not clarify that the 34-hour restart should remain in effect absent satisfactory findings from the study.

NPGA stated it will continue to work with Congressional leaders and other interested organizations on this issue.  The organization is hopeful that its inclusion in the DOT funding bill is a positive first step in finding a resolution.