As anticipated, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) published a request for comments on driver hours-of-service regulations and set a March 10, 2005, deadline to respond.
The Federal Register published the proposed rulemaking January 24. FMCSA is reconsidering its 2003 regulations after they were voided by a federal court in July of 2004.
The 2003 regulations remain in effect until September 30, 2005.
FMCSA is putting forward the 2003 rule as the proposal on which public comments are sought.
However, the agency is asking for comments on what changes to that rule, if any, are necessary to respond to the concerns raised by the court, and to provide data or studies that would support changes to, or continued use of, the 2003 rule.
The court directed FMCSA to more specifically consider the rule’s impact on driver health, the allowable driving and sleeper birth times, and the 34-hour restart time. FMCSA also was ordered to revisit the costs for implementing electronic on-board recording devices.
For information on how to comment on the proposal, as well as more information on the proposal, click here for the Federal Register Web site.