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Feb 29, 2012 10:11 AM

The American Trucking Associations (ATA) filed an amicus brief February 24 with the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in support of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA’s) defense of electronic logging devices.

“ATA supports the use of electronic logging devices, which have demonstrated the ability to improve carriers’ compliance with FMCSA’s hours-of-service regulations,” says Bill Graves, ATA president and chief executive officer. “With this filing, we urge the Court to reject the calls to prevent fleets from using these powerful compliance tools.”

FMCSA’s rules governing the voluntary use of electronic logging devices to record hours-of-service data are being challenged by a group that successfully overturned the agency’s proposal to mandate electronic logging for carriers with egregious hours-of-service violations.

“Thousands of responsible, safety-minded truck fleets throughout this country voluntarily use this technology to ensure their drivers are complying with federal hours-of-service requirements,” Graves says. “The Court should dismiss this challenge and reaffirm the longstanding authorization to voluntarily use electronic logging devices while FMCSA works toward addressing questions about a future, wider mandate for their use.”