FMCSA officially suspends 34-hour restart under HOS rule

Dec. 24, 2014

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) announced in the December 20 issue of the Federal Register that it has suspended enforcement of certain sections of the hours of service (HOS) rules as required by the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015,(also known as Cromnibus) enacted December 16, 2014.

Specifically, FMCSA suspends the requirements regarding the restart of a 60- or 70-hour limit that drivers were required to comply with beginning July 1, 2013. The restart provisions have no force or effect from the date of enactment of the Appropriations Act through the period of suspension, and such provisions are replaced with the previous restart provisions in effect on June 30, 2013.

FMCSA provides this notification to motor carriers, commercial drivers, State Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program grant recipients and other law enforcement personnel of these immediate enforcement changes. The suspension of enforcement of Section 395.3(c) and (d) was effective as of 12:01 am on December 16, 2014.

The suspension of the restart rules that took effect on July 1, 2013, and the availability to drivers of the restart rules in effect on June 30, 2013, will continue until the end of Fiscal Year 2015 (September 30) or until the final report on the naturalistic study has been submitted to the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations, whichever is later.