3/21/2013
A bi-partisan group of top congressional transportation leaders have joined together in asking the U.S. Department of Transportation to delay implementation of the commercial drivers hours of service (HOS) rule for three months until after a federal court renders a decision. The letter was jointly signed by House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-PA), Ranking Member Nick J. Rahall II (D-WV) and the Highways and Transit Subcommittee Chair Tom Petri (R-WI) and Ranking Member Peter A. DeFazio (D-CA).
According to the congressional letter, “A stay on the HOS rule would avoid costly and unnecessary training of enforcement officers and eliminate any confusion regarding the impact the court’s decision could have on the HOS rule.”
Just last week, the DC Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia heard oral arguments from the American Trucking Associations (ATA) and a safety interest group known as Public Citizen challenging the rule (Breaking News, March 18).
In response to similar requests from the ATA, the League and other groups, the DOT’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) denied the extension stating it failed to meet the criteria that a court applies in determining whether a judicial stay pending appeal should be granted (Notice, March 4).