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Good news for truckers may be on the horizon courtesy of a new bill that could potentially overturn the new hours-of-service regulations enacted on the trucking industry. Backed by bi-partisan support, the new bill would reverse the current HOS rules, enabling truckers to switch back to following the previous rules put in place before the July 1 updates.
Introduced on Thursday, Oct. 31, The True Understanding of the Economy and Safety Act (True Safety Act) would postpone the current hours rule until further review by the Government Accountability Office. The GAO could work to evaluate the rationale used by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, which was used to develop the 34-hour restart provisions implemented in the new rules.
In the event that the True Safety Act is approved, the GAO would move forward with conducting this study. Meanwhile, the FMCSA would be prohibited from re-instating the restart provisions enacted July 1. This ban would be in effect until six months after the GAO provided its report to Congress. The bill is sponsored by three House representatives: Richard Hanna, Tom Rice, and Mike Michaud.
Hanna believes that the new bill would enable both the GAO and Congress to further evaluate the regulations to make sure that the rule actually makes sense for the trucking industry. Furthermore, he said that this assessment would help determine how the HOS rules would impact the U.S. economy, as well as travelers across the country.
Hanna’s efforts to reverse the current HOS rules began back in July, when he attempted to add an amendment to a bigger transportation bill that would have dismissed the current hours regulation. Despite his efforts, the bill was pulled out of the House on July 31, before the congressional recess in August. Nevertheless, in that same month, Hanna teamed up with 51 members of the House to send a letter of concern to Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx.
The letter explained their worries about the hours rule, focusing on the fact that the FMCSA had not released any findings pertaining to an hours of service study. Hanna said that by issuing the letter, he planned to involve Congress in the HOS rules. By doing so, he believed that this would help make some sense of the new regulations. Regardless, Foxx replied to Hanna’s letter simply by advocating the hours rule and expressing support for the research backing the decision.
Although the current HOS regulations could be overturned, trucking companies still need to keep track of their finances in order to keep talented, qualified drivers on board. Truck invoice factoring can be the key to increasing cash flow for small to mid-sized trucking companies. With immediate cash advances available, trucking factoring provides cash for truckers to haul more loads and increase revenue. Meet expenses with no problem by taking advantage of truck invoice factoring. Request an invoice factoring quote online today, and take charge of running your business.
Related blog posts for truckers:
Truckers are tired – of the HOS rules
HOS regulations could be undone in 2014
HOS requirements are hitting truckers in their wallet – the effect on driver pay
